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The Best Places to Stay on a Scottish Estate or Farm

A round-up of cottages, lodges and converted steadings to book on a working Scottish estate or farm

Hidden Scotland

Written by Hidden Scotland

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Scottish estates have always had more buildings than they knew what to do with. The keeper's lodge, the shepherd's house, the odd steading. Plenty of them now have a second life as somewhere to stay. Some of these conversions are spectacular. A few are among the nicest places to stay in the country.

What you get out of it is a stay with a bit of life around it. There's usually a working farm next door, or deer on the hill, or a river someone's paid to look after. You might wake to a tractor, or share the track with a quad and three dogs on the morning round. The estate carries on regardless, and you get to watch the whole thing from your window.

Some of the places below have been in the same family for centuries. Others are recent rescues of buildings that nearly didn't make it. All of them sit on a working Scottish farm or estate, and all are worth the drive.

North Lodge and River Cabin

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Sleeps 6

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North Lodge and River Cabin
Off-grid hideaway for two by the River Dye, with a wood-fired hot tub and a sauna, deep in the woods.
Royal Deeside
2
Recommended by Locals
Whitehill Farm house

Featured

Sleeps 8

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Whitehill Farm house
A 19th-century farmhouse for families on a rural Perthshire estate, with a boot room, a cosy snug and three bedrooms.
A contemporary comfort led home for rent in Perthshire
1
No 4 Steading Cottage
Another of the steading conversions gathered round the courtyard, sleeping a small group in easy Deeside comfort.
1
Recommended by Locals
No 5 Steading Cottage

Sleeps 7

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No 5 Steading Cottage
One of the courtyard steading cottages, contemporary inside, with the Big Green Egg and BYOB pub a stroll away.
1
Recommended by Locals
The Hay Loft at Glendye

Sleeps 4

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The Hay Loft at Glendye
. The old hay loft, now a light and lofty stay above the steading, with the estate on the doorstep.
2
Recommended by Locals
Cuttieshillock

Sleeps 6

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Cuttieshillock
A converted cottage out on the Glen Dye estate, set up for a group, with the moor and the river within reach.
1
Recommended by Locals
Curlew Cottage

Sleeps 5

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Curlew Cottage
The first cottage you reach on the estate, sleeping five, with the single-track road skirting Loch Linnhe right outside.
Ardnamurchan
0
Wash House

Sleeps 2

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Wash House
A two-person cottage in the original farm steading, wood-fired sauna of its own, views out to the heather-clad Pentlands.
Pentland Hills
1
Seaview Cottage

Sleeps 2

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Seaview Cottage
Properly secluded, reached along a winding estate track by the loch, for those who want the quiet and not much else.
Ardnamurchan
0
Bailies Cottage

Sleeps 6

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Bailies Cottage
A family and dog-friendly cottage for six on the Mayen estate, with a herd of Highland cattle and walled gardens to wander.
0
Gamekeeper’s Cottage

Sleeps 6

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Gamekeeper’s Cottage
The former keeper's cottage on the estate, a proper Deeside base for walking, fishing and doing very little.
1
The Gate Lodge

Sleeps 4

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The Gate Lodge
The cut-granite lodge to Kingairloch House, sleeping four, with one of the finest views on the whole estate.
Ardnamurchan
0
Butlers Cottage

Sleeps 4

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Butlers Cottage
A characterful cottage on the estate, well placed for the Deveron valley and the working land around it.
0
The Glass Barn
A family stay for six with a hot tub, panoramic views over the barley and a sunken trampoline. As seen on BBC's Scotland's Greatest Escape.
Inner Hebrides
1
Woodshed

Sleeps 2

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Woodshed
A romantic bolthole for two on the Cowan family farm, with a wood-fired hot tub and miles of hill walking from the door.
Pentland Hills
1
Cartshed
A converted cart shed for two on a working Pentland hill farm, with its own wood-fired sauna and architect-designed interiors inside 18th-century stone.
Pentland Hills
1
The Old School

Sleeps 4

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The Old School
The former estate schoolhouse, now a four-person cottage, with the loch, hills and moor all open to wander.
0
West Cottage
A four-plus-two stay with a private balcony, log burner and enclosed garden, set up for families and dogs on the Black family farm.
0
Newhall Mains
A restored 18th-century farm steading turned boutique stay, with cottages and suites round a courtyard, a restaurant, and a private airfield.
1
The Bothy, Glendye

Sleeps 2

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The Bothy, Glendye
A pared-back bothy for two on the estate, the kind of place you book to properly switch off.
2
The Steading

Sleeps 16

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The Steading
Sleeps four in the heart of the working farm, with a wood-fired sauna and hilltop views reaching to distant Highland peaks.
0
Elastic Cottage

Sleeps 4

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Elastic Cottage
A single-storey stone cottage in the wee hamlet of Camasnacroise, sleeping four, with some of the best views on the west coast.
0
The Byre

Sleeps 4

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The Byre
The old cattle byre, now a four-person cottage with its own wood-fired sauna, sheep on the hills and Edinburgh half an hour away.
1
Lindores Lodge

Sleeps 6

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Lindores Lodge
leeps eight on a working Fife farm, with a hot tub, a sunken trampoline and slide in the garden, and barley fields all around.
1
The Arches

Sleeps 2

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The Arches
A couple's bolthole with private spa facilities: freestanding bath, double shower, Scandinavian sauna and a hot tub. Sleeps two.
1
The Coach House
The old coach house reworked for groups, one of the regulars in Hidden Scotland's weekly email picks.
1
Pier Cottage

Sleeps 2

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Pier Cottage
A compact stone cottage right on the loch's edge, made for two, with deer in the garden and goats on the shore.
Ardnamurchan
0
No 2 Steading Cottage at Glendye

Sleeps 4

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No 2 Steading Cottage at Glendye
A courtyard cottage built for couples or a small family, with the sauna and cold-dip tanks bookable nearby.
1
The Old Post Office

Sleeps 2

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The Old Post Office
A stone cottage for two above the shore of Loch a'Choire, wood-burner inside, stags and pine martens for company.
Ardnamurchan
0
Midpark

Sleeps 2

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Midpark
A farm cottage on the estate amid the Moray countryside, quiet and self-contained.
1
The Corner House
A characterful estate house in the Glen Dye steading cluster, made for families and friends, dogs included.
0
The Cabin at Fairygreen
A black timber-clad cabin built for two, with a romantic outdoor bath and views to the Sidlaw Hills and Macbeth's own Dunsinane.
1

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