Butterfield & Robinson Review 2026: Biking and Walking Trips From USD 6,195 and a Record Score of 71

Butterfield & Robinson scores 71/100 as a company record: the Toronto company founded in 1966 publishes biking and walking trips priced between USD 6,195 and USD 11,295 per person, puts its own guides on every guided trip, caps small groups at 16, and is protected by Ontario TICO registration only. Below: who runs the company, what trips cost and include, the protection, the guides, the review record and the gaps, each line sourced and dated.

Verified 25 September 2026 · butterfield.com trip, FAQ and contact pages · GLEIF · PAX News · Trustpilot and Travelstride · USTOA directory

How Butterfield & Robinson scores: 71 out of 100

Butterfield & Robinson scores 71 out of 100: strong on planning, pricing and reviews, and held back by support arrangements it does not publish and by protection that covers Ontario buyers only. It is not on our Power Rankings, where none of the twelve companies listed is a biking or walking specialist.

Butterfield & Robinson publishes the product in detail, from the hotels to the single supplement, and leaves the company itself undescribed: no owner, no terms our reader could open, no 24-hour line. For a North American buyer the protection point matters most, because TICO's compensation fund is built for Ontario customers.

The evidence record

The record holds 17 facts about Butterfield & Robinson, each with its source and grade. Grade A means the company's own site or terms; grade B means a registry, review platform, awarding body or major press. Every line was read on 25 September 2026 unless its source says otherwise.

Who owns Butterfield & Robinson?

Butterfield & Robinson Inc. of Toronto does not publish who owns it; George Butterfield and Sidney Robinson founded it in 1966, and its chief executive is Mike Scarola.

New appointments under Scarola were announced on 17 September 2025: Kristi Elborne in a newly created chief experience officer role, Alexander Green as chief marketing officer, arriving from the Canadian grocer Longo's, and Eimear Duggan and Christina Cain as senior directors of sales and trip design. The announcement came as the company marked its 60th anniversary with a redesigned website and a new "Around the World in 60 Days" collection. It did not say who owns the business.

How much does a Butterfield & Robinson trip cost?

Butterfield & Robinson prices its biking and walking trips between USD 6,195 per person for six days of self-guided cycling in Provence and USD 11,295 for eight days cycling in southern Japan. Prices below were read on 25 September 2026, per person, from, with the months the trip runs.

Trip pages list the inclusions. Sicily Walking and Hiking, for example, includes all meals with local wine, three hotels (Country House Villadorata in Noto, Villa Neri Resort & Spa on Etna and Belmond Grand Hotel Timeo in Taormina), walking equipment, B&R guides, entrance fees, transport and luggage transfers, and excludes flights, travel insurance and guide gratuities. Single supplements are published per trip: USD 2,800 on Japan Walking and Hiking, USD 3,200 on Peru Hiking and USD 3,500 on Southern Japan Biking.

Butterfield & Robinson booking terms and financial protection

Butterfield & Robinson is registered with Ontario's Travel Industry Council (TICO), wholesale number 1322989 and retail 1321983, and is not a member of the US Tour Operators Association.

TICO registration brings Ontario's compensation fund, which is designed for customers who book through Ontario-registered sellers. No California or other US seller-of-travel number appears on the site, and the USTOA directory does not list the company. The terms page has a protection and cancellation section, but its deposit and cancellation text did not display to our reader in three attempts; a buyer should read it before paying.

Guides and support on the ground

Butterfield & Robinson's own guides lead its Small Group and Bespoke trips, with an average tenure of more than eight years, but the company prints no 24-hour number and its phone lines close at weekends.

The FAQ says experienced guides are "there throughout the trip, ready for whatever the day brings". The reservations line, 1 866 551 9090 in North America, is staffed Monday to Friday from 9:00 to 19:00, with separate numbers for Australia, Mexico, the UK and Brazil. Self-Guided trips carry no guide.

What Butterfield & Robinson reviews say

Butterfield & Robinson holds 4.9 out of 5 on Trustpilot from 195 reviews, on a profile claimed in April 2024, with the newest dated 21 September 2026.

Travelstride shows 5 out of 5 from 74 reviews, none newer than April 2020. The Tripadvisor listing checked has no reviews. The press page lists Travel + Leisure World's Best Awards in 2025 and 2024; Travel + Leisure's site blocked our reader, so neither was confirmed at source.

Who Butterfield & Robinson suits, and who it does not

Butterfield & Robinson suits active travellers who want a guided biking or walking trip with the meals, wine, luggage and named hotels included, in a group of no more than 16.

It suits less well a US buyer who wants USTOA-backed protection, a traveller who wants a 24-hour number in writing, or a solo traveller on a budget, since single supplements run to several thousand dollars.

Where Butterfield & Robinson stands on Uncompromised Travel

Butterfield & Robinson appears on two ranked Uncompromised Travel pages and is absent from the Power Rankings.

Alternatives to Butterfield & Robinson to compare

The closest alternatives are the other operators on our active travel index, led by DuVine, plus Steppes Travel for expert-led groups and Artisans of Leisure for private touring.

What this record does not show

Seven things a buyer would want could not be found or verified for Butterfield & Robinson. Supplying a verifiable source closes a gap; it changes the evidence, never the rubric.

What changed at Butterfield & Robinson, 2025 and 2026

Butterfield & Robinson renewed its leadership and marketing in 2025 as it marked its 60th anniversary.