Absolute Escapes Traveller Reviews

I achieved a long-term wish to walk the West Highland Way. I took eight days for the walk, and enjoyed every minute. The scenery is extraordinary, the accommodation was mostly excellent. Other people on the way were friendly and interesting to meet. A truly memorable eight days.

Absolute Escapes - very helpful and friendly. Most of the accommodation they booked was very good. The bag transfer was faultless. Definitely a company I would use again.

Our travels to Orkney and the Outer Hebrides went smoothly and were thoroughly enjoyed. We were pleased we asked Absolute Escapes to coordinate our trip on rather short notice. It is obvious that September is still a very busy time and bookings were essential as we looped around the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. Absolute Escapes provided a complete itinerary for us detailing activities along our routes. We had a grand time experiencing the geology, archaeology, walks, people, seafood, cheeses, B&B's , and more during our 3 weeks on Orkney and the Outer Hebrides. We started with a good glimpse of Glasgow before heading north for a short time in Inverness, Driving up to Thurso for the ferry to Orkney was easy and interesting. Orkney was a wonderful discovery! Our B&B in Stromness was very welcoming, and we loved all the archaeological sites. It was fun to see Castle Mey and a few other scenic/historical spots as we drove to Ullapool for the ferry across to Isle of Lewis. On the Isle of Lewis our B& B in Ard Uig was very nice, and we enjoyed the more remote location. The beaches and walks on the Isle of Harris were lovely. We took the ferry over to Uist for a day trip; it was interesting to see the differences of the Outer Hebrides islands. Our time on Skye was a bit disappointing as the infrastructure can not handle the crowds of tourists. We had decent weather until the last few days of our holiday, but we feel that is pretty good for Scotland! Absolute Escapes did help us have a memorable and special look at Orkney and the Outer Hebides!

Absolute Escapes was an excellent coordinator. From the beginning they replied to our inquiries in a professional, efficient, and timely manner. They were very pleasant and easy to work with. Our 3 week itinerary did not take long to complete and was tailored to our interests in archaeology, especially on Orkney and the Outer Hebrides.

I would love to recommend Absolute Escapes to other travelers! I could probably write a 10 page email (and maybe I will) but here are some thoughts: - was great staying in Fort Augustus 2 nights -- I was not too keen initially -- we were booked here 2 nights as no lodging in Invermoriston. BUT worked out great as Fort A. was my favorite town and since both days on either side of it were "short" in terms of miles, we had time to explore Fort A. 1st day we did the Loch Ness cruise and watched a group of boats go thru the locks. 2nd day, I did some wandering around and shopping. Plus Lin and Tom were probably our favorite inn keepers of the whole trip so it was great to stay with them for 2 nights - we did the High route when there was a choice - Food everywhere was wonderful!!! We ate like kings (I haven't gotten the Visa bill yet). And best part was Scottish restaurants (small, large, expensive, inexpensive ) were all very atuned to allergies and most menu items could be prepared Gluten free. We found the restaurants more advanced in terms of dealing with Gluten free than in the USA. All the B&B hosts had GF breakfast items, including home made GF break at Glen Albyn Lodge. - Sept seemed great time to hike. Not many hikers and we made friends with those we did meet. No bugs. Weather ok (shower/sun/shower/sun ... ) - We arrived day of Hurricane Ali and our train to Fort William from Glasgow was cancelled. But we switched to the bus and had a fun ride as he navigated downed trees, traffic jams, wind, etc. He was quite entertaining and also drove us back the last day from Portree to Glasgow! - We never needed to buy lunch . We ate such a big breakfast, we managed with snacks we brought with us, snacks provided at breakfast from B&B, and often made a peanut butter or jelly sandwich using leftover toast from breakfast. - most other people we met were doing the last day Drum to Inverness in 2 days. They were being dropped off at the high point each of 2 days and walked west back to Drum the first day and then east to Inverness the 2nd. So I was quite proud of myself doing the last day as ONE stretch (which was quite long). - My favorite day was 4th day Fort Augustus to Invermoriston. Great views, good weather, uphill sections but not too many miles. - we preferred the Manthorpe book to the one you provided. It was a lot more detailed and the maps made it very easy to see where you were. Also did a good job of pointing out nice places to rest or stop for lunch. That being said, we rarely used the books or maps during the day as the trail is so well marked. We tended to review things the night before and then just refer to the book once or twice during the day.

Very prompt response to email inquiries. Very courteous. Information packets very useful & detailed. Substituted a different book since we already had one of the maps they include.

Reviewer's images:

We loved Scotland! It was everything we hoped for our holidays. Adventure, beautiful landscape, nice people, rain:-))

Our operators were reslly nice, all of our questions were answered immediately and everything turned out beautifully

It was wonderful. The scenery along the Way was amazing. Everyone I met (including the driver who drove me past a spirited dog) were warm and friendly. The lodging and all the meals exceeded my expectations and finally, the nicest surprise were other walkers that I met along the way. I enjoyed this trip very much and highly recommend it to others.

Absolute Escapes were the best. Very friendly, always prompt and a pleasure to work with. They made me feel like their important client. I'm looking to using on future trips.

My wife and I were only a few days into our journey when we both discussed how we had to make sure to give Absolute Escapes a raving review. It is glaringly apparent the amount of effort and care that your company puts into choosing lodging, the route, and offering great ideas for excursions, restaurants, and places to visit along the way. We were completely blown away with just how great our experience was. Each bed and breakfast was lovely, the owners of all were so accommodating, kind, and we could feel that Scottish charm and genuine nature just pouring through. It was also clear that the bookings were made to give us the best rooms available in each bed and breakfast. Just phenomenal, I cannot say enough good things about Absolute Escapes. Not to mention that everyone in your company (especially Pippa Robinson) have been so professional, prompt, and just gentle about the way you deal with your clients. Skye was amazing, as was every other location, but Skye really stood out to us. We hiked in the Quiraing and I'm not sure how many moments I'll have in my life that filled me with such wonder and joy as that hike did for us. We visited five distilleries, and each was wonderful, but Edradour was the most charming of them all, loved it. Found a new favorite malt, too! Lagavulin 16 will always be tops in my heart, but Coal Ila is just spectacular, and I finally have begun to pronounce Islay appropriately! Edinburgh was by far the culinary master of the trip, the food in that city blew us away. The bar Bramble, and the restaurant Dishoom stick out the most, excellent is an understatement. All in all, from the monumental to the nuanced, this trip was impactful and profound, and would have never been half of what it was to us if it weren't for the care and expertise that Absolute Escapes put into setting us up for success. We will definitely be back to your beautiful country soon, and thank you so much to you and your whole team at Absolute Escapes for making our trip so easy and amazing! Cheers!

It was a self guided tour, but I mainly had correspondence with Pippa Robinson who was just an absolute dream to deal with. I did have correspondence with one another associate of Absolute Escapes, and they were totally wonderful as well!

Four of us (two from Canada and two from England) walked St Oswald's Way in September 2018. We very much enjoyed ourselves and plan to repeat the experience with another walk soon.

Absolute Escapes organised our walk and accommodation, and everything went perfectly. The accommodations were well selected and many of our hosts spoke very highly of Absolute Escapes. It is clear that they are good to work with as well as good to book with. Absolutely excellent!

My wife and I like long walks...really long walks. With the incredible assistance of Absolute Escapes, we completed the West Highland Way, The Great Glen Way and The Speyside/Moray Loop...back to back! We hiked over 450 miles over 28 days and the information and logistics provided by Absolute Escapes was critical to our success and enjoyment of this awesome experience through the Scottish Highlands.

We found Absolute Escapes from a web search of operates in the UK. This is the first time we have used a tour company to handle logistics for one of our non-guided adventures. From the first contact, they were responsive, insightful and gently "guided" us toward the perfect itinerary based on what we were hoping to accomplish. Their suggestions were spot on and the accommodations they arranged for us could not have been more inviting. The written material provided by Absolute Escapes also proved essential to our immersion into the history and culture of the Highlands and its people.

We spent a day each on four islands. We stayed in excellent B&Bs and enjoyed the scenery in the various different weather conditions! Everyone was welcoming and helpful, especially when we had to change plans due to a storm causing our ferry to be cancelled.

Arranged all the places to stay and provided us with lots of useful information about local sites, visitor attractions and eating places. They were exceptionally helpful when a storm caused ferries to be cancelled and last minute changes to accommodation were needed.

My new husband and I chose to head to Scotland for our honeymoon in September 2018! This year was a very busy one for us, both personally and professionally and, while we were very excited for Scotland, we both knew that we wouldn't be able to spend the time needed to plan the trip fully. I am so grateful that we turned to Absolute Escapes to help us! Event planning is a big portion of my job, so I appreciate and understand how much work and planning goes into making events (or trips!) a success. For that reason, I really appreciated the level of detail that was provided in our packet, from the descriptions of the guest houses to restaurant recommendations. Throughout our trip, we had meals at several of the recommended restaurants (two of our favourites were Cafe Fish in Tobermory and the Seafood Ristorante in St. Andrews) and took part in a number of the listed activities (Calgary Bay, Duart Castle, tour of Loch Ness). We both loved the guest houses that were booked for us; all of the hosts were friendly and welcoming! At our first guest house (The Gil Dun Guest House in Edinburgh), the hosts bought us champagne to celebrate our honeymoon! It was a really special way to begin the trip. Edinburgh was one of our favourite stops and we would love to go back and spend a full week in the city, as we felt like we only got to scratch the surface! Some friends of ours had recommended that we take in the Military Tattoo, so we had booked tickets several months in advance. We loved the show! Isle of Mull and Tobermory was also one of our favourite stops. My husband is a McLean, so he was very excited to have an opportunity to visit Duart Castle, home of the MacLean clan. We spend a long time wandering the grounds and my husband had an opportunity to sign a special guest book reserved for MacLeans/McLeans. The owners of the guest house told us that there is a MacLean clan reunion every five years, which we would love to come back for! St. Andrews was our third favourite stop. We loved wandering the town and enjoyed a round of golf at Strathyrum. We also adored our guest house in St. Andrews (our hosts Margaret and James at Braeside House were absolutely lovely). Overall, we could not have asked for a better trip. It was so well planned and we truly felt that Absolute Escapes went above and beyond for us. Scotland is maybe my favourite country I've ever visited and we're already talked about going back!

I could not have been more impressed with Absolute Escapes. We worked with Caitlin and she was fantastic - she provided timely and thorough responses and fantastic recommendations. We had some questions halfway through the trip and she was so helpful. Absolute Escapes took care of everything for us, which took away any stress of planning a trip. We would highly recommend the company!