Pitlochry

Pitlochry – a Spa Day and Afternoon Tea at the Atholl Palace

A few hours.

The route

The Atholl Palace opened above Pitlochry in 1878 as a hydropathic, a water-cure hotel, and its pool is still fed from the hotel's own spring on Ben Vrackie.

Its spa sits on the garden level, looking out to the woods and down the Tummel valley, with a warm pool, a spa bath, a steam room and a tepidarium (a warm resting room). A spa day here comes with a treatment and afternoon tea in the Verandah Restaurant, and suits two friends or a couple who want a slow day indoors.

Before you go

Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
The nearest of ours is Charlottefield, 4 miles away. Sleeps 4.
Book the Spa at Atholl Palace
Book a spa day at the Atholl Palace's spa online or on 01796 472400 before you go: the Spa Treat is £160 a person with the thermal suite, a treatment and afternoon tea (at the time of writing); treatments run 10am to 6pm, and cancelling within 48 hours costs the full price.

The day

Pitlochry

Warm spring water, steam and a treatment in an 1878 hotel above the town, then afternoon tea with the valley below the windows.

About four hours

The Spa at Atholl Palace
The Atholl Palace stands on the hill above Pitlochry, 17 minutes' walk up from the station, with its own car park off the drive. The spa is on the garden level. Its Spa Treat is £160 a person at the time of writing: a robe, time in the thermal suite or the hot pools, a treatment from a short list, and afternoon tea in the Verandah Restaurant. Pamper at the Palace, £90 from Monday to Thursday and £95 from Friday to Sunday, is afternoon tea with a glass of fizz and a 25-minute treatment, and the pools are £10 more. To swim only, it's £20 for an adult and £10 for children aged 5 to 16. The pool is about 11 metres long and 1.2 metres deep all the way, at about 29°C, with a spa bath at about 40°C. It isn't staffed, takes no more than 27 at a time, and in busy spells you may be held to an hour. The pool and leisure rooms open 7am to 9pm on weekdays and 7am to 7pm at weekends; treatments run 10am to 6pm every day and aren't for under-16s. Bring swimwear and a £1 coin for the lockers, and leave your phone in one. The pool isn't fully accessible, so ask the spa about your needs. Bookings need a card, and cancelling within 48 hours costs the full price.