AITO: The Association of Independent Tour Operators
Absolute Escapes

Absolute Escapes Traveller Reviews

Reviews of Absolute Escapes

Overall Company Rating
99%
Excellent 769
Good 21
Average 4
Poor 1
Terrible 0
Reviews Submitted: 795
Reviews Accepted: 795
Reviews Rejected: 0
795 reviews
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Absolute Escapes by Phil H, 19 Sep 2019
Holiday Rating:

Superb

We walked St. Cuthbert's Way, having booked with Absolute Escapes who arranged all the accommodation, baggage transfers, taxis, maps and information. The advice on tides enabling us to walk the ancient pilgrim route from the mainland to Lindisfarne was very helpful. We had great weather in early September and met some wonderful people on the walk.

We walked St. Cuthbert's Way, having booked with Absolute Escapes who arranged all the accommodation, baggage transfers, taxis, maps and information. The advice on tides enabling us to walk the ancient pilgrim route from the mainland to Lindisfarne was very helpful. We had great weather in early September and met some wonderful people on the walk.

Rating for tour operator:

They arranged everything, including some excellent B&Bs, baggage transfers, sent maps, guidebook and lots of information. Very good and would consider booking with them again.

Absolute Escapes responded to this review on 23 Sep 2019:

Thank you for your wonderful review, Tam. We're so pleased to hear that you had a great time and met some lovely people along the way. Please do not hesitate to contact us should be we able to assist in the future. Best wishes, Fern Urquhart

Absolute Escapes by Superbian, 18 Sep 2019
Holiday Rating:

Walking St. Cuthbert's Way over four days

A self-guided walking holiday. Everything was organised by Absolute escapes, from arrival to departure. Accommodation, taxis, baggage transfers - all pre-arranged and delivered with accuracy and efficiency, allowing me to get on with enjoying my four day walk across the Scottish border into Northumberland ending on Holy Island, Lindisfarne. Some great B&Bs, and an excellent itinerary pack added to the ease and enjoyment of my holiday.

A self-guided walking holiday. Everything was organised by Absolute escapes, from arrival to departure. Accommodation, taxis, baggage transfers - all pre-arranged and delivered with accuracy and efficiency, allowing me to get on with enjoying my four day walk across the Scottish border into Northumberland ending on Holy Island, Lindisfarne. Some great B&Bs, and an excellent itinerary pack added to the ease and enjoyment of my holiday.

Rating for tour operator:

Absolute Escapes

Absolute Escapes responded to this review on 18 Sep 2019:

Thank you very much for your great feedback Simon and we're really pleased to hear you enjoyed your walk on the St Cuthbert's Way and that all our arrangements worked well for you. Northumberland is such a lovely part of the world for walking! Please do get in touch again if we can be of assistance with any future walking holidays! Best wishes, Caitlin Rush

Absolute Escapes by Foodie, 10 Sep 2019
Holiday Rating:

Great Glen Way walk

Seven of us ventured on the Great Glen Way’s 70-plus mile walk and had a fabulous time - walking as well as experiencing Scottish hospitality, food and culture. Absolute Escapes made all the arrangements and everything they did went smoothly.

Seven of us ventured on the Great Glen Way’s 70-plus mile walk and had a fabulous time - walking as well as experiencing Scottish hospitality, food and culture. Absolute Escapes made all the arrangements and everything they did went smoothly.

Rating for tour operator:

Absolute Escapes arranged all of our accommodations, daily luggage transfers and required transportation - the services they employed were top notch; B&Bs and hotels excellent and recommendations they made for meals were excellent. They did a great job for our group!

Absolute Escapes responded to this review on 11 Sep 2019:

Thank you very much for your lovely review Joan. We're really pleased to hear that your Great Glen Way walk was a success and that you were able to get a real feel for Scotland along the way. Please do not hesitate to get in touch again if we can be of assistance with any future walking adventures! Best wishes, Caitlin Rush

Absolute Escapes by CLW, 10 Sep 2019
Holiday Rating:

Challenging-Wonderful-Gorgeous Views

Hiked the West Highland Way. We used Absolute Escapes to reserve our B&B's and transport our luggage while we enjoyed the beautiful Scotland countryside as we hiked. Our accommodation's were great and it was lovely to come in from the hike with our bags in our rooms.

Hiked the West Highland Way. We used Absolute Escapes to reserve our B&B's and transport our luggage while we enjoyed the beautiful Scotland countryside as we hiked. Our accommodation's were great and it was lovely to come in from the hike with our bags in our rooms.

Rating for tour operator:

They were very helpful in customizing our hike tour to our needs.

Absolute Escapes responded to this review on 11 Sep 2019:

Many thanks for your excellent review Cheryl, we were delighted to hear you enjoyed your time on the West Highland Way. If we can be of assistance in the future please don't hesitate to contact us. Best wishes, Jason Martin

Absolute Escapes by Yorkie, 7 Sep 2019
Holiday Rating:

Wonderful West Highland Way Walk

96mile walk with amazing scenery from Milngarvie to Fort William. Staying in fabulous accommodation which was so lovely after a long hike in all weather.

96mile walk with amazing scenery from Milngarvie to Fort William. Staying in fabulous accommodation which was so lovely after a long hike in all weather.

Rating for tour operator:

Absolute Escapes were marvellous. Very well organised, keeping us well informed at all times. From the moment I contacted them they arranged everything to exactly what I wanted, even better. The whole trip ran like clockwork. The accommodation they had arranged were all perfect. We would recommend and us them again on our next walking holiday.

Absolute Escapes responded to this review on 09 Sep 2019:

Thank you very much for your wonderful feedback. We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed your time on the West Highland Way and found the accommodations to be fabulous. We look forward to welcoming you back for another holiday. Best wishes, Fern Urquhart

Absolute Escapes by Sally , 30 Aug 2019
Holiday Rating:

Great Glen Way Walk

Taylor and I had a great time on the walk! We had some rainy weather in the beginning and then luckily once we got to Fort Augustus the rain cleared up and we had fantastic luck with the weather going to Inverness. The High Route has the most fantastic views of Loch Ness and and beyond. We loved all the B&B hosts we stayed with. They were so wonderful and accommodating. Laura and Lorraine literally cheered us on as we walked up to their house ...

Taylor and I had a great time on the walk! We had some rainy weather in the beginning and then luckily once we got to Fort Augustus the rain cleared up and we had fantastic luck with the weather going to Inverness. The High Route has the most fantastic views of Loch Ness and and beyond. We loved all the B&B hosts we stayed with. They were so wonderful and accommodating. Laura and Lorraine literally cheered us on as we walked up to their house in South Laggan. The eco cafe was a highlight for us on the last day as well it gave us a chance to catch up with all the other walkers and eat some Lemon Cake.

Rating for tour operator:

We booked through Absolute Escapes and it so was so easy. We told Pippa Robinson where we wanted to go and she booked our B&Bs and mailed us a map and detailed itinerary ahead of time. The best part was knowing places to eat from her recommendations in the area ahead of time so we didn't have to do that research. We just showed up for the trip and everything fell into place! Very stress free!

Absolute Escapes responded to this review on 30 Aug 2019:

Thank you very much for your wonderful feedback Sally. I was so delighted that you and Taylor enjoyed the Great Glen Way and got to sample the fantastic lemon cake at the Eco Cafe! Hopefully we can welcome you back to Scotland for another walking adventure soon. Best wishes, Pippa Robson

Absolute Escapes by TarHeelWanderer, 27 Aug 2019
Holiday Rating:

Highland Bliss

From the initial outreach to Absolute Escapes, through the entire planning process (which involved a lot of changes and what ifs on my end), through a fender bender after a bus hit my rental car while I was parked waiting to drive onto the ferry at Mallaig, the entire Absolute Escapes team was stellar in their communications and planning. Having never been to Scotland before, they were able to set me and my 83-year-old mother up with an itinerary ...

From the initial outreach to Absolute Escapes, through the entire planning process (which involved a lot of changes and what ifs on my end), through a fender bender after a bus hit my rental car while I was parked waiting to drive onto the ferry at Mallaig, the entire Absolute Escapes team was stellar in their communications and planning. Having never been to Scotland before, they were able to set me and my 83-year-old mother up with an itinerary where we could both enjoy the majesty of the Scottish Highlands. The accommodations were top notch, and well tailored to what we wanted (Inverlochy Castle is a must!). I will definitely be recommending others who are traveling to Scotland to reach out to Absolute Escapes, and I am a definite future customer for any upcoming travels to Scotland. My only wish was that we could have spent more time in the Highlands, particularly on the Isle of Skye, which was so stunning that I found myself saying "Wow" at almost every twist and turn in the road.

Rating for tour operator:

Absolute Escapes, especially Andy Gabe and Fern Urquhart, were stellar. Great communications. Great planning. Great assistance when I got into a minor traffic accident. Their trip planner itinerary document was amazing and really helped my mom envision the trip as we were going. This was a 5* experience, and Absolute Escapes provides 5* service.

Reviewer's images:
Absolute Escapes responded to this review on 28 Aug 2019:

Thank you for your wonderful review, Michael. I'm so pleased to hear that both yourself and your mother enjoyed your time in Scotland! It was a pleasure working with you to plan your holiday and we look forward to welcoming you back to Scotland in the not too distant future. Best wishes, Fern Urquhart

Absolute Escapes by P. Muir, 26 Aug 2019
Holiday Rating:

Amazing walking holiday along the Great Glen Way

This was our first long walk and working with Absolute Escapes meant that we could concentrate on the views because everything else was taken care of. Our lodgings were perfect. It was so nice to arrive each day and have our baggage waiting so we could shower and change and then head to one of the recommended evening options. The map and the flip book they provided were invaluable as was their detailed itinerary.

This was our first long walk and working with Absolute Escapes meant that we could concentrate on the views because everything else was taken care of. Our lodgings were perfect. It was so nice to arrive each day and have our baggage waiting so we could shower and change and then head to one of the recommended evening options. The map and the flip book they provided were invaluable as was their detailed itinerary.

Rating for tour operator:

Our tour operator was friendly and answered all of our questions promptly. We compared notes about other tour operators with fellow walkers on the trail and found that the information provided by Absolute Escapes was extraordinarily complete.

Absolute Escapes responded to this review on 26 Aug 2019:

Thank you for your wonderful review, Pamela. We are so pleased to hear that you had such a great time on your holiday and a huge congratulations on completing your first long-distance walk! We hope that this has inspired you to continue exploring the incredible trails the UK and Ireland have to offer and we hope that we can assist you with your next adventure soon. Best wishes, Fern Urquhart

Absolute Escapes by Lovely tour of Scotland, 23 Aug 2019
Holiday Rating:

Lovely holiday

We did a circle driving tour of Scotland and the Lake District of England beginning and ending in Edinburgh. We enjoyed being in Edinburgh but it was hectic due to the Fringe festival. Loved seeing Loch Lomond, The Nevis Range, especially loved Glen Coe, the Rannish mood and the Isle of Skye. We saw fabulous castles and other historic sites. The inns chosen had wonderful innkeepers who were both friendly and helpful. They were conveniently ...

We did a circle driving tour of Scotland and the Lake District of England beginning and ending in Edinburgh. We enjoyed being in Edinburgh but it was hectic due to the Fringe festival. Loved seeing Loch Lomond, The Nevis Range, especially loved Glen Coe, the Rannish mood and the Isle of Skye. We saw fabulous castles and other historic sites. The inns chosen had wonderful innkeepers who were both friendly and helpful. They were conveniently located. Wished we had more time there.

Rating for tour operator:

Absolute Escapes staff listened to our wishes and created the trip of our dreams. Very responsive and efficient.

Absolute Escapes responded to this review on 23 Aug 2019:

Thank you for your wonderful review, Maureen. We are so pleased to hear that you had such a great time in Scotland and managed to see so much! It was a pleasure planning your holiday with you, and hopefully, one day we can welcome you back to Scotland. Best wishes, Fern Urquhart

Absolute Escapes by DT-IT, 22 Aug 2019
Holiday Rating:

A walking holiday around the isle of Arran

We had a wonderful time. We are used to quite long walks and the possibility of hiking without heavy luggage has been an asset. The Arran Coastal Way is a very nice route and the landscape impressive. All the sections of the route are enjoyable and the island offers lot of things to see (both natural and cultural – please note that we have been travelling to Scotland several times). The information pack and guide books delivered to us are ...

We had a wonderful time. We are used to quite long walks and the possibility of hiking without heavy luggage has been an asset. The Arran Coastal Way is a very nice route and the landscape impressive. All the sections of the route are enjoyable and the island offers lot of things to see (both natural and cultural – please note that we have been travelling to Scotland several times). The information pack and guide books delivered to us are good-quality and describe in detail the way and its characteristics. We also enjoyed the friendly people and excellent food. In a nutshell: top!

Rating for tour operator:

It is the first time we have been using a company for organising our travel. We booked with Absolute Escapes and everything was perfect. All the places where we lodged during our stay are very good, well-managed, run by friendly and helpful people; all of them are exactly the kind of places we like and we couldn't haven chosen better ourselves. Luggage was always on time - despite the flooding of part of Arran during our stay! Transport by Arran motor taxis was very efficient and we enjoyed the conversation with our driver. Communications with the tour operator staff has been fast and clear. It was worth the money indeed.

Absolute Escapes responded to this review on 27 Aug 2019:

Thank you very much for your wonderful feedback Diego. The Isle of Arran is indeed a wonderful holiday destination with many sightseeing opportunities, and we were so delighted to hear that you enjoyed your time on the Arran Coastal Way even despite the weather! We hope to be able to welcome you back to Scotland in future. Best wishes, Pippa Robson