Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why do you not offer shorter boat trips?
Q: What wildlife can you guarantee us on the trips?
Q: Can you offer me any special discounts for my trip?
Q: Why do you not have online booking payments available?
Q: Your prices are so much cheaper than your competitors? How is this possible?
Q: Do you offer any refunds if I am unhappy with my boat trip?
Q: Why is it that you have no Sunday sailings?
Q: Why do you not offer short boat trips?
A: Our standard trips are 3 hours long, giving you a full 90 minutes ashore to visit Loch Coruisk. We also offer a shorter trip lasting a total of 1 hour and 45 minutes which gives you 30 minutes ashore (enough time to walk up to Loch Coruisk and spend a little time there). Others do offer shorter 1 and a half hour trips and we are often asked why we do not offer these. The simple answer is that these shorter trips do not allow passengers to go ashore and visit Loch Coruisk. They are simply trips in a boat. Loch Coruisk is a fresh water loch, above sea-level and it cannot be seen without the 10 minute walk from the landing steps at Loch na Cuilce. Whilst the scenery en-route is indeed stunning in itself we are convinced that taking a boat out to the landing steps but not walking up to see the Loch is similar to taking a bus to Niagara but not going to see the actual Niagara falls themselves! Loch Coruisk is considered to be one of the top views in Great Britain - and worldwide - and it is the main focus of our trips.
We do understand that some folk will be physically unable to do the walk which is why the Misty Isle uniquely waits over at the landing steps throughout the 90 minute landing time. If you would like to come along just for the boat trip and the scenery but feel unable to do the walk, that is no problem - you are free to stay on the boat and enjoy one of our famous hot chocolates!!
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Q: What wildlife can you guarantee us on the trips?
A: The only wildlife we guarantee on the boat trip are the many seals near Loch Coruisk, and a variety of birds. We are primarily a boat trip to Loch Coruisk and our main focus is on the loch and the incredible scenery nearby. However, though we are not strictly speaking a 'wildlife tour' we do have a huge amount of wildlife sightings every season. We have very frequent sightings of basking sharks and porpoises, and a fair amount of sightings of other wildlife such as dolphins, minke whales, golden eagles, puffins, sea eagles and more.
What we do guarantee is a highly enjoyable trip, a friendly Highland welcome and a pretty decent cup of coffee! Anything beyond that is a bonus!!
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Q: Can you offer me any special discounts for my trip?
A: We are happy to offer discounts. We offer a standard 10% discount to students, the elderly, disabled, and certainly to anyone from Skye or nearby (be sure and tell us!} Other than that we are happy to give discounts for any groups with 5 or more people. And we guarantee that our prices are consistently much lower than similar length trips to Loch Coruisk offered elsewhere.
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A: This claim is based on the following: We are owned and run by Seumas Mackinnon, who who has lived all of his life in Elgol itself (his family having lived there for generations before him). All out staff and crew are from Elgol. There is one other boat trp company in Elgol which is locally owned and run. Drew and Mary Sim from the village started up with a wee 12 seater boat in 2010, and we are pleased to be able to work along side them - do visit their web site, Elgol Boat Trips. If you do have any doubts or questions regarding our claims... and those made by another boat trip company which operates in Elgol, our advice is that you simply ask anyone from Elgol!
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Q: Why do you not have online booking payments available?
A: We do not take any money in advance as we want to leave you free to come on the day of your choosing. In other words, we do not want to run a system where yo pay us money, then it pours on the day you have booked and although you decide not to go to Loch Coruisk on that day we sail and keep your money any way! To us that seems like an unfair system. We would rather that you felt entirely free to change your mind about your trip for any reason. And we would certainly want you to experience Loch Coruisk on the best day possible of your stay in the area.
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Q: Have you really been running boat trips from Elgol to Loch Coruisk for over 40 years?
A: Certainly. We would rather be open and clear about our history! Misty Isle Boat Trips has not been running as a business for long. However our skipper, Seumas Mackinnon, has been running boat trips from Elgol to Loch Coruisk since 1967. For years he used the little 12 seater boat Apollo and other small boats for the boat trips. For some of those years Seumas was fishing around Elgol and during these times his fishing boat would double up as a tourist boat through the summer months. There was also a gap of around 4 or 5 years prior to buying the Misty Isle during which time the only boat trips Seumas ran were occasional charity trips and one-off bookings. (See the photo gallery for some photos from the olden days of Seumas' boat trips and various boats he used.)
So although the name 'Misty Isle Boat Trips' has only been in use since 2005, we as a family have been running the same boat trips from Elgol to Loch Coruisk since 1967, working happily alongside many other folk who have done the trips over the years. We believe that this lifelong experience is what makes the trip special - not the fact that we have had boats with the same name for any number of years but entirely new owners, skippers and staff!!
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Q: Your prices are so much cheaper than your competitors? How is this possible?
A: Although we do this as a living and obviously want to make a living out of it, we enjoy the satisfaction of offering a great trip at a low price. We do not see any reason to charge well above the odds for your trip when we are able to offer it for our current prices. Our boat uses very little fuel which has the benefit of not only being much friendlier to the environment but also cheaper running costs.
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Q: Do you offer any refunds if I am unhappy with my boat trip?
A: Of course! Our refunds policy is simple: If you are not entirely satisfied with every aspect of your trip with us (other than the weather!!) then we will happily give you your money back in full! This means that if any part of your trip - wildlife sightings, scenery, hospitality, value, etc - in any way fall short of what we have promised you to expect... we will give you a full refund straight away!
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Q: Why is it that you have no Sunday sailings?
A: Because we are only a small family run business, the same people are always on duty... and we need a day off!! We love to work but it can get tiring and it is great to have a day a week to rest - I'm sure you understand. Also, we like to keep Sundays free to give those who work for us the opportunity to get to church services and enjoy worship.
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