Brian picked me up from my hotel to do the Loch Ness and Highland tours. He was funny and I laughed…read morea great deal. (I think I was the only one). He let me sit in the front seat so I wouldn't get car sick. Scotland is beautiful and his stories were wonderful. He even dropped me back at my hotel even though it had been a 12 hour day. Thank you Graylines.

One of the biggest highlights of my trip! I went solo and had a great time. If you're lucky enough…read moreto get Brian as your tour guide you are in for a treat. Everything was very easy and stress free. Thank you!!!

I've done a lot of walking tours! If you have too, then you probably know that they can vary…read moresignificantly in quality and enjoyability. Our Whiskey-oriented tour around the old town of Edinburgh was really well done. We started off at the lovely Jeffrey Street Whiskey and Tobacco, where we were all given a dram while we waited by the very friendly staff. Then our guide Gareth arrived and took us off on our tour. Gareth is engaging and enthusiastic, as well as very knowledgeable. He seemed able to react to what we were interested in and adjusted his tour accordingly. Rather than just pointing at buildings and telling you arbitrary facts about them, he was able to paint themed narratives about the history of the old town that brought the old places to life. After about an hour of walking around and chatting, we went back to Jeffrey Street Whiskey and Tobacco for a whiskey tasting. The proprietor had set up a beautifully presented tasting table at the back of the store and sat down with us to guide us through the four whiskeys that he had selected. We stayed and chatted for about an hour and it was all extremely enjoyable. At only £20 each, which included five drams of whiskey each as well as a great walking tour, it would be hard to beat this for value. If you like walking tours and love whiskey, this is the one for you.

I signed up for this walking tour and whiskey tasting because this was my first visit to Scotland…read moreand I thought it would be great to have someone to show me around. I was not disappointed! I happened to be the only one to sign up on that day and they had no problem taking me on the tour by myself as well as treating me to a one on one tasting. Gareth was an awesome tour guide! He is incredibly knowledgable about Edinburgh and was able to point things out that I would have never found on my own. He even brings an iPad along to show pictures of what things looked like hundreds of years ago so you can compare what you see to the history behind the area. I learned so much about the area and he was enthusiastic and entertaining. I felt like he talked to me not "at" me and was engaging so it wasn't "just another boring tour". He really knows his stuff and he has a great personality that go hand in hand to make a great tour guide! The whiskey tasting was great too! They will teach about the history of whiskey and show you where in Scotland certain types are made. I learned about different ways whiskey is made as well as how to drink it and even how to accentuate the flavor. They are so friendly and knowledgable, it's the perfect ending to a great tour! Like I said, this was my first trip to Scotland and I am so happy I signed up for this! I would highly recommend this tour and tasting!

I read the fine print that said not everything on the itinerary will be seen. Which makes sense due…read moreto weather. But the two things I really wanted to see, the tour guide said the bus was too big. Either get a smaller bus or please do not advertise on your itinerary that you would go to those places. Those two places were the whole reason of why I had booked this tour. So this is false advertising. I don't think this tour company is worth booking. Our tour guide was not organized or seemed that professional. She would make up on the spot what she felt like showing us that day and not tell us where we would be going most of the time. We saw pretty lame spots that were not on the itinerary and I always felt rushed. (But I guess that is every tour) We had great weather for all 4 days but would get back to the hostel at 5, when it doesn't get dark until 10pm. So either let us see more stuff or stop rushing everyone. We stayed in a pretty crappy hostel where the showers were in a literal closet. I understand that hostels are like that but if I'm going to be paying a lot of money for a tour, then either be transparent about where we are staying or charge more to stay in a better place. Our tour guide also made a creepy, weird comment when we first got on the bus and said that she could be a serial killer and dump all of our bodies. I know she was joking but that's not funny. We also did two strenuous hikes at Old Man of Storr and the Quiraing. She said they were "wee walks." No they are not. I wish she would of told us how hard they were so I would have been more prepared via enough water and food. If you are going to run a tour and do two hard hikes in one day, you need to make sure everyone is prepared with the right shoes/clothes, water and food. I really regret booking this tour and wish I had rented a car.

While I absolutely love Edinburgh, I decided it was time for a quick trip to the Highlands. I did…read morelook at a lot of tour companies, but I guess I am also testing this out for my students... so Macbackpackers seemed like the best option as it is geared toward the younger crowd and was a reasonable price. Booking online was super easy, so already a bonus. Finding the hostel was easy as well, and close to a Starbucks so when you have to be there at 7:45 a.m., you can get your caffeine fix. I printed my receipt/confirmation, but it wasn't even looked at (but I would still take it just in case). The tour guide/driver was there at 7:45 a.m., but there was no intro or anything like that until 8 a.m. when we were on the coach ready to go... so it was a bit pointless to be there that early (yes, when it comes to me and my sleep... every minute counts). Anyway, Michael was our guide, he talked a bit, and then played Scottish music or music by Scottish artists. Glad there was a mix of music because while I appreciate bagpipes, there's only so much I can take. Did appreciate the Scottish folk songs, which played when relevant, really added to the experience. There were 11 of us and just about everyone else slept through the tour, which I think annoyed the guide because he didn't feel like anyone was listening to him, but I was. Lots of history, lots of stories which was nice, but would've liked some more stories... more of the thing that maybe only locals would know because those are the things you can't look up. I know it means that it would take a little longer, but a couple more stops, just on and off the bus to take pictures would be nice as it is difficult to snap pictures when you're speeding along the twisting and narrow roads. Wasn't necessarily a fan of some of the stops... and if you're not a fan of the large tourist stops, you probably won't like them either. We got to Loch Ness at about 12:30 p.m., giving me enough time to run to the supermarket, grab a sandwich and crisps, then get on one of the boat trips. The boat trip is about an hour long and 11 quid with your Macbackpackers discount. I liked the relaxing trip, but I don't know if it was really worth it. I would've liked more time in Fort Augustus to wander about. Some of the people in our group were late (20 minutes...so I guess I could've had a wee wander), but as a result we did get to see the swing bridge in action and boats going through the canal. We did get to go for a wee walk at a viewpoint in Glencoe, another tea and pee break, and a stop to see Hamish the hairy coo. We did arrive back in Edinburgh an hour earlier than anticipated... so I guess it actually is possible to add a couple more photo stops in there. Overall it was a nice trip, wished our guide had been a bit more lively, but then again our group wasn't very lively either. Glad I did it, but was expecting a little more.

Rose was exceptionally well versed in the history and lore of Scotland which made the experience…read morequite enjoyable.

I took 3 different tours with Highland Experience Tours and I have been pleased every single time…read more Our 3-days to the Highlands and Skye with Dejan in July 2025 was simply incredible: he has a knack for storytelling and gives you so many historical facts. This week I book a private tour to the Highlands, Loch Ness, Fort William to show my sister how beautiful Scotland is. Our driver/guide Arina picked us up from the hotel in Edinburgh and for the next 12 hours kept us entertained with historical facts, beautiful sceneries, nice music. Then a couple of days later, we took another tour and this time Mike was our guide. We visited the Dunfermline Abbey, Sterling Castle and Rosslyn Chapel. Also this one was an incredible tour full of stories, information and history. I can't wait to be back in Scotland to see more and book another tour with Highland Experience.

We booked a tour of Edinburgh, Leven and St. Andrews. I…read morecontacted Andy months ago to arrange a day's tour. This was very important to us as it was to be a trip to my wife's first visit to her mother's hometown of Leven. Andy arranged the day so that we could see the sights of Edinburgh early in the morning and arrive in Leven in time for lunch with relatives. We were able to catch the first tender and arrived on shore an hour ahead of our scheduled meeting time. Andy was there less than 15 minutes later! We were all amazed at how quickly we got off the boat, but thankfully we were able to take full advantage of that extra time because Andy was so early. The tour of Edinburgh was spectacular! We saw the castle from at least a dozen angles and Andy's knowledge of the key sights both historical and mythological was thorough and entertaining. After lunch in Leven we went to St. Andrews and had a delightful tour of that amazing area. Our only regret is that we couldn't spend a week with Andy showing us the amazing sights of Scotland.

We did several bookings with Andy Marjoribanks for our time in Edinburgh, and we could not be…read morehappier. He was incredibly responsive to our numerous emails from the US in the months leading up to our trip, and so easy to deal with. In addition to some airport and other cab-type runs, we booked his two-hour overview tour of Edinburgh for the day after we arrived. He is extremely informative about Edinburgh/Scottish history and included some really interesting/less-visited sites for some of our stops. Andy is a smart, friendly, helpful, knowledgeable (and punctual!) man who is great fun to spend time with, and we felt very well cared for. Highly, highly recommend.

Getting a little tired of castles, cobblestones, and kings? Take a break from Edinburgh's…read morefascinating royal history and learn a little beer history by joining this tour. I met Sara, the guide, and the others in our group on the Royal Mile, and we headed out for about 20 minutes of beer-related history around the Mile and down towards the Cowgate area. We then came in from the cold and drank fantastic beer in two pubs in old town. Sarah did a great job of selecting brews that everyone in the group appreciated, and provided information about the individual breweries and the beers themselves. From there, we headed down to a brewery near the University for another three tasters - very generous pours, and again, all three selections were beers I'd happily order up again. All the while, Sara was pointing out interesting tidbits in the city around us, and keeping us filled in on Edinburgh's fascinating history of brewing. Sara was great at making everyone feel comfortable, and when the tour was over we sat around for another half hour or so and chatted as we finished our final tasters. All things considered, this was a great tour and brought a totally different part of Edinburgh's rich history to life. Enjoy, and cheers!

This is one of the best activities I've done in Edinburgh so far. It was amazing to discover how…read morethe history of beer in Scotland is directly linked with the history of the city. This tour is not only a storytelling experience but also a great way to learn about this legendary drink while tasting some of the nicest and quirkiest beers that the city has to offer. Sara is very knowledgeable and you can see her passion when telling the story. In summary, beer was great, funny story and the pubs we visited were really cool too. This tour is highly recommended and not to be missed.

The trip to Orkney and Skara Brae was a life changing experience. Our group was the first time that…read morethe Inverness office had conducted the tour (it used to solely come from Edinburgh) and we were blessed to get to know Sir Duff (Fraser Duff, lead guide) as well as guides Harrison, Emma & Sonia. The accommodations in Kirkwall were an enchanting B&B Karawa (proprietor was Fiona) and we had cooked to order breakfast. I loved having our own en suite. There was plenty of variety in our tour stops - history and art and birds / scenery / the "hairy coo" etc. The tour bus was clean and modern. The trip delightful. We did two different tours with Highland Explorers / Haggis Adventures / Radical Travel.

To fully understand the throughline of a place takes an authentic local guide. Harrison's insights,…read morestories and engaging personality played a significant part in how fun and fabulous this tour is, while deepening my sense of wonder and understanding of Scotlands 'Unicorn' ways. I came away with a deep respect for those who sacrificed so much for their homeland (and glad we started our UK trip in England first (lol). I highly recommend Harrison and this tour. I guess my only other feedback would be to shorten the Whiskey stop (i dont drink) and double the time at Clava Carin stones, where I got 'high' feeling the energy emitting from ancient stones and trees. My quest to feel the places where people honored the earth...was fulfilled there. Thank you Harrison!

My friends and I decided to hop on board the Majestic Tour the other bus with a few of his friends…read morewho were visiting from America. Out of all the tours buses we chose the Majestic Tour because it went a bit further out. It doesn't go to the castle, Royal Mile or the other predictable tourist stuff but all of those things are within walking distance anyway so we decided to go further afield. The key points on the Majestic Tour are; Royal Botanic Gardens Newhaven Royal Yacht Britannia Leith Through-out the tour there's a commentary which is probably the worst I've ever heard in my life. There were two narrators one called Willy the other called Evelyn and they were just having a general chat but they had the worst chat ever and kept making "jokes" like "oh no he didn't Evelyn... Oh yes he did Willy." Just awful. In between the terrible banter they played music that sounded like something out of The Little House and the Prairie. Awful. To be honest, I'm still trying to figure out what was Majestic about it, in all honesty it was a bit of a waste of £12 and the No. 22 bus goes on pretty much the exact same route for a smidgen of the price.

Besides being a rip off (£14 just to enter!), these lazy double-decker tour buses shuffle tourists…read moreall around Edinburgh, jet-lagged and nodding off as they listen to boring prerecorded "tour guides" on the complimentary headphones. If they only knew you could hop on an actual city bus for £1.50 (or £3 for the day), riders of these Majestic tours would see far more of the city and get to the Royal Yacht (or whatever) much more quickly. Shut up, take my money and lead me to the nearest bagpiper! And step on it!