McKinlay Kidd Traveller Reviews

I had heard about the great scenery in this area and had decided to go by train and look at the view rather drive. I had travelled on the Orient Express in Europe and preferred the idea of not sleeping on trains. Too cramped no ensuite bathrooms etc. This trip combined the best of both worlds. Picked up by chauffeur after each leg of the journey taken to wonderful accommodation in castles and lodges with delicious food and next day picked up to be taken to station for the next leg of the journey. Sometimes we stayed 2 nights in the one spot as on the Isle of Skye. We were given a wonderful bespoke tour of the island by Gordon. In general it was first class all the way and compared to the Orient Express trip much better value for money and better food. On the train or in the hotel restaurants and lounges we had some lovely conversations with fellow travellers.

McKinlay Kidd were recommended to me as agents who specialized in Scotland and Ireland. That why we chose them. They were efficient. All communications were online.But when we got to Scotland everything promised was delivered. Couldn't recommend them highly enough.

Our first visit to the islands far exceeded expectations and was like clockwork thanks to the McKinlay Kidd team - we are hooked and will be back especially to Colonsay which is the ancestral home of our Brown and McPhee family. Iona is the most tranquil and spiritual place we have ever visited. The hotels were first class and the friendliness and hospitality everywhere we visited also.

The staff at McKinlay Kidd were friendly, informative and went out of their way to help and advise us. Their communication was excellent which was a great help for our first holiday north of the border. I would not hesitate to use them again and recommend to friends.

This was an amazing trip to Scotland. We did Edinburgh and Highlands. The places we stayed at were EXCELLENT! Very clean, great service, location, great food. We drive all around Scotland, seeing beautiful scenery all along the way. Everyone was so friendly. It was a trip I’ll never forget!

Very organized, great driving details and recommendations, communicated well with us during the planning process. The places we stayed were EXCELLENT! I love how you ge the information on your phone on an app and get a print out. I would highly recommend McKinlay Kidd for anyone planning a trip to Scotland!

Great trip around Arran, Islay, Mull and Skye. Excellent itinerary for self drive. Route and ferries and accommodation booked via McKinlay Kidd One of the best holidays we have had

Professional and very competent Excellent communication and documentation. Office staff friendly and very helpful Thoroughly recommended

Everything was very well organized and thought out. We had perfect hotels and food at each stop and got a taste for the different parts of the country.

McKinlay Kidd was very well organized. Each hotel was well chosen, comfortable and had great food. We really enjoyed the travel app (vamoos) they provided us with to keep handy for our trip.

After researching Scotland and speaking with friends about their experiences, we decided on an itinerary of 4 days in Edinburgh, one in St Andrews and Inverness, 3 on Isle of Skye, 2 in Oban, and 2 in Glasgow with train travel between cities to allow for viewing the beautiful landscapes of the country. We asked for a half day private tour in Edinburgh and on Skye and an excursion from Oban to the Isles of Staffa, Iona, and Mull. We loved all our accommodations and arrangements in each location. In hindsight, I would add a couple of days in Ft William as we only passed through what looked like a lovely area of Scotland. The scenery and interaction with the people of Scotland proved more spectacular and warm than we ever expected. If you enjoy travel, history, and gorgeous landscapes this is the trip you should plan to make!

McKinley Kidd travel made our lifetime dream trip to Scotland all we had hoped for. We let them know our itinerary of stops and let them arrange hotels, transportation to fit our lifestyle, transfers, and private tours and excursions. All hotels were fabulous, travel was efficient and flawlessly arranged, and tours guides wonderful and well organized while adjusting to our requests. Whenever we had a question about arrangements, a phone call was promptly answered by an actual human (no menu to negotiate) who was able to look at our itinerary and provide an answer right away. The Vamoos travel app they provided gave detailed info on our trip that we could access anytime. Highly recommend McKinley Kidd.

It has always been an ambition to travel from Ness at the northern tip of the Isle of Lewis to Castlebay at the southern tip of the Isle of Barra at the other end of the Western Isles in Scotland. This trip was organised and put together for us by Mckinlay Kidd with great attention to detail. The whole experience went far beyond our expectations.

Mckinlay Kidd were very good to deal with interpreting our plans for the holiday finding excellent accommodation and organising the required ferries to complete the travel adventure.

Had we known we would have avoided the Bank holiday

Made us feel part of a family

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The holiday was beautifully planned and Ken & Imogen and their staff treated us very well at the Old Pines Hotel,. The food was excellent and they could not do enough for us. The trip on the Jacobite steam train was fun, particularly as I had ordered two bottles of champagne for the journey. We had lunch in the Steam Inn and the Langoustines done in a ginger and lime were to die for. The rest of the meal was excellent too.

McKinley Kidd did a wonderful job of planning and organising the trip, everything went to plan. My friends from abroad were very impressed. We were really delighted that they had organised fantastic weather for us as well!!We will certainly come again and will recommend McKinley Kidd to our friends and families.

We undertook a 6-day self drive tour along the North Coast five hundred in a circular route from Inverness. We stayed in lovely hotels with fresh, local food, there was plenty to do and see along the way, and absolutely stunning scenery around every bend (made even more magnificent by non-stop sunshine!). We especially loved Handa Island, the trip out to Cape Wrath, our wild life cruise from Gairloch and touring Inverewe Gardens. The trip was made even more enjoyable with the opportunity to drive a Tesla electric car which was great fun on the many single lane roads, and it was surprisingly easy to keep the battery topped up even in remote areas. The trip was a great success overall and certainly exceeded our expectations.

Excellent arrangements, all information needed was provided, responses to questions was prompt and helpful. Hotels were in very good locations for breaking up the journey. Tesla pickup and drop off at Inverness was seamless. Overall, we had a very professional tour operator who provided us with an excellent holiday.