Welcome to our home ...
Nestled in the heart of the Cairngorms, the UK’s largest National Park, is the oasis that is our Steading at Ballintean, surrounded by 120 acres of wilderness, teeming with wildlife. We know you love it here as many of you come back again and again.
We find a group size of around 12 people creates a great atmosphere, especially as at the Steading we all eat together around our big dining room table. We pride ourselves on our high level of personal attention, but we won’t race around in pursuit of big lists. Our guides’ enthusiasm is infectious and whether you are a beginner or more experience, young or old, we are happy to take time so you can enjoy the wildlife to the full. Our dedicated office team make sure everything runs smoothly before you arrive and our expert chefs at the Steading often get more praise than the wildlife, and can tailor the meals to any specific requirements.
Fully inclusive ...
Our holidays are just that - holidays. We’ll try to squeeze in as many exciting activities as we can, but still give you completely relaxed enjoyment, so that you can ‘switch off’ for the week.
You’ll find that you need little, if any, extra spending money as our holidays are all inclusive - the price you see is the final price you pay and covers accommodation, meals, transport, boat and ferry costs and flights, as detailed with each destination. Not included are travel insurance, expenditure for telephone calls, drinks etc at the accommodation, and items of a personal nature.
On a typical day ...
We generally breakfast around 8.00am, to make the most of the morning’s bird or wildlife activity, but often arrange an optional pre-breakfast excursion (don't be frightened to lie-in, it is your holiday after all!).
We take a picnic lunch in the field, according to season, including sandwiches of your choice, coffee, tea, home-bakes and more. After our day out we return with time to freshen up before dinner, where we all eat together.
Afterwards we run through the day's wildlife and maybe enjoy an evening slideshow, or perhaps we shall arrange an optional evening excursion.
Our baited hide provides the chance of seeing Pine Martens and Badgers up close and through the year we vary our itineraries to make the most of what wildlife is to be found, which also gives you the chance to enjoy something different each time you come.
Our holidays around Scotland ...
We think you will love every minute of your holiday in the heart of the Cairngorms National Park, you couldn’t be better placed for fantastic wildlife right on the doorstep, but if you have been here before and would like to try somewhere new, have a look at our trips around Scotland.
Away from Speyside our holidays run to a very similar format. We try to find the most friendly, rural, good quality, family-run accommodation with ensuite facilities. For us, great food, accommodation with character and comfort, and wildlife watching near at hand, are all vital ingredients in a successful holiday.
Join us overseas too ...
You’ll be amazed where we get to!
European Short Breaks – Just a short train journey or flight away, a short time needed off work and a short price to pay - great, affordable overseas birdwatching for the price of a UK holiday.
European holidays - Some of our holidays have been popular for many years - over 20 visits to Extremadura. Probably the best suite of Spanish destinations available, as well as a wide range of Eastern European and Scandinavian holidays.
Further afield - Using our years of experience around the world we take you to some of the planet’s most talked about places.