Coach Trip - Good or Bad?

We did Lochs and Glens once, but found it far too regimented, especially the meal times; we were rushed through our meals with no time to relax between courses, and the time table was very strict with no leeway.
We needed a holiday when we got back! It definitely wasn't for us.

Go for it, most coach trips are very enjoyable , it’s great fun when you get off for a break, that’s when you meet most of the others. Like others have said do a little research both about the company and the hotels you may stay at. Good luck and have fun.

I was glad to read the thread, I too was dithering about taking coach trips and have decided not to, referencing the short breaks, the long time sitting and the risk to circulation. Thank you for the thread foxtail

We've had a couple of coach trips, but for specific events, a long weekend really, and they weren't too bad. I'd be very wary about a trip to Scotland, a long way up and back, and as several have said, only a part of the time is your own. (Did you mean a tour from way down in England?).

The last time we went to Scotland, we flew to Edinburgh (from Brum), got the bus into town, picked up a hire car, then had 3 days in the borders and 3 around Edinburgh and nearby. It was lovely.

I just Googled coach tours from Glasgow or E'burgh, plenty of choice, Discover Scotland looked interesting.

I enjoyed The Gran Tour too, Happyme. I seem to remember he couldn’t believe how little his gran paid for her coach tours and decided to try a few. Very funny. The other travellers weren’t used to a young person on board and sometimes mistook him for their driver.

Husband and I enjoyed a number of these trips a few years ago, Good value for money and met some interesting characters. I am currently reading The Gran Tour by Ben Aitken...amusing and accurate reflections of his experiences on tour. Reading this thread (and the book) have given me itchy feet to book another

My husband and I have done uncountable "coach circuit trips" throughout Spain.

We truly enjoy them, as it had given both of us a chance to see a multitude of historical and emblematic monuments as well as several focused on hiking for example: National Park Irati, in Irati, Navarra which is 50 km. from Pamplona.

One of very favourites was a 7 day - 6 night trip through Pais Vasco. It was enchanting ..

I highly suggest taking one .. It can be very enrichening.

Yes I would happily take a coach tour but I would study the itinery in depth to make sure there were no unduly long periods on the road and plenty of comfort stops were included.

I have done coach trips before, the last was with my mother to Andalucia. At that time I was still working and my problem was that they wanted us to be up, breakfasted and ready to go by 7.30am, a bit early for a working person when on holiday.
I think that they are usually pretty good though, with some evenings free for exploration of local restaurants.

My friend and I had a very pleasant coach holiday to Scotland, we travelled from Wales at the time ( we both live in different places in England now)

We’ve been on coach trips to other parts of the country too and always enjoyed them. We found it relaxing and more interesting than driving and I’d recommend it.

So many positive replies. As the majority recommend a coach trip and I think you are probably a good cross section I feel we will definitelytry one.I like the idea of train/coach especially as I can see you can get more options with Edinburgh or Glasgow as the starting point, so will explore that a bit more.I think it is inevitable you have to take some bad with the good, so it's what we compromise on.Not keen on going on an excursion only to stop long enough to go to the toilet by the same token. I don't want to be left for a long time in a place with nothing to see/do.Don't mind early mornings but not mad about shared table meal times. Lots to think about but want to book something for the first part of next year and if it goes well then we would like to do a coach trip to Austria.Really interesting comments, thank you.

We often see luxury minibus tours going round Scotland. They stay at better hotels. Must be more expensive. Probably worth it.

Wouldn't hesitate. Yes, there will be a timetable but most tours allow enough time to roam about sightseeing. Some actually stop over in popular places for a couple of nights when the place is very high on the tourist route eg Edinburgh, Loch Lomond.

We have done a few over the years and we have always found the accommodation to be really good, I was hoping to do more during our retirement but unfortunately my DH had a stroke and it has not been possible for us. My in-laws used to love going to a particular hotel in Scotland they used to go with Shearings and sometimes they spent the first and last night in the North of England to break the journey.

My friend and her DH went on one, they couldn't cope with the early morning starts, and didn't enjoy it. If you value your bed in a morning it's not for you.
Personally I think I'd enjoy it and after reading these replies I'm going to get some local brochures right away.

I avoid coach trips as sitting f0r a long period without stretching my legs I end up with Fat Ankles .

Foxtail you sound like me when hubby first suggested a coach trip. I was surprised when we boarded the coach as most travellers were around our age not old at all lol. I think a lot depends on the destination as some are more suited to different ages eg took grandson to longleat and that trip had a lot of youngsters on board. What I love the most is they are well organised and I don't have to stress to get to a ferry or hotel on time.

Never again unless you make your own way to the main collection point, unless you don’t mind going all around picking everyone else up and waiting for all feeder coaches to arrive

I've done coach trips since my twenties Bbpth alone and with friend pr husband They are very economical. Or I've just been to Derby under my own steam train down bus back not much change put of ,£400 for travel and band b on a premier inn Going to NE Scotland on coach trip from Glasgow 5 days for half boatd two excursions and sll trsvel to and from Glasgow £252 including single room supplement Try a weekend first see how it goes That's what O fod when my husband wasnt sure if it was for him a professional driver he loved driving but he took to coaching well Always check the hotel reviews

I have enjoyed some fantastic coach trips; go for it!

I recommend Lochs and Glens for coach trips in Scotland . Excellent value and well organised.

I tried a couple of coach trips but would not consider using them again. It depends what you have been used to and what you particularly want to do or have on your trip. I enjoy going in my own car where I decide the route and how long to drive etc, but thought as you did that going to the north of scotland might be better by coach. The plus side of someone else doing the driving was far outweighed by , for me, negative points of very long drives which if they had any stops would be at shops or motorway type places. No offers to stop even for a few minutes at some wonderful view or up on the tops of the mountains . Too much talking from the driver, and music that would not be my choice etc. Of course with a coach you cannot walk about either, so I have done a couple of long distance train journeys and done local buses on arrival, which seems to be more of the kind of compromise that suits me. I have also considered going by train - using rail card to cut cost down- and then hiring a car at the destination for a couple of days to go to things that are not on bus routes. The only problem with that is that you need to be sure that they are a decent hire company and personally I would take pictures all round the car on the day I collected it so that there would be no dispute about any scratches or marks , and also checking the fuel is full when you pick it up and make sure that you refill it so again there can be no errors there. Hope you find what you want and enjoy Scotland again

I am not ‘knocking Lochs and Glens at all, they are a good company to go o. Holiday with. It was simply too long in a coach for us during the day trips. One example was goin g to Skye, we drove for hours, stopped for a toilet stop, then drove off the island again! We are probably still too active at the moment.

Both partner and myself had swollen legs on our last coach trip. Due to being too cramped.
It was most uncomfortable. This was not a long trip either.
I dread to think of the consequences if we’d have traveled to Scotland for instance.
We won’t be doing anymore,

I quite like overland travel and have done a fair bit by landrover and local bus in the Middle East and Morocco. You see a fascinating cross section of life.

Ive only ever done one coach trip from UK and it was way back in the 1980s when I was a mature student at uni. It was a solo trip to Paris and that year there were disputes in France with many of the motorways being blocked. So we had to take the "scenic" route from the ferry into Paris and it took many hours extra. The hotel was a bit of a hole and the wall plug in my room didnt work. I had to plug my travel kettle into the corridor every time I wanted a coffee. However I enjoyed the views of the beautiful French countryside and the little villages where we made unexpected stops.