TOP 3 ACTIVITY HOTELS IN SCOTLAND FOR ADVENTURE & LUXURY

Adrian Mourby

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Scotland’s wild beauty offers more than just breathtaking views - it’s a playground for adventure seekers and nature lovers alike. Whether you’re drawn to kayaking across glassy lochs, hiking dramatic glens, or simply unwinding in a fireside lounge after a day outdoors, these three handpicked hotels combine comfort, character, and activity in equal measure.

The Kingshouse Hotel, Glencoe

If you’re driving through the dramatic post-glacial valley of Glen Coe, huge granite hillsides rise up to intimidate the urban traveller. Dark clouds open to admit beams of golden light. On either side of the Highland A82, lakes and bogs lie in wait for the disorientated motorist. How wonderful therefore to find The Kings House, set back from the road near a little Victorian bridge, with bright lights blazing from its modern bar and dining room. There are cheery log fires in reception and an equally cheery staff in tartan waistcoats.

Although the new Kingshouse is less than ten years old, on a dark night it has the quality of Brigadoon:  festive, cozy and so ideal you fear it may disappear by dawn. The antlered deer sauntering through the car park only add to the magic. Two in particular, known as Ted and Fred, are so unperturbed by hotel guests that they pretty much pose for photographs.

The original Kingshouse stood here on a tributary of the River Etive since the early eighteenth century when military roads were constructed across the Scottish Highlands. Inns that served the army engineers and garrisoned soldiers caught up in that ambitious task became known as “kings houses”. For many years after the occupying red coats left, this structure was just a small whitewashed pub that served traders and drovers crossing the Etive burn. Today it stands, beautifully restored as a single high-ceilinged drinking hall. In winter it hosts picturesque weddings and in summer it’s a welcome watering hole for walkers who follow the West Highland Way. The hotel caters for them in a nearby bunkhouse, where they can dry their boots, shower, and sleep six to a room.

The hotel’s real charm however lies in the new Kingshouse, which is connected to the old inn via a small art gallery with a piano for musical events. Crieff Hydro runs both the old pub and this 57-room extension. The reception area is one of the most relaxing you could hope to sit in on a cold winter’s day. There is a fireplace burning local timber and lots of comfy Chesterfield sofas. Those books on the shelves are mainly uninspiring library sets – encyclopaedias for decorative purposes only - but this is an ideal spot to snuggle down as the snow piles higher outside.

Not only is the hotel’s ground floor heated by four fireplaces, but the whole hotel – hot water as well as radiators - is heated by wood chips delivered twice a week from a local logging company. There is a lot of commitment to sustainability here. The venison, which plays a significant part in lunch and dinner menus, is from a local estate. Rope-grown mussels come from a local loch. Even the electronic room keys are laminated wood containing a metal strip.

Bedrooms to the front face Stob a’ Ghlais Choire and Stob Dearg, rock formations so mighty they ought to be honorary mountains. Each room is sensibly designed with the basics:  desk, sofa, TV and bed. Switches are simple and the bathroom actually has a bath (wonderful after a cold day out in the winter elements). Breakfast is buffet-style including a chafing dish of haggis (we are in Scotland after all), and guests can order eggs and hot dishes from the staff.

WHAT TO SEE NEARBY:
The dramatic valley of Glen Etive runs south west from Kings House. It was used as a location for the film Skyfall. Bond (Daniel Craig) drove down this single-track road with M (Judi Dench) and there are a number of spectacular waterfalls running down from the mountaintops. You’ll also find a rare “sheep transporter” marked on your Ordnance Survey map. This is visible below the road itself – a dark green box on a pulley system that allows individual sheep to be hauled across the torrent below.  At the bottom of the valley stands Dalness House which could be Skyfall itself - but is not. Still its position and size could easily have inspired the film. Don't forget it’s a two and a half hour walk down to the Dalness Estate - and you’ll be going up on the way back - but the views are worth it.


The Isles of Glencoe Hotel & Leisure Centre, Glencoe

On the banks of Loch Leven there stands a low-rise 59 room hotel with views on to a still lake with a large fishing boat picturesquely -and permanently- moored opposite. This tranquil spot is just a mile and a half west from the town of Glencoe. Some rooms have patio doors that open on to the hotel’s lawn with its views of several small Leven islands and the towering rocky mass known as Pap of Glencoe.

On the lawns hotel guests can sit and enjoy the view (also visible from the conservatory-style restaurant) or they can take part in the many activities on offer, such as kayaking and paddleboarding, from the nearby dock.  The activity centre next door also offers guided kayaking tours round the loch. Further afield there is climbing (there’s a stunning view from the top of the Pap of Glencoe) plus biking, segway tours, archery and clay-pigeon shooting at the Woodlands Activity Centre, just down the road.

Back at the hotel, bedrooms are sleek and comfortable. There’s a desk and chair, good internet connection and a sofa. The bathroom is spacious with a shower and bath. The hotel always provides tonic and miniature bottles of 1881 gin to welcome guests. 1881 is the entry-level gin made at Peebles Hydro which, like Isles of Glencoe is owned and operated by the Crieff Hydro family of hotels.

Food under the direction of chef, José Fernandez is very good indeed. It’s served in the open plan bar and restaurant area. Behind the bar the hotel has partnered with Against the Grain Distillery (set up by two stars of Scottish rugby) to create their own whisky. 
On days when it’s too cold to plunge into Loch Leven (which, in my opinion is most days) there’s a small indoor swimming pool with jacuzzi and sauna next to reception.

WHAT TO SEE NEARBY:
Coire Gabhail (the Hidden or Lost Valley) is a mildly challenging walk that sets off between the Three Sisters. These are a trio of massive volcanic hills in the Glen Coe valley.  The route is famed for its beauty and relative inaccessibility but also because during the terrible massacre of the Macdonalds by the Campbells in 1692 the survivors fled into Coire Gabhail. These days there are signposts from just below the Three Sisters car park so the valley is far less hidden now. It is no stroll (taking up to three hours in summer) but the views are worthwhile. Local advice is to wear serious walking boots - and not try it in winter. 

The Lodge on Loch Lomond, Loch Lomond

There are a number of hotels on the shores of Loch Lomond at Luss which stands within the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park, one of the first two national parks created in Scotland. Luss is famed as the filming location for the Scottish Television drama series Take the High Road (1980 - 2003). Largely as a result of this, a village of 120 residents attracts more than 750,000 visitors each year, and keeps a kiltmaker and bag-pipe works in business.
Loch Lomond is the largest lake in Great Britain by surface area and one of the most picturesque. Of the places to stay at in Luss, the 48 room Lodge, on a small incline to the north of the village, has the best views. Its Colquhoun dining room and bar gaze out across a narrow section of the loch to Inchlonaig island and Conic Hill. Most of the bedrooms share this view and if you’re able to get a room on the first floor you’ll have a small balcony from which to watch the sun rise over Conic.

Although the hotel is busy, the kitchen cooks your breakfast for you individually rather than relying on chafing dishes, buffet style. Food is typical of this part of the Highlands – venison, haggis and fish from the loch (or Glasgow depending on availability)  The Lodge is a good base for water sports. Reception can arrange speedboat trips, wakeboarding or a canoe safari. For those who want to take things easier the hotel now has AmberRose Spa facilities in a modern annex overlooking the lake. Here there are two luxurious treatment rooms offering spa therapies from Germaine de Capuccini. It also has dedicated manicure and pedicure stations.

There are also plenty of places to relax in the hotel itself including the restaurant with stunning lake views and reception with a number of comfy chairs around a log-burning fire pit.

WHAT TO SEE NEARBY:
A number of small cruise boats operate out of Luss, just below the hotel. The Luss Circular (www.cruiselochlomond.co.uk) is a 90-minute voyage around the loch including the islands of Inchconnachan and Inchtavannach. Unoccupied for many years, Inchconnachan has a population of wallabies, introduced in the 1940s by the eccentric Countess of Arran while Inchtavannach is a wooded island, once visited by Coleridge and William and Dorothy Wordsworth when the Napoleonic Wars prevented them from visiting Switzerland. £18pp.