Walking Tours
6+ hours
Free cancellation
Not sure? You can cancel this booking up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.
from
£330
per group
Cairngorm Adventure Guides
Cairngorm Adventure Guides
5
Climbing ToursHiking & Camping ToursKayaking & Canoeing
8:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Monday
8:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Tuesday
8:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Wednesday
8:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Thursday
8:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Friday
8:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Saturday
8:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Sunday
8:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Full view
About
We deliver all forms of summer and winter mountaineering in the Cairngorms National Park. This includes guiding and skills courses for winter walking skills, ski touring/ backcountry skiing, mixed/winter/ice climbing, rock climbing, ridge scrambling and hill walking. We are highly qualified and experienced guides who know the area well. We cater for all levels of abilities and aspirations, including individuals, families, stag & hen parties, university mountaineering clubs and hill walking clubs.
Aviemore, Aviemore and the Cairngorms, Scotland
Awards
Travellers' Choice
2023
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listingTours and Tickets by Cairngorm Adventure Guides
Revenue impacts the experiences featured on this page, learn more.
Travellers talk about
(35 reviews)
Contribute
Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions
We perform checks on reviews.
Tripadvisor’s approach to reviews
Before posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines, the review is not published.
When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site.
Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines.
Learn more about our review moderation.
5.0
149 reviews
Excellent
147
Very good
2
Average
0
Poor
0
Terrible
0
Tahira N
1 contribution
Nov 2023 • Solo
Having taken a couple of days off and being determined to climb in the Cairngorms the weather was not ideal on 30 October. I swayed as to whether I should go up at all especially as I’m more a summer walker (for mountains at least). Luckily Dave was available and we took a last minute decision to tackle Ben Macdui.
Best decision ever was to do so under Dave’s guidance.
There were some really tricky bits as the boulders had frozen over with just enough ice covering them to make them super slippery. Dave was patient and let me decide how far I wanted to take the walking and I never felt any pressure to continue or otherwise. Given the possibility of (a) getting lost or (b) giving up were both pretty high I’d say it’s definitely worth considering a guide to make a hike a pleasurable experience.
Apart from his navigational skills on our climb Dave was chatty and informative. I’d have totally missed the ptarmigan going through a colour change had he not poin them out.
I feel so much more confident and equipped in tackling winter higher walks now having learnt so many safety features. Reaching the trig point of Macdui in these unfavourable conditions was awesome. There were points I’d have turned back had I not had Dave by my side. Instead now I’ll cherish the memory of icicles dangling off the lichen and there being nothing but a cold frosty wind cutting through us.
I would highly recommend Dave for his professional instruction and superb skills in making a challenging situation manageable and fun.
Best decision ever was to do so under Dave’s guidance.
There were some really tricky bits as the boulders had frozen over with just enough ice covering them to make them super slippery. Dave was patient and let me decide how far I wanted to take the walking and I never felt any pressure to continue or otherwise. Given the possibility of (a) getting lost or (b) giving up were both pretty high I’d say it’s definitely worth considering a guide to make a hike a pleasurable experience.
Apart from his navigational skills on our climb Dave was chatty and informative. I’d have totally missed the ptarmigan going through a colour change had he not poin them out.
I feel so much more confident and equipped in tackling winter higher walks now having learnt so many safety features. Reaching the trig point of Macdui in these unfavourable conditions was awesome. There were points I’d have turned back had I not had Dave by my side. Instead now I’ll cherish the memory of icicles dangling off the lichen and there being nothing but a cold frosty wind cutting through us.
I would highly recommend Dave for his professional instruction and superb skills in making a challenging situation manageable and fun.
Written 31 October 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dave K
San Francisco, CA41 contributions
Jul 2023 • Family
We took an amazing hike with David through the Eastern Cairngorms. Starting at the Spittal of Glen Muick parking lot, we took a 9-mile hike past Loch Nagar and to the top of Meikle Pap, moving from shady forest areas through open heather fields and up through the rocky terrain near the top. David was a great guide, showing us different plants and telling us about the history and current state of the Balmoral estate. It was a long hike, but we appreciated that he pushed us to make it to the top, where we enjoyed a nice lunch with an amazing view. We would definitely recommend this hike to anyone in good shape and open to the dynamic landscape and weather the Cairngorms offer.
Written 18 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Gene F
West Palm Beach, FL13 contributions
Jun 2023
This June (2023), we traveled to Aviemore in the Scottish Highlands. The town has a relaxed atmosphere and some great restaurants, but it's primarily known for its ideal location for hiking and skiing, as the locals have informed us.
We were fortunate to have a helpful Airbnb owner who introduced us to Dave, the owner of Cairngorm Adventures Guides. Dave was an excellent hiking guide who took us on incredible hikes in the Highlands while ensuring our safety and entertainment. He was considerate of our hiking experience level and adjusted the pace accordingly. Despite hiking over 6 miles and up and down beautiful trails, including reaching the top of a decently sized mountain, we maintained a comfortable and enjoyable pace. Dave was also friendly and accommodating, making the experience even more pleasant.
You can hire Dave or one of his team for a reasonable fee and enjoy hiking in the Highlands. Forget staring at your phone or a map. Let Dave or his team lead the way.
We were fortunate to have a helpful Airbnb owner who introduced us to Dave, the owner of Cairngorm Adventures Guides. Dave was an excellent hiking guide who took us on incredible hikes in the Highlands while ensuring our safety and entertainment. He was considerate of our hiking experience level and adjusted the pace accordingly. Despite hiking over 6 miles and up and down beautiful trails, including reaching the top of a decently sized mountain, we maintained a comfortable and enjoyable pace. Dave was also friendly and accommodating, making the experience even more pleasant.
You can hire Dave or one of his team for a reasonable fee and enjoy hiking in the Highlands. Forget staring at your phone or a map. Let Dave or his team lead the way.
Written 21 June 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tim B
17 contributions
Mar 2023 • Friends
We had a great weekend with CAG and our guide Graham with our two day winter walking course. Lots of snow, little wind but mainly low visibility. Graham was an excellent guide and very good at communicating key winter walking skills for dealing with snow slopes, use of ice axe, crampons, and about weather, avalanche awareness and navigation. We felt like we learned a lot and he took time to explain and show us things as we were walking and encountering features. We always felt safe and confident in his leading us. We would be very happy to recommend Graham and CAG.
Written 6 March 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Fran B
1 contribution
Mar 2023 • Couples
Myself and my partner went on the ski touring course. Firstly, the service was exceptional. Our flight got cancelled so we arrived late and Dave and his team made sure they went and picked up all of all her equipment for us without any problems. Secondly, the course itself was incredible. Rory our guide was fun, informative, and gave us an incredible experience. If you are looking to learn Winter skills and have brilliant experience in the Cairngorms I cannot recommend these guys enough. Thank you, Dave and Rory and the rest of the team. You were exceptional. No doubt we will be back soon.
Written 5 March 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Daniel19993
London, UK3 contributions
Mar 2023 • Solo
An absolutely amazing mountaineering course, I couldn’t recommend highly enough.
From the outset Dave took an interest in the skills we wanted to achieve and the capability of the group and tailored the course to us. We were provided with expert training and advice at every step.
This was a challenging week of mountaineering that fit in as much learning and experience as we could fit into 5 days.
I would highly recommend to anyone interested in Mountaineering or sharpening the skills they already have.
Massive thank you to Cairngorm adventure guides.
From the outset Dave took an interest in the skills we wanted to achieve and the capability of the group and tailored the course to us. We were provided with expert training and advice at every step.
This was a challenging week of mountaineering that fit in as much learning and experience as we could fit into 5 days.
I would highly recommend to anyone interested in Mountaineering or sharpening the skills they already have.
Massive thank you to Cairngorm adventure guides.
Written 4 March 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Andrew W
1 contribution
Feb 2023
This course was a great introduction to climbing mountains in scotland in winter. It went through all the equipent required to hike safely in the mountains. We then spent 2 full days in the mountains applying the skills and equipment. It is a tough 2 days of hiking out in the cold at high altitude so not for the faint of heart. The price was very good and included helmet, axe and crampon hire.
Written 22 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mark T
2 contributions
Feb 2023 • Solo
Had a really enjoyable 2 day course learning winter skills. Snow was only present above 900m but Lawrie our guide was excellent and I felt that I have learnt a lot. I would recommend Cairngorm Adventure Guides and will hopefully be booking up some more courses next winter.
Written 15 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Alfie S H
1 contribution
Jan 2023 • Friends
Had a super fun and productive week in the Cairngorms with Dave doing a Winter Skills Course. The course was very flexible with regard to the goals of the participants and the conditions in the mountains.
We covered loads of essential skills and I now feel competent enough to go hill walking and Munro bagging in the worst (and best) of winter conditions. We covered planning routes to avoid avalanche terrain, using crampons on steep and less steep ground, ice axe arrests, navigating in all sorts of weather, and other invaluable skills such aa emergency procedures. The only issue is that I’m dying to get back out in the snow to refine and practice all that I’ve learnt.
I thoroughly recommend Cairngorm Adventure Guides and will be back in the future to try one of their mountaineering courses.
We covered loads of essential skills and I now feel competent enough to go hill walking and Munro bagging in the worst (and best) of winter conditions. We covered planning routes to avoid avalanche terrain, using crampons on steep and less steep ground, ice axe arrests, navigating in all sorts of weather, and other invaluable skills such aa emergency procedures. The only issue is that I’m dying to get back out in the snow to refine and practice all that I’ve learnt.
I thoroughly recommend Cairngorm Adventure Guides and will be back in the future to try one of their mountaineering courses.
Written 14 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ellen2022
1 contribution
Jan 2023 • Friends
We had a great weekend getting out on the mountain with Dave and Charlie.
First time ski touring, was super fun! The wind speed was too high on Sunday so we headed somewhere lower and practised using transceivers etc for avalanche training - something I probably wouldn’t have done otherwise so it was a great alternative when we couldn’t ski!
Wicked instructors with lots of stories to tell 😊
First time ski touring, was super fun! The wind speed was too high on Sunday so we headed somewhere lower and practised using transceivers etc for avalanche training - something I probably wouldn’t have done otherwise so it was a great alternative when we couldn’t ski!
Wicked instructors with lots of stories to tell 😊
Written 12 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Chris R
Ashford, UK12 contributions
Hi, just a quick question. I was interested in booking the climbing and abseiling taster day for my son and his girlfriend at the beginning of August. Is it £235 each?
Dave C
Aviemore, UK10 contributions
Hi Chris,
A very slow response to your question. It's £235/day, which includes all equipment. This can be for a party of up to 6.
Best, Liam