Small Group Tours vs. self-drive

Hey Beth, there are people on the Helpline who have taken Rabbie's tours. I wanted to let you know that I took my mom and dad, then in their late 70's, on a trip to Scotland. We drove. I did all the driving although my dad would have been glad to help, but since he was over 75 the rental car companies wouldn't let him! Dad would say that that meant I could stop for every photograph that I wanted to take. :) It was a really good trip. I really miss him and am so glad I did it. You'll be glad too. I think that advantage of the car was that we went at my parents pace. I was definitely moving faster then. And the car gave us great flexibility. It isn't hard to drive around Scotland and England. We flew to Orkney, rented a car there. We then took the ferry and bus to Inverness where we picked up a second car. It was simple. The only thing that I would have done differently would have been to encourage my dad to get a suitcase with wheels rather than a back pack. He soldiered on, but I would have been happier if he had wheels. :) Pam

Hi Beth, I travel solo and am not comfortable driving in the UK. Maybe someday I'll try, but when I occasionally turn left when a navigator tells me to turn right at home, I figure it's safer if I don't try, lol. I took the Rabbies 5-day Highland Explorer a couple summers ago. I had a good time and will continue to take Rabbies tours (until such time I have a travel partner who can drive me :-) The minibus group had a mix of a family of 3 with youngster, ~10; older couples; and a few singles like myself. Even in just 5 days, we developed a good group vibe. The pace of the trip was not fast, but it wasn't sedentary either. The pros of someone else driving and a driver who can answer questions and tell stories are offset by cons of not determining your own pace and itinerary. You will have to set your own importance on the pros and cons. Cheers.

Hello Beth,
You need to ask yourself whether or not you want to drive around U.K. Remember, UK drives on opposite side of road and uses turnabouts. (Tip: Keep your left elbow to the ditch side. Turnabouts are easy to use, just go in one direction.) I have taken 2 Rabbie's Single Day Tours and a friend took a multi-day tour with them. She recommended Rabbie's to me. We both had positive experiences. Good for all ages. Not an aggressive or large group tour by any means. Rabbie's keeps a smooth and steady travel pace. The drivers are friendly and humorous. Once at a destination/sight, you are free to walk around as much or as little as you like. You are on your own. Rabbie's just gets you there. Rabbies strives to maximize visiting time versus travel time. It's rather leisurely. Go Online with Rabbie's and read the tour descriptions. Good Value!

Thanks Pamela, Betsey and Barb - those are just the sort of replies I was hoping for! Pamela, I really appreciate your perspective on driving with your parents, because I agree that it would allow us to move at our own pace. And Barb, you addressed my concerns about the suitability of these tours for all age groups. It sounds as though Rabbie's would be perfect for a group tour if we choose to take one. Betsey - I didn't mention it in my original post, but I've actually driven in England before, and I have to say that it was both easier than I expected and nerve-racking at times! I found the roundabouts to be very easy to use - loved them, in fact - but had a hard time with that whole "keep-your-tires-off-the-left-curb" thing :-). In short, my views on driving are that it is a wonderful way to do what you want when you want, but I'd rather not spend my entire trip doing it! So - I'm kind of thinking that a mix of self-drive and small group tour might be the way to go. We're thinking of starting in London, taking the train to York, then hiring a car for a week through N. Yorkshire and Northumberland before ending up in Edinburgh. Then we could take either a day tour or a multi-night tour with Rabbie's. Sound good? I'd still welcome other opinions or experiences with either driving or tours. Thanks!

Sorry - should have said Barb AND Betsey addressed my concerns about suitability of the tours for all ages. Nice to hear positive things about your experiences!

hi, first off i will say that i travel solo and im mobile. the only thing in tow is my hand baggage and my wake. I also will say that i dont like driving here or anywhere else for that matter, so im really biased when it comes to cars. Horses are a different matter tho. i took a tour from Edingburg to Lock Ness and in between. We had several stops and the longest was at Loch Ness of course. I enjoyed being able to relax on the ride and not worry if i was going to be in any particluar place on time. thats what i liked about it. as far as (afa) driving in the UK, its not that bad, since ive done it before. you do have to "drive" and not tune out! One thing though is that they dont make turns on red lights and your stick shift is on the opposite hand youre use to using. The shifting pattern is the same. On some cars, the turn signal stalk and windshield wiper stalk are swapped and its something you will find out on the car. the car i had was swapped so, i kept on activating the windshiled wipers when i wanted the turn signals. ALso, there are waaaay more manual transmission cars than autos, so if you dont drive an manual, make sure you reserve an auto if possbile way in advance. one other thing is that their cars have "power" switches. In normal driving their cars are gutless wonders, but the power switch dumps fuel to pass/merge and such. with regards to round-abouts. They are the cats meow in my opinion (imo). Once you use them, they really keep traffic going. what i would recommend is contacting the specific tour company and get an idea on the itiniary so you can get an idea on whats involed. happy trails.

Your idea of picking up a car in York is a good one. I did the same thing on one of my first trips. :) I even managed to get "lost" once, but enjoyed that as I wasn't under any time pressure. I don't have trouble driving in the UK. I live in NYC now and no longer have a car, so, I actually enjoy it when I'm out of here and driving somewhere. What a change! One other option to think about would be keeping the car and basing yourself in Inverness or Pitlochry area for a few days. From either location you can do some nice day trips that won't stress the driver. On the other hand I've often done a mix of drive and tour. I do it because I travel solo and like the way you can meet people on tours. I met a great Scottish couple in Brugges on the Brewery tour! At any rate, it really sounds like a nice trip. BTW if you have not yet discovered Undiscovered Scotland, you should explore the site before your trip.

Thanks for those replies. I really like the idea of mixing some independent driving time with a nice, low-key tour on which I can relax. Thanks for the link to that website, Pamela - I hadn't seen that one, but it looks great, and I'll take your suggestion for basing in Inverness or Pitlochry into consideration.

Beth...we are going over to the UK the end of May and into June and have planned to use Timberbush Tours www.timberbush-tours.co.uk based in Edinburgh and Glasgow. They are mentioned in Rich Steve's and we have found them to be extremely helpful. Carmen

Thanks Carmen - I'll check them out as well!

Hi Beth, Another tour bus company to consider is Heart of Scotland I think they're very similar to Rabbie's, but they may have slightly different itineraries to check out. Www.heartofscotlandtours.co.uk I took a one-day trip with them to Roslyn's Chapel and Hadrians Wall and it was great!
Enjoy your trip!

Thanks Gretchen - I've just looked at Heart of Scotland, and their tours look nice as well. Just enough variation from Rabbie's that I could look at both in more detail and probably determine which tours better suit our interests. They all look great! I'm still trying to decide how best to take advantage of small group tours - ie., whether we should use a multi-day tour such as Rabbie's "Best of England & N. Wales" to cover a lot of ground and see a lot of the sights on our wish-list, or to drive ourselves, take it slower and possibly see less, but on a more relaxed timeframe. So the options I'm considering look like this: A) Self-drive itinerary that would take us from London to Edinburgh with 2-3 night stops in the Cotswolds, N. Wales, N. Yorkshire and Northumberland. B) 6 night tour with Rabbie's that would start in London, spend 2 nights in Chester (w/day trip to N. Wales), 2 nights in York (w/day trip to Whitby & Robin Hood's Bay), and 2 nights in Keswick. C) Do a combination: Self-drive between York and Edinburgh, spending time nr. N. Yorkshire coast and Northumberland, then do a small-group tour from Edinburgh of the Highlands. Any thoughts? Should I start a new thread?