Absolute Escapes Traveller Reviews

7 day trip, walking the West Highland Way..

Great communication all the way through the booking process. When it appeared I might have a scheduling issue due to a family emergency, they immediately got back to me. All of the logistics of the trip performed as expected. All my luggage was in the right place at the right time for each nights accommodation. Accommodations selections were very good. Absolute Escapes provided a personalized approach to setting up my Holiday and I felt like a valued customer from the beginning to the end.

We spent 6 days hiking along the Great Glen Way in Scotland. From Fort William to Inverness. Three close child hood friends celebrating our fiftieth birthdays. (We have known each other since 1975). It was our first time in Scotland and were amazed by the majestic scenery of the Lochs and Hills. It was without doubt A once in a lifetime experience in the highlands.

Tour operator was very helpful in booking the guest houses along the way and supplying information regarding the route and transferring the baggage from one guest house to the other. As the whole trip was well planned and without any problems, I can't say much else

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3 senior Canadian women on a road trip through western Scotland. Rental car troubles day 1 and 2, but the wonderful Scottish people we met helped all along. Great unique B&Bs with lovely hosts and enormous breakfasts. Detailed instructions and suggestions for places to go and to eat. Immediate help when ferries were cancelled due to high winds. We always felt that someone was there to help out when needed.

Pre-planning went smoothly, any changes we wanted were done. During the trip there was always support.

We had an amazing vacation in Scotland! Thank you! It was perfect. What a beautiful country and friendly people. The castles were great, the driving went well, the directions and suggestions regarding activities and restaurants perfect. Absolute Escapes did a great job arranging everything and there we had no problems with any of the arrangements.

They arranged a castle to castle tour with 4-5 star accommodations in castle hotels and then a driving route through Scotland. They provided a detailed itinerary for everyday that gave us our choice of activities from hiking, sightseeing,historical sites, museums etc and provided suggestions for excellent restaurants.

we rented a vehicle as organized by Absolute Escapes and drove nearly 1000 miles around Scotland, staying in B&B's organized by Absolute Escapes.

Megan. our contact person at Absolute Escapes, was wonderful. She answered all of our questions plesantly and efficiently and gave good advice that helped immensely with the planning. I would recommend her services to anyone going to Scotland or the UK.

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186 + miles of pure walking bliss from Amroth to St Dogmaels. Even a few days of bad weather could not dampen our enjoyment of this wonderful place.

This was our third walking trip booked with Absolute Escapes. The accommodations were outstanding as well as the luggage transfers and information pack. The communication with this company is always very prompt and friendly.

More than 70 miles of walking in six days plus a trip to Rathlin Island. The Moyle Way and the Causeway Coast Way are relatively easy-walking for the average experienced walker and are well-signposted. Of course, the highlights are the Giant's Causeway World Heritage Site and the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge

Absolute Escapes provided a first class service from beginning to end - a truly personal service! All the accommodations they selected were excellent and the itinerary, guidebook and maps were perfect.

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As I wrote, our holiday was really fantastic. Everything went well. The places were we stayed were great, clean and with very friendly and helpful hosts . It was also find to see, at the end of the day, that your luggage was already waiting for you. We are so enthousiastic about this kind of holiday and the way it was organised, that we intent to do another walk next year (probably in Scotland - I already had a look at your offers and started dreaming…).

Every contact went smoothly. Our special requests were met. The quality of the information we received before starting was very high (detailed information about the places where we were going to stay, what to see, where to eat).

I travelled by car to Shetland, Orkney and the Western Isles over a period of 5 weeks, staying mostly in B&Bs selected by Absolute Escapes who also arranged the car hire (Edinburgh and back to Edinburgh) and all ferries. I generally spent 3 days in most locations, visiting historical sites, points of general interest and some excellent folk museums telling the story of the local history. The whole trip went extremely well, due in no small way to careful planning and great selections by Katia at Absolute Escapes. I appreciated the range of accommodation types that was booked for me and each one worked very well. The sightseeing list provided was very helpful. There were some great hosts who made me feel welcome and provided local information and advice. All accommodation was excellent and facilities all worked well. Every location I visited I found everything I had hoped for and more. There were the usual Scottish rain showers and a couple of windy days but they did not impede my holiday. My favourite place would be between Orkney, Lewis and the Scottish North Coast. There was no part of my holiday that I would have by-passed. There was remarkable variety and each location had its distinctive character. On Orkney, I found the Neolithic sites very interesting, especially when viewed alongside the Ness of Brodgar where archaeological research is in its comparatively early phase with plenty of material still to interpret. It was great to see the Old Man of Hoy from the ferry. The diversity of Orkney was interesting, from the jewellery, the Churchill Barriers on Scapa Flow and the Italian Church, Highland Park distillery to St Magnus Cathedral. Isle of Lewis also had great diversity, from the Neolithic to the blackhouses and an insight of how people lived in comparatively recent times, the Stephenson lighthouse on the Butt of Lewis and the neighbouring beaches and harbour at the Ness of Lewis. Great Bernera had its iron-age house and the folk museum as well as fine beaches. There were some great folk museums providing an insight into the various struggles and challenges in various parts of Scotland. For me, the stand-outs were Strathnaver Museum at Bettyhill, Lochmaddy, Great Bernera, Kildonan on South Uist and Seallam on the west coast of the Isle of Harris. Culloden is very well presented now with the new interpretive Centre. I first saw Culloden in January 1978 when there were only the clan grave headstones poking up through the snow. The issues involved with the Jacobite Uprising were many and complex yet the Centre presents both the Jacobite and Government positions very clearly. Some clans joined the uprising to support displeasure with Westminster. Has much changed? Scotland’s people certainly endured great hardships imposed upon them following the Uprising. The Battle of Bannockburn presentation is extremely well presented with computer technology, explaining the events leading up to 1314 as well as the tactics in the battle itself. It was certainly an important chapter in Scotland’s history and development.

Nothing was any trouble as we built the holiday with a series of emails, based initially on selected parts of their pro forma trips on the website. The selection of accommodation was excellent with a variety of experiences with differing types of accommodation. The 90-page itinerary with details of accommodation address, website, postcode and directions to the property meant stress-free driving. The itinerary also included suggestions for dinner and points of interest on each island. Katia was excellent to work with, providing practical suggestions to ensure that my objectives were met.

We were lucky enough to travel around Scotland for three weeks in September this year. Our first class train travel from London to Edinburgh and this proved to be a wonderful start to our exciting holiday. We were treated to the most magnificent, diverse, stunning landscapes as we drove from Edinburgh, to Loch Lomond, around both the Isle of Mull and Skye, then onto Fort William and Perth. The B&B's we stayed in were well appointed in the towns. They all offered such a delightful range of experiences with hosts that shone with knowledge, character and warmth. The information we received from our tour operator aided the experience. We were given detailed information for each stop of our journey that was concise, accurate and helpful. We had a wonderful time exploring Scotland in all its raining glory knowing that it was a well planned and well supported holiday.

Absolute Escapes presented a wonderful holiday package after consultation with us. Fern was eternally patient with our requests, knowledgeable and helpful with her suggestions. Her responses to our email requests were prompt and a reflection of what was possible but also a respect of what we required. I cannot talk highly enough of Fern and her dealings with us. We had a small car accident whilst away and her quick response along with her expertise in handling this took the pressure from us. A huge thank you to Fern and her team for the perfect holiday experience.