Incredible Places to Stay in Highland Perthshire

Marvel at this four-star country house built in 1880 with its original stained glass windows and grand staircase. Rooms offer panoramic views and are country chic in style with plush armchairs, bookshelves and binoculars – especially useful in the Balcony Room. After a day of road tripping around spectacular Pitlochry, indulge in whisky and canapes by the roaring fire before an award-winning three-course dinner. Think guinea fowl, Highland beef and Scottish cheese boards to finish. Here for Pitlochry Festival Theatre? Knockendarroch offers pre-theatre dining and complimentary transport.

Live like royalty at this historic castle turned five-star hotel in picturesque Tummel Valley. Hit the spa’s Aroma Relax Room before indulging in the seven-course gourmet tasting menu for West Coast scallops and confit salmon. Sip drinks in lochside luxury pods complete with a music system and mood lighting, then relax in your Castle Penthouse with dressing room, Ulf Mortiz glass-studded wallpaper and chandeliers dangling from high wooden ceilings. Bringing your furry friend? Loch View Lodge Rooms are pet-friendly with patios overlooking Loch Faskally.

If you’re looking for fun, grab a Scottish gin at one of Taybank’s riverside, tent-topped tables and see what happens. It’s known for hosting great events like music gigs, craft markets and small festivals. Year-round, guitars and fiddles line the wall for musicians to throw impromptu concerts – including you, if you’re feeling it. They serve oven-fired pizza and venison burgers or, in the chic upstairs bar, sophisticated plates like braised ox cheek. Recuperate in your room with minimalist colours, fluffy cream throws and potted plants.

Immersive yourself in this working farm with fantastic views across the Tay Valley to the Grampian Mountains. Cosy farmhouse rooms come with traditional breakfasts while two self-catering cottages boast rustic kitchens, wood-burning stoves and an impressive vaulted-ceiling dining area. The hotel’s Thyme Bistro uses ingredients grown and reared on the farm with international twists, like the Perthshire Lamb African ‘Bunny Chow’. Don’t miss the deli’s award-winning treats including preserves, cheeses and meats, nor their on-site cooking classes.

Dating to 1828, this listed mansion in Cairngorms National Park offers rooms in the Mansion House or the converted cottages, including pet-friendly Stable Snug Rooms. Expect great views, free-standing bathtubs and eclectic art nodding to the hotel’s history. Explore the countryside or nearby Blair Castle, then relax with a tipple by the grand piano and open fire in the drawing-room. Dinner at the five-star The Orangery Restaurant is a must: try the roast Scrabster cod. On mild evenings, enjoy the fire pit-lit courtyard under the stars.

From the moment you see greystone Dunalastair with its grand staircase topped with a deer antler chandelier, you know you’re in for a treat. The former Victorian sporting lodge is stylish with deep greys and blues accenting the rooms, some boasting mountain views. Opt for the Flagship Suite to tuck into fresh fruit platters, handmade chocolate truffles and complimentary bubbly in your very own castle turret. The Kinlock Rannoch lochs and glens offer nearby exploring and you can finish the day with Scottish salmon fillet or vegan wellington at Dunalastair’s fine dining restaurant.

Scottish community charm ebbs through Fortingall. Head to the bar for home-brewed cider from the 100-year-old apple tree in the grounds, with a traditional side of pickled egg and live music. Singing or playing along with the band is encouraged and dogs are welcome. Fortingall is a four-star country house hotel ‘where time stands still’. Old worldly charm sweeps throughout with roaring fires, an ornate library room, country-themed decor and views over Drummond Hill or neighbouring Glen Lyon – Scotland’s largest glen.

This family-run inn sits on the banks of the River Tay, meaning you’re a stone’s throw from adventures like white water rafting, boat safaris or salmon fishing. Rest in one of the six colourful rooms: some boasting river views, some dog-friendly and all with breakfast included. Don’t miss the riverside garden bar for woodfired pizza and 16-year-old local whisky as the Tay rushes past. Look out for leaping salmon or rare red squirrels as evening falls and the candles come out.

For a romantic break for two, check into this self-catering cottage with sunroom to watch the woodpeckers, red squirrels and deer scamper past. There is a garden with a waterfall and river flowing through whilst the large bedroom window has a one-way film so you can gaze at the oak woodlands without leaving your bed. The colourful lounge area has a wood pellet fire for cosy nights in. Tour the nearby 1689 Jacobite battlefield of Killiecrankie or amble along the River Garry to Pitlochry or Blair Atholl.

This secluded ivy-strewn stone barn has stylish flair with vintage Ercol furniture and sumptuous tweed fabrics throughout. Marvel at the surrounding Cairngorms National Park over a complimentary continental breakfast of local Blair Atholl Watermill products on the private terrace at this self-catering hidden gem. Relax the Scottish way at nearby Edradour, the smallest malt distillery in Scotland, before a trip up into the mountains to see Britain’s only free-ranging reindeer. The more adventurous can even brave the Garry Bridge Bungee Jump.