The Linn of Dee and Braemar Castle – A Level Day on Deeside
A day.
The route
A level day at the top of Royal Deeside for anyone with a wheelchair, a walking frame or a pushchair.
It starts at the Linn of Dee, where the river squeezes through a narrow rock gorge below the bridge, then comes down the Dee for lunch in the Fife Arms' public bar. The afternoon is at Braemar Castle, where a path for all runs through the grounds to its heather-thatched Fog House.
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 Darroch Learg in Ballater, 13 miles away.
Book a lunch table at The Flying Stag online before you go (food from noon to 2.45pm every day; for six or more, ring 01339 720202).
The day
Braemar
A morning at the end of the road up the Dee, among old pines, with the river roaring through the rocks. After a pub lunch in the village, the afternoon is round a white tower house and its gardens, with the hills all about.
About five hours
Linn of Dee
An attraction
The Linn of Dee is at the end of the public road west of Braemar. Park in the National Trust for Scotland's pay and display car park just over the bridge, which has accessible spaces and is free to Trust members. An easy-access trail starts at the car park, and the bridge over the Linn is a short level walk away. From it you look straight down on the river forcing its way through a narrow rocky channel. The path along the gorge itself is rougher. The car park's toilets open from Easter to October. Keep dogs on a lead by the gorge and near grazing animals, and keep small children close: the water below is deep and fast. It's open ground with no gate or staff, so come in daylight.
12 min by car
The Flying Stag
Lunch
Lunch is at the Flying Stag, the Fife Arms' public bar on Braemar's main street, 12 minutes' drive east. Food is served every day from noon to 2.45pm: fish and chips, pies, burgers, curries and seasonal salads, with local beers and a children's menu. The Fife Arms says its restaurants and bars are all wheelchair accessible, with an accessible loo in the Flying Stag and accessible parking across the road; the free village car parks are a short walk away. Dogs are welcome. Book a table online to be sure of one.
3 min by car
Braemar Castle
An attraction
Braemar Castle's car park is signed off the A93 just outside the village on the road to Ballater, 3 minutes' drive on: it's pay and display, £4 from dawn to dusk. Its access-for-all path runs from the car park through the grounds to the castle and the Fog House, a 19th-century folly with a heather-thatched roof and views to Invercauld. The grounds are open every day of the year. The Welcome Cabin inside the curtain wall has accessible toilets, exhibition panels, the shop and the ticket office. The castle's rooms are up a spiral staircase, so the tour is only for those who can climb. Its season runs from April to October, and in October it opens Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm, with the last entry at 4.30pm (2pm on 16 October, 3pm on 30 and 31 October). Tickets are £16 for an adult and £8 for a child aged 5 to 15 at the time of writing. There's no café at the castle.
If it rains
The Linn of Dee and the castle grounds are out in the weather; the Flying Stag and the castle's Welcome Cabin are not. In heavy rain, look at the Linn from the bridge and linger over lunch.
Where to stay