We will be staying in Oban June 5 and 6 and want to do the Early Bird excursion through 3 Isles to visit Mull, Staffa and Iona. Has anyone done this tour and did you enjoy it? Should I purchase this tour ahead of time or can we book the day before? We will get back to Oban at 6pm, do we need to make dinner reservations for when we get back, it will be a Thursday? We are thinking of eating at Baab which looks close to the ferry terminal, just not sure how long it would take us to get there and if these tours tend to return on time. Thanks for any input!
My sister and I did the early bird tour a few years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. Everything was well coordinated and sitting above the cliffs on Staffa with the puffins landing and wheeling away was a thrill. We also enjoyed just walking around and exploring Iona.
You won't enjoy Staffa if you have limited mobility or can't climb stairs.
The tours do return on time. We purchased our tickets in advance.
We also did the 3 island tour out of Oban last summer. A highlight of our 12 night stay in Scotland. We booked in advance.
I would make dinner reservations if you can.
We did the 3 Islands tour 2 years ago. It was pouring down rain when we picked up the tickets I prebooked. They said if the weather was really bad the next day, we could reschedule. It started out drizzly, but cleared aa the day went on.
I would definitely recommend reservations for dinner. We ate at a place, I think called Isk, right near where the boat docked, and were glad we had prebooked. Cuan Mor, across from the harbor doesn't take reservations, so you can always go there and wait. They are more casual.
We really enjoyed the trip.
Be sure to eat once at Oban Fish & Chips. The haddock is fantastic! Very casual. No reservation needed. It is an easy walk from the ferry terminal.
You can get wine or beer in a shop a couple doors down from the restaurant and carry it in.
Going to book the tour and dinner reservations before we leave, thank you all for your input. Hope to be able to eat at Oban Fish and Chips on our first day in town.