Considering booking a trip to Scotland but having trouble deciding which operator to travel with? You’ve come to the right place! Read on to learn more about Haggis Adventures and MacBackpacker to determine which operator is best suited to you.
Group size, age requirements and travel styles
Both Haggis Adventures and MacBackpackers offer similar group and travel styles for over 18-year-olds, the main difference is that MacBackpackers does have an upper age limit.
MacBackpackers offers tours for travellers between the ages of 18 to 40. Their average group size varies, however, they do have a maximum of 27 travellers on a tour at once.
In terms of travel style, MacBackpackers is adventurous while still focusing on the historical and cultural side of Scotland. They also offer tours that allow travellers to experience popular festivals and events.
Haggis Adventures also has a minimum age of 18 for travellers. However, the difference here is that there is no upper age limit. The tours are designed for young travellers, but everybody who is young at heart is welcome to join.
The average group size on these tours is 25. Haggis Adventures has a laid-back travel style, focusing on off the beaten path destinations as well as culture and history of the country.
They also offer special tours that take in local festivals and events around the country, including Up Helly Aa Viking Fire Festival on the remote Shetland Islands.
Physical requirements
Both MacBackpackers and Haggis Adventures’ tours don’t have a strong physical demand as they are both culturally-focused tour operators using coach buses for transportation.
There is no specific physical requirement for any of their tours. However, if you’re hopping on one of either tour operator’s festival tours, you may want to make sure you’re dancing skills are ready to go!
Accommodation
Standards of accommodation are fairly similar with both tour operators. They both use hostel-style accommodation however, there are a couple of small differences.
Haggis Adventures uses independent and Youth Hostel Association hostels for their tours, and ensures they are 3 or 4-star accommodations with dorms housing between 4-10 travellers. Haggis Adventures also has private twin rooms available.
MacBackpackers also uses hostel-style accommodation with dorms housing between 6-12 travellers.
Transportation
Both operators use coach/bus tours for tour transportation, with heating, air conditioning, and reclining seats on all the buses.
Destinations
Both MacBackpackers and Haggis Adventures offer tours around Scotland. The operators head to popular sites as well as off the beaten path destinations all while focusing on culture and history to ensure you get the best overall Scottish experience.
Cost
Both Haggis Adventures and MacBackpackers have similar costs, but Haggis Adventures has a wider selection of attractions you can add at the time of booking or locally, which is why it is at times a bit more expensive than MacBackpackers.
Another thing to note is that Haggis Adventures does offer a student discount on their tours to encourage travel in that age group.
Looking for more info? Find reviews for Haggis Adventures here and reviews for MacBackpackers here.
