Annual Finn-Brit June Tour of Orkney and the Shetlands!
The 2018 annual summer Finn-Brits tour was one of the trips of a lifetime, to the Scottish highlands and islands! Once again arranged by Rabbies Tours, the 2018 Orkney and Shetlands tour followed the previously most-successful 2017 southern England tour, In the Footsteps of Jane Austen, Virginia Woolf, and the Crawleys of Downton Abbey.
The 7-day trip began in Edinburgh on June 11th, and included transportation in Scotland, guide service, breakfasts, and rooms in 3-star hotels (based on a shared double or twin room with en-suite facilities), with one night in Inverness, two nights in Orkney, and one night in Shetland. There were also two overnights in shared cabins on Northlink ferries between Orkney-Shetland (ca. 8 hours) and Shetland-Aberdeen (ca. 13 hours).
As a 16-passenger mini-bus was used, only 16 participants were accepted.
The Tour Itinerary
The scheduled itinerary by tour day (subject to minor changes) was:
- Edinburgh – Dunkeld – Pitlochry – Cairngorms – Inverness
- Inverness – Helmsdale – John O’Groats – Scrabster – ferry to Orkney
- Explore Orkney, #1
- Explore Orkney #2; overnight ferry to Shetland
- Explore Shetland #1
- Explore Shetland #2; afternoon ferry to Aberdeen
- Aberdeen – St Andrews – Edinburgh
The tour arrangements allowed one to arrive earlier or extend their stay in Edinburgh, so participants were able to arrange their travel as it best suited their wishes. For those wishing to spend extra nights in or around Edinburgh before or after the tour, the Finn-Brits were able to recommend a range of good, reasonably-priced hotels.
