Aubey Banack, ON, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, September 2018
Please accept our thanks for the Amazing Ireland Adventure you all put together for us. The minor problems we encountered were quickly and professionally handled by your staff. Elaine kept in touch and made sure that all went well. We look forward to using your Travel Services again and have passed on your name to friends who wish to visit Ireland, Scotland & England. Thanks again for “the memories”.
Aubey Banack, ON
Bruce Missett, CT, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, September 2018
Nanette and I had a wonderful time and you are now two for two in setting up great trips for us. We have fond memories of our trip to Scotland and the two guides that, like Paddy Noonan, added significantly to the total experience. Paddy was terrific and his efforts went well beyond what we could have expected. While I’m not sure what could be done, we had maybe one too many stops (I’m also not sure what we would have given up). Hotels were also fine but if you put someone at the Trident make sure they get room 119 or 219, basically the end rooms over the water. The Ballyseede Castle has charm and the people are delightful. It was what we asked for (castle experience) but it probably could use a little more updating than charm. Twelve Hotel was great their restaurant was excellent. Maybe it was better to stay there than in the city but it is something to think about. We have no idea what hotels would have been like in Galway. Lough Eske was just great although we found going out to see more coast and cliffs outweighed stuff at the castle. Again, the restaurant was great. Barberstown Castle was more cute than charming (maybe unfair as it was our last day) and at the end of a trip it might be better to go simple and closer to the airport. I would go back to Ireland just to have dinner again at Finn’s Table and Kinsale is a cool place. So much of a trip like ours depends on what your goals are. We wanted to see the coast in all it’s splendor and it worked (again thanks to Paddy) and your routing of us along the coast. Thanks for your help and our best to Elaine who was most helpful.
Bruce Missett, CT
Johnnie Holley, TX, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, September 2018
Our trip to Scotland was all we had hoped for. All of our accommodations were excellent and no problems were encountered. Our driver, Ken Thompson, was excellent. He was helpful, cooperative and capable. I cannot praise Ken enough and because of him our trip was all we had hoped for. We encountered no glitches and all bookings were as stated. All tours and reservations were as planned and the restaurants were very good. On arrival ,the pickup was on time and the departure was as planned. We greatly enjoyed our trip .
Johnnie Holley, TX
Lella Smith, CA, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, September 2018
We had such a lovely time in Ireland and want to thank you for all of your efforts on our behalf. The many arrangements that Sheenco made went off without a hitch and simplified our trip enormously. By the way, the best dinner we had was at Cronins in Killarney and we so appreciated that recommendation. Because of my foot injury, we cancelled a couple of items on the itinerary but that turned out to be a good thing. We did not go to the Cliffs of Moher because of the distances to walk to the cliffs; nor did we go to the Aran Islands. Our wonderful driver John Rice suggested that we drive to Ashford Castle and the picturesque town of Cong. Afterwards, we went to Kylemore Abby and finally to Sky Road. It was a very long day but the scenery was breathtakingly beautiful! There are many incredible sites in Ireland but our favorite stops turned out to be Kylemore Abby, the town of Cong and Newgrange. Thank you again.
Lella Smith, CA
Mary Ostling, MN, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, September 2018
We had a wonderful time in Scotland. Every transfer transportation occurred on time, without a single hitch. The castle and manor home accommodations were lovely, the service impeccable. Our guide, Gerry Toner, was exceptional in every way. It was like traveling with an old friend who knew all the cool places to visit. We laughed and talked and almost fell together into a highland fairy pool! We would recommend him without reservation. If fact, my husband was wondering what other countries Gerry guides in as we would be thrilled to follow him anywhere. From start to finish, Sheenco Travel exceeded all our expectations. Your attention to all the little details ensured that our trip was a relaxed yet stimulating experience. We have done considerable international travel and we know it’s the little things that can make the difference between a great trip and a travel nightmare. Thankfully, you guys do it right! I will happily submit glowing reviews to all the travel links. Thank you, Colin, Garry, and everyone at Sheenco Travel.
Mary Ostling, MN
Sir Trevor & Lady Hassell, BB, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, September 2018
Firstly our driver Glen was very good and suited us perfectly He was a safe driver and made our days as long or short as we wanted them to be. We usually started at about 10.00am and were in our hotel by 6.00pm
CHATEAU RHIANFA, ANGLESEY
This was a lovely hotel with gardens and on the estuary however this property has lots of stairs on landings etc and steep stairs to go down to the breakfast room. We liked that we were able to have a light dinner in a very cosy sitting room without having to go into the main dinning room.
TWR Y FELIN HOTEL
A very modern hotel with every thing state of the art and within walking distance of ST DAVIDS CATHEDRAL. Our room had a pleasant view of the courtyard and bay.
COED Y MWSTWR HOTEL BRIDGEND
Very comfortable hotel with beautiful gardens. Room was very spacious with sitting area and 2 tvs. This was my favorite hotel
NOTES
All of our hotels were pretty isolated and we could not have stayed there if we did not have our driver Glen. Also these are old hotels and if you have mobility issues that could be a problem
Both Sir Trevor and myself thank you for organizing our trip and will be quite happy to recommend SHEENCO TRAVEL. Thanks once again to you and your team
Lucinda Lady Hassell, BB
Thomas & Kitty Dindo, OH, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, September 2018
Our trip with Maurice was nothing short of amazing. Everything went as planned but also he was very flexible and each day we decided what our day would be. He was an outstanding guide and driver. He just knows so much about Scotland’s history. Our own personal guide no matter what we wanted to do. Anyone who has him as their guide is very lucky. He even made the weather great. It hardly rained for two weeks. Sunny everyday. We were extremely happy with our experience working with Sheenco.
Thomas & Kitty Dindo, OH
Laura Dotson, TX, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, August 2018
First off – it was a great trip! Opting for a driver/guide was the absolute best choice. As my husband Mike said several times, we would have never made it out of Edinburgh!
Maurice was outstanding! He went above and beyond right out of the gate helping us with our genealogy search. We went to what appeared the logical church in Sauchie/Alloa. He was persistent in getting the cleaning lady to the door who directed us to the right door for the office (not marked at all in an adjacent building). The secretary was there and extremely helpful. We learned about Sauchie and based on the dates, she directed us to county offices and the correct cemetery. Unfortunately the cemetery was closed to the public, but we found it and took pictures. Would not have been possible without Maurice. When he found out Mike wanted a cashmere sweater, he took us to The House of Bruar on the way to Pitlochly. Needless to say we made a contribution to the local economy at that most delightful store. Maurice definitely made the trip.
Inverlochy Castle was amazing – spoiled us for the rest of the trip. Truly best accommodations, food and service. Setting and grounds were extremely nice and conducive for a leisurely walk. Room was delightful and spacious.
Glengarry Castle was nice. Common rooms were very bright, inviting with nice views. However, the upstairs and our room had a drab appearance for lack of a better word, there was something lacking. The room was a nice size but the shower was extremely small. Staff was nice and welcoming.
Drummossie Hotel was just okay. We decided not to go “back into town” for dinner at the Rocpool restaurant and opted for room service. Hotel seemed woefully understaffed, calls went unanswered and had to make multiple trips to front desk for service.
Fonab Castle was very good. Service was outstanding. Castle room was nice, but small. Again no air conditioning and no fan. Meals were good, views of the lake from table were very serene. Nice walk across the dam.
Sheenco staff and the communications were spot on. Thanks again for a great trip.
Laura Dotson, TX
Colleen Toner, AB, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, August 2018
Colleen Toner, AB
Karen Pierz, IL, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, August 2018
We had a wonderful time in Ireland, and our driver Jerry was absolutely the best. His knowledge of Ireland and fantastic stops long the way made it so much better. He could sense when the driving got too long and kept us entertained and made wonderful small changes to our itinerary, calling ahead so pubs would be ready. At our stop at the house in Kilkee where my husband’s family lived, the current owner let us in and John Kelly , one of your suggested photographers, was right on time and took great pictures. The food and beverages were enjoyed by all and very high quality. We loved all of the hotels, but I think the views from our windows at the Lake Hotel were spectacular. Watching the deer come to the water to drink near the herons in the morning was beautiful. The final dinner at the Barberstown Castle was a great ending. Our family was just amazed at our itinerary. Many thanks for such great planning.
Karen Pierz, IL
CC Jacques, MD, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, July 2018
CC Jacques, MD
Bethany Landing, CA, Custom Chauffeur Drive, Scotland, July 2018
We had a fantastic time on our Scotland vacation! Colin was a great asset in planning our trip. Andy was a great driver and had a wealth of knowledge to share with us throughout the trip and every excursion we took. Such a great guy and a perfect fit for our personalities. He called ahead of the first meeting and chatted with me about what we really wanted to do and what were our ‘must sees and must dos’ while in Scotland. I would like to share the positives and negatives for the hotels for future guest’s benefit if you don’t mind. We loved the Principal in Edinburgh. They had amazing service, amazing rooms, great food everything. This was our perfect fit for a modern hotel experience. We loved the Glengarry Castle hotel it was wonderful for the castle/manor house experience I was looking for. Technically, I would have loved to stay in a place like this in every location as I mentioned to Colin but I know that just wasn’t realistic for July as it’s a busy time. But this was my favorite location of the whole trip. It felt like Downton Abbey 🙂 great service, great food… the grounds were lovely just loved that place. The Kingsmills was a fast turn around, I tried to book a spa treatment, but everything was booked for the times I was available. (Note from Sheenco – we do recommend using our Concierge service to book spa treatments in advance of your trip). We did get to enjoy the spa and gym a bit. Again, my preference would have been a more castle/ manor house type experience but maybe there wasn’t anything available near Inverness. But the place was definitely lovely! Overall, Scotland was amazing as the landscape, castles and history could never disappoint it was all wonderful and I would love to come back again someday!
Bethany Landing, CA
Steve and Linda DelRossi, NJ, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, July 2018
Our 9 day trip touring Scotland was absolutely wonderful. We worked with Colin to create our itinerary. Since I am a devout Outlander fan, he was able to include all of the sites that I requested. The accommodations, all five star except one, were superb. The castle hotels, especially Inverlochy and Crossbasket are so exceptionally beautiful. Moreover, Elaine did a splendid job with dinner recommendations. All of our meals were outstanding including the buffet breakfasts. Transportation to an from the airport was on time and the drivers were very professional. One of the best aspects of our trip in addition to the scenery and castles, etc. was our driver, Jerry Toner. He is so knowledgeable and personable and was a highlight of our trip. He was able to include all that we wanted to see and even had some additional sites for us to explore. By the end of our trip he was like a best friend. We were sad to say good by. We will certainly work with Colin and Elaine for our return trip and request Jerry again. Scotland is such a beautiful country and Sheenco is the best. We will certainly recommend you. See you next year.
Steve and Linda DelRossi, NJ
Dorothea Downey, MA, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, July 2018
With the exception of Melville, which you went above and beyond to correct, we were very pleased with everything you planned and all of the other accommodations. I think Skye was everyone’s favorite but even that was hard to say because everything was superb. Maurice was a very patient and pleasant person and we all felt very comfortable with him. Believe me, we witnessed a few other drivers and their attitude and were even more grateful to have Maurice as our driver. Truly it was a trip of a lifetime for my sister and I and our nieces. Everyplace we ate was very good, even Melville castle at least served good food. Overall 10 stars, outstanding choices of hotels, driver, and suggested sites. The Jacobite train was awesome also. I will certainly rate you and your company top notch because you deserve it. I know you and your team worked hard to make this a wonderful vacation for us and it was. With great sincerity, thank you.
Dorothea Downey, MA
Diane Sullivan, MA, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, July 2018
We came back from our trip last week “Sullivan’s Family Trip to Ireland July 4-9th”. First, by far the highlight was visiting our extended family in Ireland and the Van Trips with Danny our tour guide/driver! He is amazing. From his beautiful voice singing us Irish songs, to his knowledge of Ireland’s history, to his gift of storytelling, we thoroughly enjoyed him and the tour!!! He really made our trip special. Secondly, working with Sheenco was easy and very beneficial with this size of group. We are very happy we used Sheenco, thank you! The only constructive feedback I would offer is that the we would have preferred more time at the Cliffs of Moher and forgone the Bunratty Castle. We are an outdoor activities/hiking sort of crowd and thought the Bunratty experience was not as nice as hiking/site seeing the beautiful Irish countryside/ocean cliffs. We also loved our trip to the Aran Islands. It was spectacular and I highly recommend that to others you work with if they have the time and the weather cooperates. Overall, we truly appreciated how the trip was planned and having our private van for the 20 family members with Danny as the driver was simply wonderful! Many thanks.
Diane Sullivan, MA
Anja McAlister, NJ, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, June 2018
We had great time in Scotland. The whole trip was enjoyable. Our drive guide, John Maltwood was really excellent. He added items to our itinerary on the way. That was excellent. We saw more than we were hoping for. Hotels were good. We fell in love to Stonefield castle hotel and Fonab. Thank you for organizing everything! I will definitely recommend your company.
Anja McAlister, NJ
Linda Mellema, CA, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, June 2018
We have returned from our vacation to Ireland and we had a fantastic time. All the transportation was easy and smooth. We found our transfer drivers easily and John was easy to contact to rearrange our departure time from Dublin (we had luggage delayed and had to wait for it to arrive before we departed Dublin). John O’Mahoney was a great driver and a fantastic reference. Many of the days we went to places he thought we would like and he was always right.
Camden Court Hotel: Beautiful lobby and wonderful breakfast. The hotel room was the smallest of the trip and the bedding situation was crowded with one real bed and two fold-out sofabed type beds. I’d give it 5 stars for breakfast but about 3 stars for hotel room compared to our other stays. It is right above a pub that was loud late but I brought a white noise machine and of course any city is loud. Good location for walking around and shopping.
Ballyseede Castle Hotel was a favorite with our group because of it’s quiet rural location, the big dogs, the donkeys, and the ponies. Huge room with window seats all around. Nice staff and great breakfast. We were very happy there.
Old Ground Hotel was very nice with comfy beds and good breakfast. There were many free amenities and the location was fantastic for shopping, with a grocery store and pharmacy steps away. Wonderful food and music in the hotel pub. We were really happy there. There was no hot water first thing in the morning but I called the front desk and there was hot water within 10 minutes.
The Park House Hotel in Galway was very nice and roomy with a large bathroom. We walked to a pizza place nearby but didn’t do much else in Galway as we were tired.
Ashford Castle was everything it is supposed to be. The room was really nice, central top floor with a view of the lake and fountain through the dormer windows. Nice bathroom (but the water wasn’t quite hot enough for me). The BEST part was the falconry. We ended up signing up and all of us loved it. The kids also did archery and we rode horses. It was fantastic. I also loved Cong, the nearby village where we could get some good pub food for cheap and enjoy the river with all its stone bridges. We want to live in Cong permanently. Or maybe Dingle. We loved Dingle. Ashford Castle was definitely 5 stars all around. The grounds were amazing.
Barberstown Castle suffered by comparison only, comparing to Ashford Castle. The grounds were nice and they had two golden retrievers that my boys adored. The desk staff were wonderful. They recommended a restaurant/pub called Friels about 1.5 km from the hotel (we were hunting for chicken strips, burgers, etc.) and they called ahead to make sure what we wanted was on the menu; they were worried that the walking was a little unsafe and that turned out to be true. We had to spend a bit of time in the bushes waiting for traffic to pass and the day was warm. We arrived sweaty and the woman running the place knew who we were based on the phone call. The food and service was FANTASTIC! When it was time to depart, the server offered to have someone there drive us back to the Barberstown Castle because she was concerned about us walking back during rush hour. So sweet! We gave the nice Lithuanian man who drove us back 10 euro but felt like we should have given him 20 because we were so grateful. The breakfast next day was not as great as the other places we stayed (buffet portion was more limited). The transfer to the airport the next day was on time and easy. We had a fantastic time and will strongly recommend Sheenco again. Thank you!
Linda Mellema, CA
Carol Welty & Art Stephens, CA, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, June 2018
We are back from our grand trip and though tired we thoroughly enjoyed the time. Our driver John was just fantastic. He was easy going, knowledgeable and so helpful at every junction including helping us find lunch at each stop. We cannot say enough about how he made the trip so enjoyable. The car was also very comfortable and air conditioned which was a respite on the days we had to be in hotels without it. The biggest surprise was the hotels that are top rated not having air conditioning. It was very uncomfortable and surprising to us. I suggest you at least let people know when there will not be air conditioning before their trip. We did hear that the weather was unusually hot and of course were happy there wasn’t rain. The Ashford Castle and K Club were the best (except K Club didn’t have air conditioning) – how is that a 5 star hotel? They grounds and rooms were lovely. All in all our trip was a very memorable one. Grateful thanks for all of your help in making our trip the best.
Carol Welty & Art Stephens, CA
Andrea Becvar, CO, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, June 2018
We had a fantastic trip to Scotland. Both our driver and our accommodations were top-notch. We especially enjoyed our driver, Roy Lake who became part of our family by the end of the trip. Thank you to everyone with Sheenco that put together our trip…Colin, Ruth and Nicola – we really appreciate the time spent.
Andrea Becvar, CO
Barbara Eaton, CO, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, May 2018
My week with my Sheenco Travel tour was beyond fabulous. John was exceptional, and I saw and experienced so much, everything I could have wanted. I wish I could do this forever. And I will definitely contact you again as well as recommend you to my friends. Bless you all. Thank you.
Barbara Eaton, CO
Susan Steffee, TX, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Scotland, May 2018
Our trip was wonderful!!! After having experienced our trip to Ireland (which we loved) with Sheenco, our expectations were high. And we were not disappointed! Our driver, Maurice, was a perfect match for us. He was always prompt, had a very pleasant personality, was knowledgeable and very accommodating. We thoroughly enjoyed our time with him and the extra sights he shared with us. Our favorite accommodation was Inverlochy Castle. Such an elegant atmosphere and the service was outstanding! We loved the fresh flowers, wonderful breakfast served on fine china and overall feeling of being special to the staff. All the other accommodations were great too with the exception of one, the Atholl Palace Hotel. It was nowhere near the standard we have experienced with all the other accommodations we’ve had on either of our trips with Sheenco. Overall we loved the trip and just wish you had more destinations to choose from so we could book another one! Sheenco gets an A++ from us!
Susan Steffee, TX
John Taipale, MI, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, May 2018
We all very much enjoyed our Ireland adventure. Beautiful country and beautiful people! Elaine was wonderful to work with in planning our itinerary – knowledgeable, attentive to detail and a delight to speak with on the telephone. I appreciate so much her insights, guidance, and follow through at every step. The reservations that were made all went smoothly, and again, I appreciate all who helped with them. Transportation from and to the airport was flawless. Our driver/guide Jerry was great – again very knowledgeable, punctual, flexible and entertaining and we really enjoyed the time we got to spend with him. All of our accommodations were wonderful. We only wished we could have spent more time at each of them. I guess we will just have to come back. The two places that stood out the most were Ashford Castle and the Castlewood Hotel in Dingle. Everything at Ashford Castle was simply fantastic but the Hawk Walk and High Tea stood out as particularly special for us. Brian and Helen at Castlewood were most gracious hosts and Brian’s cooking was spectacular!! There were so many special moments during this trip that I really cannot adequately describe them all. All in all we had a wonderful trip and created some wonderful family memories. Thanks so much to you all. I certainly would travel with Sheenco again and would not hesitate to recommend your company to friends or relatives. You are a very special group of people at Sheenco and my best wishes go out to all of you! Thanks again!
John Taipale, MI
Anne-Marie Styles, ON, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, April 2018
Colin and the rest of the Sheenco Travel team made my “Cinderella ” vacation come true! We had the most amazing adventures and our driver Paul Hehir was so great I want to request him should I ever be able to return. I really think Hayfield Manor was my favourite of all our stays. We had such a good time we didn’t want to leave!!!!! Many thanks again for a truly outstanding vacation!
Anne-Marie Styles, ON
Scot Henderson, MA, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, April 2018
Thank you to you and your team (Elaine & Ruth) for your efforts in organizing our trip to Ireland. FYI….all the arrangements that you set up worked SEEMLESSLY………every driver, every reservation, etc. were spot on. In fact, even our driver mentioned that you folks were “one of the better ones” to deal with. All in all, a FANTASTIC trip……………and thank you again.
Scott Henderson, MA
Elizabeth McCuin, VA, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, April 2018
The trip was great! Transfer arrangements (pick up at the airport and pick up at hotel to go back to the airport) were excellent. Our private driver – Jerry Horgan – was personable and a “walking encyclopaedia”. He found out the things we wanted to do and arranged them. We could not have asked for a better experience with him. We would highly recommend him again. Ashford Castle was the favourite accommodation. Thanks for arranging a great vacation for us.
Elizabeth McCuin, VA
David Banther, FL, Custom Chauffeur Driven, Ireland, February 2018
We absolutely loved our trip! Our driver Mike Dooley was amazing, he showed us more in 6 days than we would see in weeks on a bus and he knew all we could ever want to know about Irish history. I would highly recommend him as a driver, he was attentive to our every need. The hotels were perfect. We LOVED Ashford Castle. We had no clue that it was remodelled since our last visit. We will go back no later than two years, this time in the summer and we will bring our daughters. We will use you all again.
David Banther, FL
