A holiday cottage in Scotland with a hot tub

A couple of weeks ago, I spent a few nights in the Cairngorms (the UK's largest National Park, in the Scottish Highlands) in a lovely holiday cottage to have a moment to switch off after a busy summer. The house is in rural Speyside on a working farm, near Grantown-on-Spey and provides you with great access to explore the Highlands and Cairngorms. Speyside is the ideal destination for nature lovers, those looking for a quiet escape to the countryside and whisky enthusiasts.

A link to book the cottage is at the end of this post.

How do you get there?

The cottage is located in Grantown-on-Spey which is a small town in the Scottish Highlands so the best way to travel is definitely by car. It will also be super helpful to have the car for when you need more groceries or if you want to get out for walks. If you don’t want to drive for several hours, you could rent a car from Inverness (approx. 45 min drive from the house).

However, if you’re just looking to relax for a few nights and not travel too far away from the house, you could just about make do with public transport too. For example, if you’re travelling from Edinburgh or Glasgow, you could catch a train to Aviemore. From here, you can catch a local bus to Grantown-on-Spey (around 30 mins). From here, you would need to catch a taxi to the holiday cottage (about 3 miles).

A little bit more about the holiday cottage in Scotland…

• There is a 2-night minimum stay

• The house sleeps up to 8 people in total so it’s perfect for larger groups of friends or family - there are 3 double/king bedrooms and 1 twin-bed room. There are two sofa beds so up to 11 people could also fit. Overall, the house is super spacious with a large and cosy snug area (with a wood-burner) too.

• There is also a large kitchen/dining lounge space which with high quality kitchen facilities so you can have cosy home-cooked meals.

• There’s plenty of outdoors space which is perfect for a late summer BBQ (if you get lucky with Scottish weather like we did on our last night!) and also ideal for a dog.

• The biggest perk is the hot tub which we made good use of. As it’s a remote part of Scotland, there is very little pollution so you can also spend the evenings stargazing from the hot tub which is as magical as it sounds.

• You can enjoy stunning views all around the house and there are plenty of walks to do nearby although you will need a car to get to these.

• The nearest supermarket is in Aviemore (20 mins away) or the nearest pub and local shops (where you can pick up basic groceries) is Grantown-on-Spey (10 mins away).

 

Things to do in the Cairngorms National Park

To make the most of your trip to this cottage in Scotland, I’d recommend driving or hiring a car (the closest spot to do this would be Inverness). With a car, you’ll be able to access lots of great walks and spots in the Highlands. A few things that we covered include:

• Loch Morlich — this is a large fresh water loch which sits at the foot of Cairngorm Mountains, in Glenmore Forest Park. There are lots of walking trails you can do nearby. The loch is also home to a watersports centre with kayaking, sailing, and windsurfing among the activities available. There is also a sandy beach, which was a lovely surprise. We stopped at The Boathouse Cafe for a coffee and cake.

• An Lochan Uaine — also known as the “Green Loch” because of its emerald colour (which I think is because of the surrounding trees). It’s a small, freshwater loch located in the Cairngorms National Park. There are lots of parking spots nearby including The Allt Mor Car Park, located in the Glenmore Forest Park. From here you can get to Loch Morlich too. There is also a Stagecoach bus There is a bus stop located near the car park with a regular bus service on the Stagecoach Aviemore Adventurer Bus.

• Loch Vaa — another beautiful and much quieter spot nearby. Loch Vaa is located between Boat of Garten and Aviemore in the Cairngorms National Park. The easiest place to park is in the car park next to the Laggantygown cemetery and from there you will see the path which leads down to the loch.

There are lots of easy and challenging walks in the area and I highly recommend using Walk Highlands to research more and to navigate.

If you are planning a trip to Scotland or are looking for more spots to explore in the Scottish Highlands, add this spot to your list. You can book your stay here.

Thanks for reading,

T.

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