I have been reluctant to leave a review about this tour but in the end since I use reviews to decide how to spend my time and money I felt I should. First - the good. I loved all of the sites and the day was timed well. The bad - I did not enjoy listening to our guide, Stephen. He is one of those people that has built his entire personality around being abrasive and obnoxious. From the profanity laden intro speech where he let us know it was a dictatorship and if we didn’t like it we could get the hell off the bus, to the extremely detailed description of all the torture William Wallace was subjected to before his death was just too much for me. Before lunch, we got the treat of another detailed description of the execution of Mary Queen of Scots and how her decapitation went wrong, complete with sound effects. I know some people enjoy this kind of personality, but it just isn’t for me. I much prefer a knowledgeable, good natured guide.

We really enjoyed our trip with our guide, Stephen. He was very entertaining and shared great stories and histories while on the bus. There were a lot of stops, which I liked to break up the drive, as well as plenty of free time to explore. We went back and forth a lot choosing a day trip and ended up picking this one over the trips further into the highlands and to Loch Ness. I’m really happy with our decision. Loch Lomond was beautiful and the boat ride is a must!

This was a small group (7 people) on a small bus with William as our tour guide. I LOVED that it was a small group and we were able to move at a more individualized pace. William was friendly, funny, and extremely knowledgeable about the history of beautiful Scotland and the places to which we were going.