The Monday Piece - Rural Staycations

This week's Monday Piece is on rural staycations! In 2021, avoid the crowds and travel to hidden gems while sustainably spreading the travel love. Rabbie’s (www.rabbies.com), the UK’s leading coach touring company, offers private or small group tours, meaning more time with the expert guides, avoiding the crowds, and going far off the beaten track. As experts at finding these areas and activities, Rabbie’s reveals its top staycation experiences to add to your bucket list for 2021.

Sample whisky from royal favourites to the oldest. Known in Scotland as the ‘water of life’, nothing beats a holiday with friends and a tipple! Sample some of the world’s finest whiskies on the Islay & the Whisky Coast four-day coach tour from £299 per person departing from Edinburgh. Distilleries on this adventure include the Oban Distillery, Islay’s oldest distillery, Bowmore, Ardnahoe Distillery, Kilchoman Distillery, the Prince of Wales’ favourite Laphroaig, Lagavulin, Ardbeg, and to end with, a whisky shop in Inveraray.

Make a wish at the Giants Ironing Stone. In Kylemore Abbey, Irish legend has it that giants had a battle against one another. An iron-shaped rock used in the fight juts out in the estate and is now a wishing stone. If you stand with your back against the stone, make a wish and throw a small pebble over the stone three times, that wish will be granted. Discover more Irish legends on a three-day West Coast Explorer tour from €309 departing from Dublin.

Visit Queen Victoria’s favourite holiday home". It is impossible to imagine a prettier spot" said Queen Victoria of Osborne House, her palatial holiday home on the Isle of Wight. Visit Victoria and Albert's private apartments, their bathing beach and children's play-cottage for an intimate glimpse of royal family life. Join the three-day Isle of Wight and the Southern Coast tour from £195 and follow in the footsteps of royalty.

For book worms, travel the ‘town of books’. Wales’ Hay-on-Wye is a town where there are books in the castle, shelves on the streets and more little boutique bookstores than you could ever have thought possible. In total, Hay-on-Wye now has over twenty bookstores, all dedicated to the love of the written word. Visit this hidden gem on a five-day Discover Wales tour from £289 departing from London.

Feed Britain’s only free-ranging reindeer. There are currently around 150 reindeer in the herd on the Cairngorm Mountains. Travellers can get into the festive spirit, coming close to these magical animals whilst enjoying a local Speyside Whisky. Did you know that reindeer don’t melt the snow they lie on because of their big warm winter coats? Join a Loch Ness, Inverness & the Highlands tour from £95 departing from Edinburgh, relax and see the best of the Scottish Highlands.

Soak up some Jane Austen in the Roman Baths. Did you know that Avebury Neolithic Standing Stones are bigger than Stonehenge? Travelling through West England is like stepping back in time, first to the Druid era then to Bath where Georgian architecture effortlessly blends with ancient Roman artefacts. Visit film locations from Harry Potter, Downton Abbey and Pride and Prejudice all in one day, with the one-day Bath, Avebury and Lacock Village tour, departing from London, from £59.

With social distancing measures in place, as well as increased cleaning measures, Rabbie’s offers worry-free journeys. In 2021, go beyond the guidebooks to explore further. For more visit https://www.rabbies.com/en :).

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