Experience with walking tours
 

Has anyone had any experience with the guided walking tours in Scotland/England? I am looking at one with Classic Journeys that does Scottish Highlands & Glasgow/Edinbo. and New England Hiking that does one to Devon. Both look terrific! <BR>Also, any thoughts on using Icelandic Air to travel? Prices are great. <BR>Thanks <BR>

I have had no experience with these two companies, but if you are interested in walking holidays organized by UK companies, with a largely UK clientele at a price about 1/4 what these American companies charge, take a look at Countrywide Holidays http://www.countrywidewalking.com/ and HF Holidays http://www.hfholidays.co.uk/hfholidays/.I have done walking holidays with both and am willing to answer questions.

I agree with Ron that using a UK-based company is a good choice. I have walked twice in Cornwall with Footpath Holidays (www.footpath-holidays.com) and have been very pleased with the guides and the hotels they use, and with the friendly, down-to-earth fellow walkers you meet, mostly English, German and American folk. The owners of Footpath are very hands-on and they pay close attention to every detail and aspect of the trip. They offer walks in England, Wales and Scotland.

Thanks, Ron. I will pull it up and ask you about them. Were they an endurance test? or fun and easier pace?

Thanks, Jan. Any ideas on where the best scenery is. I have never been to Scotland or Devon.

I have been on 2 walking tours with Classic Journeys - one to Greece and the other to Italy. BOth were excellent. The guides were good, the lodgings upscale and food wonderful. Not cheap, but very good. Talk to Edward, one of the owners. He's enthusiatic and helpful.

ce, HF Holidays generally have up to 40 people on their walking weeks, and three walking leaders, so each day they offer an easy, medium and difficult walk. The walks are described the night before and you choose which one you plan to take. In the mountain locations, the highlands and northern Wales, hard means hard and easy means fairly hard, and unless you are super fit I would avoid those for a first walk. For the other areas, anybody who does a bit of regular exercise walking should be able to handle the short to medium walks. The main difference between easy and medium is that the easy stops early, usually in an interesting village to sightsee, shop, have tea, etc. An advantage of HF is if you are travelling with someone of different fitness level, you can choose different walks. Thurlestone Sands in south Devon or Freshwater Bay, Isle of Wight would be good first time choices. Countrywide generally only offers one level of walking in a particular week. I think they are fun (I am booked for the Countrywide Holiday based in Tintern, Wales this October), although I can remember at least one that turned into an endurance test. To truly enjoy them though, you do need to prepare by doing some regular walking in the boots you will be wearing on the holiday to harden the feet, find the blister points, etc. I do agree with Jan about the people you meet - seeing and interacting with British people on holidays gives you a different perspective on the country.

Just an answer to the Icelandair question: they're great; go for it! While you're using them, check out the option of staying for three days in Iceland with no additional airfare. Iceland is a gorgeous country for walking (and lots of other things:-)

I've gone on a classic walk with HF in Cornwall (st Ives location) and on a "walks of discovery" in Sussex. They have a lot of variety in types of walks offered;food is plentiful and excellent; lodging was good. Only complaint is that medium and long walks go at a fast pace and don't stop for photo opportunities; also, everyone travels on same bus. I will no doubt walk with them again because they offer walking tours in a given location every week from spring through fall, so it's easy to fit into a schedule. Because they are one of the lowest in cost, you do need to book early. <BR>I've also gone on two holidays with Footpath Holidays http://www.footpath-holidays.com/. They have smaller groups and are more accommodating about photo stops; and food and lodging is excellent. But, they only offer about 4 walks in a given location each year and may not fit into your schedule. BTW, I walked with Footpaths in the Cotswolds in June, and they needed to revise the walk due to footpaths still being closed due to foot and mouth...but, the walks were still wonderful.

I have done several walking/hiking trips. Back Roads is excellent, and they rate their trips according to level of difficulty. I used Classic Journeys for a trip to Morocco this past October, and also found them excellent, though I'd have preferred something a bit more strenuous (but that's just my personal preference). The guide was terrrific, and so was just about everything about the trip. I am going hiking with Wilderness Travel in Tuscany this fall; has anyone used this company? Any opinions?

ttt

I really enjoyed a couple of historical audio-guided walking tours of Glasgow and St Andrews in Scotland.They are ideal if you are arriving late or passing thru.. you hire a sony walkman out of the main tourist office in each town and away you go. You can even take them out overnight..which makes the ghost stories even more scary!! The tours also get you discounted entry to a load of different places on the route!the website www.walkabout-tours.com will give you excellent tips and advice before you travel.