Highland Lodge
Highland Lodge is a design-led country estate within walking distance to Aberfeldy, a typical Highland town with a very artsy feel to it.
While you get the feeling that you’re in the highlands, the property is just 600 metres from the centre of town.
The Lodge
The Lodge is a design lover’s oasis that is immersed in the Highland countryside while being just 600 metres from the restaurants and pubs of Aberfeldy.
How would you describe the Lodge in a nutshell?
The Lodge is a design lover’s oasis that is immersed in the Highland countryside while being just 600 metres from the restaurants and pubs of Aberfeldy.
What is the story behind the Lodge, what was your inspiration to create it?
The Lodge is a new addition to the Highland Lodge, with the main house sleeping up to 18 guests in nine rooms while The Lodge can sleep eight. They can be used exclusively by a single group or rented out separately, with private entrances to each.
From the top floor of the main house, you can just see the roof of The Lodge, which is positioned behind a mature beech hedge. A gap in the hedge leads from the car parking area to The Lodge, which is on a slightly lower level than the main house. It has a private garden and its outlook faces away from the main house.
How would you describe the atmosphere and interior design of the Lodge?
We spent a huge amount of time on the design specifications of The Lodge and there is such a level of comfort throughout the whole property. Everything is just so well designed, which creates a nice feeling when you’re there.
There’s a lovely fireplace with a glass screen that lifts up and disappears behind the wall. We imported it from Austria and it’s particularly nice to have on in the wintertime.
The bathrooms are also quite special. We worked with an award-winning Dutch company and managed to convince them to sell us a multi-coloured sink that they did as a one-off for an exhibition.
In designing The Lodge, we wanted to bring the outside in and create that feeling of being immersed in the countryside. So the windows are very slimline with a matte gold/bronze border that makes them look almost frameless.
The entire building is clad in a rich cedar that gives it a lovely warm feeling and smell, especially in the entrance porch area. It appeals to all of your senses, not just visually.
To you personally, what is so special about the Lodge?
I like the fact that The Lodge has a really nice deck and terrace area with a large overhang, so no matter what the weather is like, you can sit out and enjoy uninterrupted views across the valley towards the River Tay. No matter which window you look out of, there are fantastic views!
It’s also special because of its accessibility. While you get that feeling that you’re in the countryside, in the highlands, the property is just 600 metres from the centre of town. In the summertime, you can also go swimming in the River Tay.
As you enter the porch area, we have slippers for guests to use and a place to hang jackets and store boots. The main door leads to a long corridor, with two bedrooms on either side. Each of the four bedrooms has its own ensuite bathroom.
At the end of the corridor is the main living space with a kitchen and a large sliding door that leads out onto the terrace. There’s also a separate utility room with a washer, dryer and ironing board. Aside from the dining space and the fireplace, there’s also a small reading nook.
In the near future, we will also have a large, teak outdoor dining set that can seat up to 26 guests, so those from The Lodge and the main house can all dine together. We were having it shipped from Belgian in time for the summer. But the day before dispatch, there was a fire in their warehouse. The company’s production in Asia is now up and running again, so we hope it will arrive by springtime. It’s in line with our ethos — high design and well-detailed.
Before guests arrive, we leave a welcome breakfast hamper with produce from Ballintaggart Farm, including local jams, fresh eggs, sourdough bread, yoghurt and granola. It’s enough for a couple of mornings and is provided complimentarily.
All of the services that we offer at the main house are also available to guests at The Lodge, such as full or partial catering and drop-off dinners. They also have access to our Highland Experiences and we can tailor itineraries to suit them. I think it is quite unusual for a self-catering property to have such a wide range of services on offer and it’s something that sets us apart. We can easily turn them on or off, depending on the guests’ needs.
I would definitely recommend doing some of the walks that depart directly from the house or taking to the waters of the River Tay (the largest river in Scotland) to go kayaking or whitewater rafting. We work with a company called Beyond Adventure that can deliver bikes to the property if you want to go mountain biking or you can go on a 4x4 off-road adventure with Highland Safari for the day.
On the shores of nearby Loch Tay is an ancient crannog — a wooden “island” structure that’s accessed by a bridge — where we host whiskey and storytelling evenings around a big open fire, which is always a great experience for guests. And of course touring Dewar’s Whiskey Distillery with a private tasting afterward.
The Lodge is 600 metres from the heart of Aberfeldy. If you drew a triangle between Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberfeldy, Aberfeldy would be the tip of the triangle. It’s a 1.5-hour drive from both Edinburgh and Glasgow in the historic county of Perthshire, which is known as “Big Tree Country” for its huge forests.
Aberfeldy is a typical Highland town with stone buildings and quite an arty feel to it. There’s a beautiful old watermill that’s been converted into a cafe, bookshop and gallery space (and has been rated as one of the top 75 bookshops in the world), as well as another coffee shop that’s been awarded for having the best barista in Scotland for the last three years. Another highlight of the town is its old Art Deco cinema, which was renovated by the community and now operates two screens where guests can catch a film in the evening.
Scotland is a year-round destination, with different experiences throughout the seasons. In summer, you might go swimming in the river and mountain biking while the winter months are conducive to long walks followed by a fireside whiskey. Christmas and New Year are our busiest times, particularly with families and groups of friends wanting a space to come together.
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