worldtravellers

Hello Fodorites,
My husband and I are planning to take a vacation trip to England, Ireland and Scotland in June.

We are thinking of joining Collette Vacations tour, but we read some horrible experience on some reviews. Does anybody here in the forum have any experience with Collette Vacations tour recently? If you have, please tell us about your experience.

If Collette Vacations is not a good option, can anybody here recommend a good tour company for our destinations?

I am hoping that somebody here can give us some inputs so we can plan our trip. Any help is greatly appreciated.

qwovadis

affordabletours.com
good experience for me
with Globus 40% off sales
there Trafalgar ok too.

Good luck!

jamikins

You will find that most people here are independent travellers. While a tour may work for you, you dont need to do one for those countries. If you are open to the idea of doing it independently we can help you if you tell us how long you have and what you want to see.

If not, perhaps someone can comment on tours they have been on

Tony2phones

I used to work in a hotel on the old National Express Tours 4 countries in 14 days. Day 4 Harrogate and a coach load of US visitors would fall exhausted off the coach have their evening meal and fall off to Bed before 9pm because they had to be back on the bus at 8am after breakfast to hit Edinburgh for lunch.

Take a careful look at any itinerary. as the operators used to say this is a tour not a holiday,

worldtravellers

Thanks for everybody who gave us their input. We don't have to go with a tour company. We are open to do our trip independently. That's what we usually do when we travel. We thought this time we do it differently.

Our concerns for our trip this time (if do it on our own) are finding transportation from one destination to another. Are there any rental car that comes with the driver? If we have to drive ourselves on a rental car, can we take that rental car on a ferry to Ireland?

We are planning to start our trip on June 1st till the 16th. Any suggestion on how much time we should spend in each country? I've been to England about 20 years ago, so it will like the first time again. Are there any "must see" places that we should consider?

tipsygus

Just a thought three countries in 14 days which in my book is not quite five days in each country, not counting travel to and from your home country, so discount two days that's 12 days, then there's travel between the three countries, at least a day each so we are down to 9 days for sightseeing. Well I've lived in and around London for all my life and there are still parts I have never seen. You ask as well about a car and a driver again expensive, how expensive I have no idea but shall we say second mortgage. You are looking at not only paying the salary of the driver, the hire of the car and the driver's expenses for the days you are travelling. Getting from London to Edinburgh is as has been noted on another post at least a day's journey. Have think about this, look at public transport in the UK, there are reasonable efficient trains services between England and Scotland and ferries from Scotland and Wales to Ireland.

sassy27

When in Scotland, we like to do our own thing as well as mix it up with a tour. We've taken Rabbies tours to the west and north for a few days from Edinburgh. This works for us as the tours are only a few days and they are on small buses with 16 people max. We usually will spend a few days before and after the tour in Edinburgh.

Tours aren't for everyone but sometimes it is nice to let someone else drive and show you around.

crckwc1

We have traveled many times in England, Scotland and Ireland, mostly self-driving. Your 14-day travel period really isn't enough time to see much in three countries. Driving times there, whether self-driving or bus-touring, are much slower than in the US. I would choose two of the three countries. Since you've been to England before, why not consider touring Scotland and Ireland? You could fly into Shannon, drive around (or take a tour), fly Shannon or Dublin to Edinburgh, drive around (or take a tour), then fly home from Edinburgh. Or do this in reverse. We have found really cheap Aer Lingus flights between Dublin and Edinburgh when purchased in advance.

historytraveler

1) It's going to be a very rushed itinerary if you plan to do England, Ireland and Scotland in just 14 days. I suggest you limit it to two countries.

2) You can take ferry to/from Wales/Ireland/Scotland, but it is very expensive and will take a huge gap of time from your itinerary.

3) Public transportation ie. train/coach is a good option as long as you don't plan on visitng a lot of out of way places.

4) Flying to/from Ireland, England or Scotland is quicker than ferry but be aware that even a short flight can eat up nearly a half day each way.

If I were you, I'd split your itinerary between London and Edinburgh. Fly in one, out the other. Spend time in London with a few day trips ( which can be done via train and train/coach). You could even spend a night or two in Salisbury and/or Bath. Then train to Edinburgh ( 4 hours from Kings Cross to Waverley Station) spend a few days touring the city, then take a Rabbies/Timberbush tour into the Highlands for several days.

worldtravellers

Thanks everyone. The input you provided are very helpful. We are still open for more input and I'm sure we will ask more questions once we start putting together the itinerary.

flagmom

We will be doing a similar trip in June. 9 days on our own in London, with a few day trips to Dover and Salisbury. Then the train to Glasgow where we will take a "Taste of Scotland and Ireland" coach tour with CIE Tours, ending in Dublin. Friends who have travelled with CIE recommend the company highly, if you are interested in a coach tour. They have several itineraries to choose from. Affordable Travel sold the tours at the best rate I could find.

worldtravellers

Thanks flagmom. I found Taste of Ireland interesting. We may take that one. Thanks again.

barbaramcl

we have planned a trip for england,scotland and ireland in 19days. we have hired motor home from flamstead, will fly from luton to dublin, pick up onother motor home in dublin and head south to waterford, ring of kerry, up to galway and back to dublin. we leave on 12th may. its taken a lot of planning but has saved lots of money and should see a fair bit without allthe crowds and tourist buses hope it all works out.

agrebe

I, along with three other women, took a Collette Christmas Markets tour a couple of years ago and we were very satisfied with it. I've never taken a tour before, but for a variety of reasons, this was the best option for us, and it was exactly as described. Our Collette guide, Ralph, was very good. This tour was nice because we had a fair amount of time to ourselves, but they offered plenty of options if we wanted them.

up4travel

Would like to know how your vacation went. my husband and I are planning a trip to England this summer, and had the same concerns you had posted last Feb. Did you end up using Collette or going independently? which countries did you choose and how long? We will greatly appreciate any advice.

up4travel

Oops! I guess you are taking a trip this summer. Your post shows as Feb. so I thought this was from last year. Sorry!!