We take care of every detail so that you have the most inspiring experience possible. That means we take the worry out of finding the local hidden trails to explore, the most friendly accommodation to stay and the tasty eateries that know how to treat fresh seasonal ingredients. Don’t take our word for it though, we have over 4,500 customer reviews so you can see what other travellers thought of the trips you’re interested in booking.
…And when you’re done, explore the outdoor holidays in Scotland that create a lifetime of memories by choosing your favourite activity above.
See below for advice on what you should wear on each of our activity holidays:
Footwear for Sea Kayaking & Canoeing
Scotland is known for its ever-changing weather conditions – yes, you should prepare for rainy conditions with appropriate waterproofs for protection, but really you should prepare for all types of weather changes. Especially in Summer, you can experience rather interchangeable conditions – one moment the skies can be clear blue with the sun shining brightly, then later in the day the heavens open up to provide some refreshing rain to help you cool down and then before you know it the sun is back to accompany you for the rest of the day. So, the best advice is to take your raincoat and some suntan lotion.
Below are some articles relating to Scottish weather and seasons:
10 Best Weather Forecast Websites
What is the Best Season to Hike in Scotland?
What is a Scottish Summer Like?
5 Reasons to Visit Scotland in Autumn
In the broad our range of small-group, fixed-date tours run with a maximum of 8 people. We find that, along with an expert guide, this is an ideal number to ensure that the group is intimate and has an opportunity to create some strong bonds across a week-long adventure.
Of course, there are some exceptions to the rule and a small number of tours run with extended capacity, such as the West Highland Way and also our Photography tours.
Our Private Departures and Custom Tours, by their nature can be customised to your own requirements and therefore the size of the group is entirely dependent on who you’d like to travel with.
For the vast majority of our tours you will have the service of one of our expert guides on a 1:8 ratio.
Our guides are highly trained, not only in the activity they are guiding but also in many other aspects that make up an incredible adventure travel experience. Those include, landscape interpretation, history and storytelling, the night sky, gaelic in the landscape and of course in the high level of service we provide.
On the water for our sea kayaking and canoeing trips that ratio drops to 1 guide for every 4 travellers and for our West Highland Way tours (where we have a larger group size) we add an extra guide when the group size reaches 11.
See below for our guide on various travel links within the United Kingdom, Europe, North America and Australia and New Zealand:
Whether travelling solo on a group holiday or journeying on a self-guided walking adventure, we can provide you with advice about solo travel. Check out the articles below for more information:
Travelling Solo on a Group Adventure: A Guide’s Perspective
Solo Travel: Making New Friends on Arran, Islay and Jura
Self Guided Walking Holidays – Your Questions Answered
Our holidays are open to people with various levels of fitness – all our trips are graded by difficulty; green trips are the easiest, while blue trips offer an intermediate challenge and red graded activities are the most challenging. Click the link below to view our guides and videos on grading for each activity holiday that we offer.
While our grading system caters for a range of fitness levels it is good to get your body prepared before heading on your adventure:
How to Get Fit for a Long Distance Hike
From spending nights in grandiose castles, relaxing by a cosy fireplace in a beautiful 4-star hotel or camping lochside during one of our canoeing holidays you can be sure to have a memorable time with whichever activity holiday you choose. In castle and hotel accommodation look forward to tasting some fine locally sourced food from some of the most magical locations in Scotland. On our luxury walking holidays experience some of the greatest 5-star hotels in Scotland.
Top 5 luxury hotels in Scotland
In the event that you have to postpone your trip with us, you can rollover your deposit, for free, for life.
Wilderness Scotland is a member of ABTOT and as such your money always benefits from 100% financial protection.
Should things change quickly for you, we want to be there to help. Our 48 hour cooling off period gives you grace to change your mind for any reason.
Most of our small group outdoor adventure holidays in Scotland have a maximum group size of just 8 clients. These holidays are led by fully qualified and very experienced guides, who will lead you on all of our small group trips, as well as looking after all of your requirements while you are on holiday with us.
Our activity holidays in Scotland are not for everyone. They are not sightseeing tours of the Highlands and Islands. All of the trips involve an outdoor activity, so you will need to have the appropriate level of fitness to join any particular holiday. Even our ‘easy’ graded trips require a reasonable level of fitness.
Furthermore, our trips venture into wilderness areas and national parks, so you need to expect the unexpected and accept that the weather and other factors sometimes mean a change of plan. This is all part of adventure travel. Please do call us if you would like to discuss any aspect of our small group holidays.
Most of our adventure holidays in Scotland focus on one activity. We offer walking, sea kayaking, canoeing, mountain biking, road cycling, sailing, photography, winter walking and family outdoor holidays.
As well as small group holidays, we offer bespoke private group holidays and self-guided walking holidays. Please do contact us if you would like to discuss any of our holidays in Scotland or check out our sister company Wilderness Ireland for Irish activity holidays.
I very much enjoyed this holiday, lovely scenery, challenging but very do-able walking, pleasant bunch of people to walk with and a great guide. It was a well worthwhile trip in a beautiful part of the world. Accommodation, food and organisation was of a consistently good standard. I would certainly consider another trip with Wilderness Scotland.
Cordelia Miller
Wilderness Walking - The West Highland Way
Reviewed on 28/09/2021
Rated 4.89 out of 5 based on 6,603 reviews
Read More Reviews
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