Stephen Molloy

We wanted to see as much of the UK as possible, on our time of roughly 11 days in country and our budget. Stephen, primarily, and the High Point team did a great job planning. Thanks to you all.
One observation on the timing. On day 2 driving to Bath, Tintern Abbey and eventually, Cardiff, we really didn't have enough time to see Bath. By the time we parked near the city center in Bath, it was time to go to Tintern. I drove the speed limits for the most part. Bath was a suggestion anyway... read more

We wanted to see as much of the UK as possible, on our time of roughly 11 days in country and our budget. Stephen, primarily, and the High Point team did a great job planning. Thanks to you all.
One observation on the timing. On day 2 driving to Bath, Tintern Abbey and eventually, Cardiff, we really didn't have enough time to see Bath. By the time we parked near the city center in Bath, it was time to go to Tintern. I drove the speed limits for the most part. Bath was a suggestion anyway and we don't think not touring around town detracted from the overall trip. We especially liked the accomodations selected. VRBO-like places to the small hotels, we liked them all. Favorites were Juniper Cabins, Gwynfryn, and Six Brunton in Edinburgh.

Our trip to the UK was seamless from beginning to end! Drivers were on time and transportation to/from airports, trains and hotels was super easy. The hotels were all amazing. The Bloomsbury in London was perfect. The hotel staff knew us by name. The hotel bars were lovely and just what we needed after full days of sightseeing. Stephen also arranged breakfasts to be included with our stays which proved to be very helpful in starting our days. Day one we saw the Tower of London and Tower... read more

Our trip to the UK was seamless from beginning to end! Drivers were on time and transportation to/from airports, trains and hotels was super easy. The hotels were all amazing. The Bloomsbury in London was perfect. The hotel staff knew us by name. The hotel bars were lovely and just what we needed after full days of sightseeing. Stephen also arranged breakfasts to be included with our stays which proved to be very helpful in starting our days. Day one we saw the Tower of London and Tower Bridge. We ate at Skye Garden for lunch which has breathtaking views of London. From there we walked across the London Bridge to Borough Market for dessert. Day two we saw Buckingham Palace, Big Ben and toured Westminister Abbey. We had high tea at The Savoy which is a must-do! Later that evening we went to a club called Ballie Ballerson which was so much fun, perfect for those with children over the age of 18. Day three we went to Covet Gardens and shopped and also hit Harrod’s, which is a site to see! Mr. Foggs in Covet Gardens is a darling pub with the best fish and chips I’ve ever had! Day four we had a private driver take us from London to Oxford for a day trip. Definitely a highlight of the trip. The University is so beautiful and incredibly interesting with lots of history and stories based on it. Our tour guide was full of great stories. Definitely stop at The Turf Tavern for lunch! Day four was a much needed day of rest in the Cotswolds. The Wild Rabbit Inn in the Cotswolds stole my heart! Everywhere you looked was Instagram worthy! We stayed in a two bedroom cottage that was the coziest place we’ve ever rented. The inn and pub were steps from our front door and the pub served great traditional English food and drinks. We spent hours in the pub sitting by the fire playing card games. Daylesford Farms is a must see and perfection everywhere you look. We did the walk from the inn to the farm which was really pretty although very muddy. Day six we had a private driver take us on a tour of the villages in the Cotswolds. Each village is equally beautiful and quaint, but there is not a lot to get out and do. Many of the shops have closed. This was our least favorite day. Then we took the sleeper train to Edinburgh which was a really fun experience! It was a lot nicer than I thought it would be and I actually slept very well. My husband, who is 6’3” would probably not agree with me. In Edinburgh, day 7, we stayed at the Balmoral, another exquisite hotel. Edinburgh is walkable and you can see a lot in just one afternoon. Probably my least favorite city, but it was my 18 year old son’s favorite. He loved hearing the history and the old buildings and we toured the underground tunnels and graveyards complete with ghost stories to go along. Day 8 another private driver to the fishing villages of Fife and St. Andrews. This was a perfect day trip and end to our holiday. The villages are quaint and a lovely drive and St. Andrews was very cool to see both the University and the golf course. Don’t for get to stop for a pint at the Jigger Inn!

Hotel Reviews

The Bloomsbury

London

Loved this hotel! Loved the smallish size and personal attention received. The hotel staff knew us by name. The Coral Room bar was the perfect place to relax after a full day of touring. The downstairs bar with live music was also pretty great. Beds were very comfortable. And the bathroom! The bathroom was amazing from top to bottom! Even came with a Dyson hairdryer!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Wild Rabbit Inn

Kingham

My favorite! The comfiest coziest cottage ever! Perfection everywhere you looked. Perfect place to build a fire, sip some tea and read a book. The inn was darling and a great place to settle into for hours playing games and sipping pints!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Loved the tiny village of Kingham. Perfect for a couple nights to unwind.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The comfiest coziest cottage ever!

Caledonian Sleeper

London

A fun experience.

Authenticity & Character

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Balmoral Hotel

Edinburgh

Beautiful room and bathroom. Great service for such a large hotel. The staff was amazing!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Private transfer to your accommodation. Then check-in or bag-drop

London

Loved the black cab experience! Very knowledgeable driver.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Driver/guide

Oxford

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Full day in the Cotswolds with small group and driver/guide

England

The driver was great. The villages are all beautiful. Just not a lot to get out and do.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Overnight Caledonian Sleeper Train to Scotland

London

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Fishing Villages of Fife & St Andrews from Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We thank Stephen, William and Celina for organising a wonderful holiday for us in Scotland. The attention to detail was outstanding particularly given it was the winter season when many venues are closed. Nothing was too much trouble and always available and keeping in touch. We had a sensational time staying at terrific hotels often wonderfully located in the country, and made many happy memories out in the Scottish Highlands. A lovely outdoor adventure... favourite spot is Applecross!!! We could imagine the Vikings landing there from the sea.

Super thanks from Anne and Bill

Our guides were very knowledgeable and personable. Hotels were nice. Both countries were beautiful with amazing architecture! read more

Our guides were very knowledgeable and personable. Hotels were nice. Both countries were beautiful with amazing architecture!

Great trip overall. Every day something new.
The good:
Edinburgh hotel
Stirling castle
Scotch tasting tours in general
Kings hotel in Glencoe was stunning
Restaurant in Portree for tasting menu was phenomenal. 40 min drive but worth it.
Guide at Bannockburn was amazing. Super knowledgeable and a good sport.
Portree northern loop drive and hikes fantastic. One of the main hikes was closed though which was disappointing
Hike near the hotel with a hiking guide was terrific and guide was... read more

Great trip overall. Every day something new.
The good:
Edinburgh hotel
Stirling castle
Scotch tasting tours in general
Kings hotel in Glencoe was stunning
Restaurant in Portree for tasting menu was phenomenal. 40 min drive but worth it.
Guide at Bannockburn was amazing. Super knowledgeable and a good sport.
Portree northern loop drive and hikes fantastic. One of the main hikes was closed though which was disappointing
Hike near the hotel with a hiking guide was terrific and guide was very good

The disappointing
Edinburgh guide was not from Edinburgh, had only lived there two years and was 15 minutes late.
Would have preferred a more well know whiskey set of tours. Ones we went to were either brand new or not single malt focused.
Staff at hotel in xxx didn't have our dinner paid for and didn't apologize or make up for it when our trip planner proved them wrong
Hotel in Portee was two star at best. Cold, small, run down.

Hotel Reviews

Eden Locke

Edinburgh

Good location. Tiny rooms. Great staff

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Atholl Palace Hotel

Pitlochry

It's run down and staff are not local

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Not friendly.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel is running down. Probably very nice 20 years ago. Feels like it's run from far away with eastern European staff

Rosedale Hotel

Portree County

Run down. Small. Cold. No heat at night...needed a plug in heater. No closet. Very hard to find a parking spot.

Authenticity & Character

Kind of a dump

Location

On Harbour but limited parking was an issue

Staff

Bar and kitchen staff very friendly. Less so front deck.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Too small to be a hotel room.

Kings House Way Inn

Glencoe

Amazing location and building and views and staff

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Moxy Hotel Edinburgh Airport

Newbridge

Only stayed there for location to airport

Authenticity & Character

Trying way too hard to be cool.

Location

Staff

Waited for 7 minutes before anybody came to front deck to check us in

Cleanliness & Comfort

Beds hard a rocks and for some reason the pillows are so big that both our necks hurt the next day

Activity Reviews

Private walking tour of Edinburgh with a top local guide

Edinburgh

She showed up late. Not from Edinburgh so it was authentic

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Exceptional Visit and Tasting at Blair Atholl Distillery

Pitlochry

Good tour although it's mostly there to produce a blend and not enough variety of single malt. Nor do they sell in duty free so we couldn't but anything.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Isle of Skye Whisky immersion at Torabhaig

Scotland

Stunning location and buildings but they are new so not sure why we even were there. Only one wiskey to try in the "tasting". Also doesn't sell in duty free

Quality of Experience

Too new. Only one to taste

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Phd level guided tour of Bannockburn

Stirling

Get Dr David if you can A PHD in archeology and super knowledgeable about Bannockburn 3 hours tour. Lots of walking. It was great.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

6 to 7 courses culinary experience at The Three Chimneys, Isle of Skye

Scotland

Awesome food. Chef tablets way to go. Book well well in advance

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Middle of nowhere and 40 minutes drive so someone has to be designated driver in the dark and rainy drive home

Private guided walk in Glencoe

Scotland

Great guide. Good hike mostly uphill but perfect if in shape but still not a hiker.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We couldn't have been happier with our self-guided walking tour in Scotland. We were able to experience the Highlands up close and personal. As a solitude lover, I was in heaven on the long walking trails -- very few people, immense vistas, and silence except for the sound of running water. Stephen, our support team, was fabulous -- always answering questions quickly and making on-the-fly adjustments as needed. David, my guide for the hidden valley hike, was absolutely delightful. All of... read more

We couldn't have been happier with our self-guided walking tour in Scotland. We were able to experience the Highlands up close and personal. As a solitude lover, I was in heaven on the long walking trails -- very few people, immense vistas, and silence except for the sound of running water. Stephen, our support team, was fabulous -- always answering questions quickly and making on-the-fly adjustments as needed. David, my guide for the hidden valley hike, was absolutely delightful. All of the lodgings met or exceeded our expectations. We particularly liked the Kings House in the Highlands. The four-person walking tour of Edinburgh was top notch -- our guide was extremely knowledgeable, providing us with background and context that we would not have otherwise had as we enjoyed this historic city.

- Some very basic and explicit briefing notes provided by me at inception were ignored in the initial trip plan. That set the tone for what felt as an off-the-shelf standardized pre-packaged trip planning experience.
- In general the quality of the guest houses was below par. I do not require luxury, just professionalism. As an example in the Edinburgh hotel No32 I was "welcomed" by a lady that had a hard time finding my reservation, which was one of the 2 paper slips she held in her hand.... read more

- Some very basic and explicit briefing notes provided by me at inception were ignored in the initial trip plan. That set the tone for what felt as an off-the-shelf standardized pre-packaged trip planning experience.
- In general the quality of the guest houses was below par. I do not require luxury, just professionalism. As an example in the Edinburgh hotel No32 I was "welcomed" by a lady that had a hard time finding my reservation, which was one of the 2 paper slips she held in her hand. During check-in there was a young lad that just stood up close to us watching the process unfold while avoiding eye contact. Clearly, it was someone ostensively providing some sort of personal protection to the lady. It was the first time I was treated as a potential threat in the hospitality industry. The lady was not able to answer some basic questions as "the manager was not there". She asked me to ask someone else the following day.
- My concerns around being able to complete the hikes were brushed off with a picture of general guidance material spread over a table and a photo of stephen and a colleague smiling in the hike.
- I was only provided with the actual hiking guidance material in paper format (?) once I arrived in the hotel. After examining the material my concerns about my ability to do the hike increased materially. These concerns coupled with very bad weather motivated me to forego the hike in the first day. I tried to do the hike on the second day but gave up on the first 10% of the itinerary as I did not feel I was fit or skilled enough to complete a 7-hour hike.
- No one asked me how many pieces of luggage I was carying and I was provided with only one luggage tag for the baggage transfer that was supposed to happen during the hike. I was not given a timely solution for the problem and decided to take one of my carry-ons with me along the hike, which certainly also contributed to cut it short;
- Last but not least, I was provided with incomplete transportation information and vouchers for the loch ness cruise. I raised the issue with High point Holidays but they do not work or answer messages during weekends, which left me to my own devices to re-work the transportation plan for the activity. When finally I received a message from them on Monday, they completed ignored the issue and wished me a good time in edinburgh as if nothing had happened.

Our family had an amazing time both in London and Paris. It was all very well arranged and communication was on point. Thank you for assisting us and making sure we had wonderful memories. :) read more

Our family had an amazing time both in London and Paris. It was all very well arranged and communication was on point. Thank you for assisting us and making sure we had wonderful memories. :)