Greenock--private tour/driver for the day

[bethohio3]

Hi all,

 

We're interested in going to the Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Distillery (and doing a tutored tasting), which is not easily reachable by public transportation.

 

I'm considering hiring a private driver for the day or part of the day, and visiting a few castles or seeing the countryside, and then going on to the distillery.

 

I know there are 4 of us who want to go to the distillery and may be able to acquire a bit more interest on our roll call.

 

My question is, can anyone recommend a taxi/driver/private tour service? How expensive was it? Was it priced by the day or by the number of people?

 

One option would be to take the train into Glasgow, see the city sights, and then get a driver to take us to the distillery and then back to Greenock.

 

Does anyone have any advice?

[KirkNC]

We used Gordon Ross, he was fantastic! Here is his website:

 

http://www.greatscot-tours.com

[jtamchay]

We used Gordon Ross, he was fantastic! Here is his website:

 

http://www.greatscot-tours.com

 

We used Gordon Scot for our Port Call to Edinburgh and his driver, our guide, David Frood was one of the best we had during our British Isles Cruise on Princess. We highly recommend him.

[NancyIL]

We used Gordon Scot for our Port Call to Edinburgh and his driver, our guide, David Frood was one of the best we had during our British Isles Cruise on Princess. We highly recommend him.

 

We have toured with both Gordon Ross and David Frood from Greenock, and also highly recommend Great Scot Tours. :)

[marylizcat]

When we docked at Greenock on Caribbean Princess in July, there were lots of taxis waiting offering tours for however many hours you wanted.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

[bethohio3]

When we docked at Greenock on Caribbean Princess in July, there were lots of taxis waiting offering tours for however many hours you wanted.

 

I'm curious about pricing for hiring a taxi/driver for the day. Can anyone fill me in?

 

We might do that for a half day or day in several different places and I'm not sure if I should make arrangements in advance or make arrangements when we get to port.

 

(This is my first European cruise--somehow making arrangements in the Caribbean has seemed easier.)

 

Thanks!

[Scotguide]

Beth as you only have a short day in which to cover many things I would suggest the best way to do this is to contract with a private driver guide who will pick you up at Greenock port and then take you to as many venues that can be fitted in on the day and to places of your choice.

 

The only distilleries within a reasonable distance of Greenock are Glengoyne and Auchentoshan. I doubt if you would have time for a tutored tasting - you may have to take the ordinary distillery visit and that has to be booked in advance as cruise ship days are very busy as you can imagine.

 

I recommend you to contract with a licensed professional driver-guide who will be fully insured for you and your guests and will offer you, in advance an itinerary to suit you and will be practicable within the time-scale.

 

Remember that you will have limited time and our roads in Scotland are not all motorways so travelling can be slow at times but the scenery will make up for that. My recommendation is to have a stop at Loch Lomond - the largest freshwater loch in mainland UK. If you wish to visit a castle then you would need to go to Stirling where there is very good interpretation of the Scottish Stuart dynasty.

 

A driver guide will be more expensive than a taxi but well worth it because he/she will give you a guided tour of the area. Be sure to choose a driver-guide with the appropriate hire & reward insurance to cover you in the vehicle. You can find a driver-guide by looking up the internet - blue badge guides are professionally trained and can be found on their association web sites. The cost depends on the size of the vehicle and the length of the day and mileage. You will be expected to pay your own entrances to castles and distilleries and your lunch. Depending on the size of the vehicle, you may be able to find other people on your cruise who might like to join you.

 

Good luck!

 

Kathy

[onthebalcony]

Hello,

 

Has anyone found any private tours that do not need a prepayment? It appears the BI private tours all require a down payment and then final payment before the tours. In all the tours I have planned, this has never happened before on cruises to Europe, Baltic, Caribbean or South and Central America! I am ready to just get a tour from the dock! We have done this in the past and they have worked out very well!! On our last cruise in Europe many of the passengers were doing this.

 

I see that Gordon Ross has been recommended from Greenock. Does he require a prepayment?

 

Thanks for any information!

[Scotguide]

It is normal for any professional tour guide or driver-guide to ask for a deposit up front for a tour. If you are serious about a tour then this should not be a problem. Many guides and driver-guides travel quite a distance - perhaps as much as 60 miles to reach Greenock or any other port in Scotland and leave themselves available for the day. If the client was not to turn up for any reason - then that would mean they had lost their tour and therefore income for the day when they could have been working elsewhere. In addition the guide would accrue the expense of travelling to and from Greenock plus their time. As far as I am aware none of my professional tour guide colleagues live in Greenock and cannot just 'pop down' on the chance that their services might be required!

 

Gordon Ross does require a deposit for his tours - otherwise it would be impossible to organise his tours as he would not know what size of coach or car would be required for the day! There also have to be other considerations taken into account such as itinerary (as several tours might be available - depending on numbers), possible booking for lunch, etc. All these factors are important if a tour is run efficiently and smoothly.

[Great Scot]

This is Gordon of Great Scot Tours. Thanks to Scotguide for the information. A deposit is for the reasons that Scotguide have mentioned. Also it gives the client the confidence that they have a firm booking. I have seen, quite often people have booked a tour without a deposit and no one turned up to take them out. As for a taxi tour, well that's your choice, but Taxi drivers are not guides and know very little about history or attractions. Pick up a tour from the dock? no chance, un-authorised vehicles are not allowed in the Port due to security reasons. Guides just don't sit about at a Port in the hope that someone will come off the ship looking for a tour. You may get that in a third world country but not here.

What ever you do I hope you have a great day out. :)

[onthebalcony]

Thanks for your input on tours in Scotland. This will be our 38th cruise and we never had problems getting taxis at or near the ports. Like I said previously, many cruise passengers go this route rather than take a ship's tour. Also popular are the hop on/hop off buses!

 

I am sure we will enjoy your beautiful country no matter what we decide.

[cats49]

I agree with you Gordon. I was required to put a very small deposit down with Great Scot Tours and then pay balance after tour was completed. Shows good faith on both sides.

 

Wow, had a great tour with David, Gordon's guide, May 2014. David got us on the Falkirk Wheel even though we didn't have a reservation. Would have to wait a couple of hours if he hadn't and time is of the essence. Was very conscious about getting us back to ship before sailing time. That was appreciated.

 

Gordon quick to respond to questions. Even called us during tour to make sure all was well. Thank you Gordon and David. Wonderful day.

 

This is Gordon of Great Scot Tours. Thanks to Scotguide for the information. A deposit is for the reasons that Scotguide have mentioned. Also it gives the client the confidence that they have a firm booking. I have seen, quite often people have booked a tour without a deposit and no one turned up to take them out. As for a taxi tour, well that's your choice, but Taxi drivers are not guides and know very little about history or attractions. Pick up a tour from the dock? no chance, un-authorised vehicles are not allowed in the Port due to security reasons. Guides just don't sit about at a Port in the hope that someone will come off the ship looking for a tour. You may get that in a third world country but not here.

What ever you do I hope you have a great day out. :)