WHAT KIND OF CURRENCY IS IT BEST TO BRING WITH ME?
WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO GET TO SPEYSIDE?
HOW ARE YOUR PRICES WORKED OUT?
WILL THERE BE STOPS ALONG THE WAY?
CAN YOU TAKE ME ANYWHERE I WANT?
WILL THERE BE ANY EXTRAS TO PAY ON THE DAY?
THERE ARE ONLY TWO OF US, WILL ANYBODY ELSE JOIN US ON THE DAY?
HOW MANY PASSENGERS CAN YOU TAKE IN YOUR VEHICLE?
IS IT BETTER TO FLY IN AND OUT OF GLASGOW OR EDINBURGH?
My most frequently asked question, as every day is different in time and mileage I don't have a daily rate as such but I do have a minimum charge for a day. As a rough guide; a day which takes 6 hours (Minimum hour charged) to 9 hours of my time i.e. from the time I leave my home until I return and in which the vehicle travels in total 35 miles (Minimum miles charged) to 65 miles (56 to 105 Km) would cost around £200 (Minimum charge) to £270. This price is for the trip, to get a cost per person just divide the total cost per day by the number of people in your group. E.g. the above day would cost approx £33 - £45 per person if there were 6 in your group which is the maximum number that I can take in the vehicle. However if there are only 2 of you the above day would cost £100 - £135 per person.
NOT included in my prices; lunch, snacks or drinks. I can add Admission fees to your final itinerary cost.
Our currency is £s Pounds Sterling. Don't be fooled into thinking that as we are part of Europe and adopted the Euro - we haven't! Scottish banknotes look slightly different, compared to the Bank of England notes but are the same colours to the English ones. English notes are accepted anywhere in Scotland.
If you buy Pounds Sterling travellers cheques you should be able to use them fairly easily. You may be asked for your I.D. passport but smaller establishments may not accept travellers cheques. To be honest most people just use plastic as if they were at home and take money out from an ATM. Credit cards (Visa, Mastercard) are accepted widely but again some smaller establishments may not accept them. Beware that some credit card providers make an extra transaction charge for using your card overseas. Ask your provider first! American Express cards are NOT accepted in most places, well not as widely as Visa and M/card. ATM cash machines are found very widely so there is an option to withdraw money from them using your credit or debit card, check charges first with your provider.
Don't forget that you will need some cash in Pounds to bring with you if only to buy a coffee and a newspaper!
Whatever you decide you are at the mercy of the exchange rate - you can't escape it however you try. Just keep an eye on it and buy when you think the time is right.
Please see my How To Get Here page for more details! Speyside is in the northeast of Scotland about midway between Inverness and Aberdeen. Assuming that you are travelling without a car there are several options. Our nearest airports are Inverness (48 miles) and Aberdeen (60 miles) which are served by several airlines - both regular and low cost such as BA and Easyjet. I can collect you from either airport and we can make the journey to your accommodation part of your holiday. Another option is to let the train take the strain. Speyside is served by relatively good train links from both Edinburgh and Glasgow and the south. Basically the best way to get to Speyside is to take the train from either Glasgow or Edinburgh north towards Inverness and to get off at Aviemore where I can meet you and show you some of Speyside on the way to your accommodation. This is a train journey of around 3 hours. Alternatively you can stay on the train to Inverness, change trains and travel onwards to Elgin where I can meet you at the station. This is a train journey of around 4 1/2 hours plus the change at Inverness. Lastly you could use the bus service. Try the link below for information http://www.citylink.co.uk/ Of course many international airlines fly in and out of Aberdeen so if you are visiting from Eurpoe you may be able to fly direct.
The price that we agree before you make a booking will be based on the number of hours that you need me for and the number of miles that I think we will travel to see and do everything that we have discussed. My time is measured from my leaving my home to my returning, so if your accommodation is a long way from my home this will be reflected in the price that we agree. Also for example when you are visiting a distillery and I am not with you this will also be reflected in the final costs. If we do extra miles on the day there may be an extra charge but I will let you know as we go along if I think that this might happen.
Most definitely. Unlike an organised 'tour' we can stop whenever and wherever we like. It is surprising how long a short drive can take when there is a picture to take around every bend in the road!
The area that I specialise in as the name suggests is Speyside & Moray county because I was born and brought up here and my local knowledge gives me a unique ability to tailor make individual itineraries to suit each visitor. That said, I can certainly take you further afield but I may not necessarily have the same in depth knowledge of other areas. Most of my days out take place in the triangle between Inverness in the West, Aviemore in the South and Huntly in the East. Any further than this and the day tends to be taken up entirely with sitting in the vehicle and leaves little time to stop and explore along the way - not my idea of the best way to see Speyside up close and personal!
The only extras will be any admission charges to castles, distilleries etc., food and drink throughout the day and personal items such as gifts and souvenirs. Should our day prove to be longer or cover more miles than we agreed when the booking was made there will be an extra cost but I will let you know as we go along if I think that this will happen.
No, if you make a booking with me I am yours exclusively for the agreed time and I will not accept bookings from anybody else for that time. The price that we agree is per 'tour' and not per person.
To book a day or days with me you will need to pay a deposit of £50 per day. This confirms your booking and means that I will not accept bookings from anyone else for that day. I accept Visa, Mastercard and Maestro cards. I never ask for credit card details by e-mail for security reasons and so the best thing is for me to telephone you so please give me your number and a good time window to get you in. Alternatively you can fax your card details to me. The fax is a private number so don't worry that your details will be seen by anyone else but me. The balance of the agreed price is payable on the day of the tour(s) and on the day I also accept cash in pounds sterling.
Please have a look at my 'Important Information' page for details of my cancellation policy.
The vehicle that I have is a Mercedes V class with seven seats. As one of the seats is for me - the driver, the maximum number of visitors that I can take with me is 6.
Logistically Edinburgh airport is much closer to its city centre than Glasgow. Glasgow is known as (Prestwick International)
Glasgow does have an airport of its own, see this link http://www.baa.com/main/airports/glasgow/ (not an international) which is much closer to the city centre around 25 minutes.
