Timberbush or Rabbie's tours: booking direct or through Viator + accommodation question

Hi Jen:

I just did the Rabbie's 3 day Isle of Skye tour from Edinburgh in 2nd week of June w/my husband & young adult son. I booked directly w/Rabbie's. We all enjoyed the tour. It allowed us to see, at least briefly, all the sites we wanted to in the short amount of time that we had. It was a 16 seat bus & all seats were taken. Our guide was engaging & did a good job. He gave us plenty of info on the way to sights & as much time as possible when stopping. He was clear on when we needed to be back on the bus & all of us were back on time or early. He seemed surprised at that!

I had them book the accommodation. I requested a B&B ensuite & we ended up in a hotel w/included breakfast. It was a basic hotel, about a minute from where we met the bus each day. Rooms were clean, staff was nice & breakfast was good. It reminded me of a hotel that would be on a Rick Steves' tour.

I would book a tour w/Rabbie's again. Sorry, no info on Timberbrush.

Tina

I've done and enjoyed a Rabbies tour. Rabbies uses 16 passenger coaches, I believe Timberbush uses full size coaches. In case that matters to you.

I booked directly with Timberbush for a day tour in April 2025. I also had some email correspondence with them before I booked. Day tour was fine - professional, everything I expected.

I always book directly when there is any possible way to do so. I can’t think of any reason to add a third party in the middle. Example of why not, I had a tour canceled emergency last minute earlier this month in the Lake District. Immediate refund from the company. No need to communicate with a booking agent.

Edit - oops. I missed your point no. 3. This consideration would still not convince me to book other than direct. I just prefer not to deal arm’s length. No room for discussion or consideration of circumstances if necessary. ( My perception anyway.)

I have taken one day tours with Rabbies and have a couple of 3-day tours planned with them.

I would go with Rabbies over Timberbush for places like Skye. Rabbies uses a 16 passenger van. Timberbush a full size coach. Many years ago I took a one day tour of Skye with Rabbies. The weather was fantastic and our guide decided to take us to a great viewpoint a full size coach couldn't reach.

The smaller van also felt more friendly and less large group.

Even though I can be picky with hotels, I'm letting Rabbies pick my accomodations. They guarantee ensuite rooms and I doubt they would put anyone in a bad place. They don't want that reputation. It would hurt their business.

Always book direct. If there is a problem, you deal directly with the supplier. If you book with a third party, you have to deal with the third party.

I'm not sure how the cancellation policy can be more generous with Viator than booked direct. That needs to be double and triple checked.
Ultimately Viator can only get the money back from the suppliers, subject to their own policy.
In the case of Rabbies (or any other company) for the hotels it would probably be to the hotels own policy. That may be more or less generous than that of the bus company.
And in September on Skye it is turning towards shoulder season. The hotel may be less able to resell the room than in peak season, so be stricter with you.
You will overpay Viator. Ultimately, If you did have to cancel, I suspect this could be a recipe for disappointment, and aggravation.
You may well find that Viator over promise and under deliver.

I highly suggest booking your own room. I have heard complaints over the years from those who have let Rabbie’s book the accommodations for them.

I took a 3-day Rabbie’s tour this past May and booked my own hotel. Everyone else on the tour booked the accommodations themselves except for one person who was not happy with her rom. The location was not great (further from the city center) and the price too high were her complaints.

I would not want to take the chance that I would be not happy with my room. Especially since it’s so easy to book yourself.

I have not taken a Timberbush Tour, but have taken two Rabbies tours and the guides were some of the best we've ever had. The one B&B that Rabbies booked for us was lovely.

Rabbies have an excellent reputation among Skye residents. In the off season their guides have been back to Skye repairing paths. I don’t know of another company that does that. I would let them book your accommodation. They will have relationships with accommodation providers that means they are guaranteed rooms. Skye is very busy and you might not have the same accommodation choices that Rabbies would have. I don’t know of any bad B&Bs in Skye and certainly not those used by Rabbies.

Skyegirl, you've given the best reason for booking directly with Rabbie's. Thanks for sharing.

Thank you all so very much for your feedback. I'll call Rabbie's tomorrow regarding the cancellation policy, but they definitely seem like the best option!

This may be the idiots question - Will you have travel insurance and does that include cancellation options?

Not a dumb question, wasleys! I'll ask about cancellation insurance too. (I don't have overall trip insurance...unless it's maybe automatic through my credit card provider???)

We have booked an Isle of Skye tour with Timberbush and will be on a 10 seat van. There are 6 of us and we'll have the van to ourselves. Perhaps that is a difference.

I'm with isn31c and Carrie...

I can't see any way that the Viator cancellation policy is better than the actual provider
unless there is some additional cost for trip cancellation insurance buried in the pricing
or something to that effect.

One of the best features of Rabbie's setup, IMO, is the ability to book your own lodging.
You can tailor it to your interests and cost requirements. As long as you're in the zone
they require for pickups and dropoffs you can pick anyplace you like. One person in the
group I was in stayed in a hostel.

I will also say that if you book near the end of the season, as I did, Rabbie's does have
contacts with all the lodging providers and can get you a room if it seems like everything
is sold out.

Not sure about Timberbush, but I believe the Rabbie's driver/guide has a fair amount of
discretion on what sights they choose to take you to, so best to go in with an open mind