The Dell across the lawn in winter sun, its long stone range and slate roofs under bare trees, three red garden chairs in front.

Cairngorms

The Dell of Abernethy

Six houses round an old forester’s lodge at the edge of Abernethy Forest, for two to eight, with dogs welcome.

DatesOn their website, for each house

Welcome

A mile up Dell Road from Nethy Bridge, the Dell has been in the Fleming family since the late 1960s, and Polly, their granddaughter, runs it now with her husband Ross.

The lodge was built for the head forester of the Seafield Estate, and the beech, oak, lime and horse chestnut he planted still stand over the house. Around it are three acres of lawns and woodland, with a tipi among the pines, a stone fire pit you can book for an evening, and a zip wire, a sunken trampoline and a slackline over the burn for children. The Dell has its own little grocer, and in 2019 Springwatch was broadcast live from here. The RSPB’s osprey centre at Loch Garten is ten minutes away by car.

Our home is your home, so relax, enjoy the peace and sink into holiday mode.

Polly and Ross

The houses

Each house has its own door and its own corner of the gardens, and the lodge and the cottages can be taken together for a gathering.

Dell Lodge under snow, its pale stone front and dormers seen through red autumn leaves across the white lawn.

Dell LodgeSleeps 8

Two king-size rooms and two twins
A farmhouse kitchen and a library

Check dates

West Dell, a whitewashed stone cottage with a red door and a slate roof, in low winter sun.

West DellSleeps 6

The crofter’s black house, the first building here
Axe-cut beams and deep-set windows

Check dates

South Dell, a white cottage with a stone gable and a slate roof, its sunny lawn edged by big trees.

South DellSleeps 6

The lodge’s old kitchen, with its granite range surround
A piano

Check dates

East Dell in spring sunshine, a low stone cottage with a red door and a mossy roof beside its garden and an old oak.

East DellSleeps 5

The most tucked-away cottage
An enclosed garden with a sit-ootery

Check dates

A wooden gate in a picket fence opens onto Little Dell's green garden, with cow parsley and a wooden bench beyond.

Little DellSleeps 2

The lodge’s old ballroom
The original pitch-pine floor

Check dates

Dell Cottage's sitting room, a fire lit in the open hearth, with teal sofas and sheepskins on an oak parquet floor.

Dell CottageSleeps 2

An open fire and oak parquet floors
A king-size bedroom

Check dates

At the Dell

The Dell hosts its own evenings, workshops and weddings in the woods, for guests and for anyone nearby.

Fridays in the tipiThe Gather InnA pub night round the fire in the woodland tipi, most Fridays from 5 to 10pm, with pizza from Highland Slice. No booking: just turn up, and children are welcome until 8pm.

The stone fire pit beside the canvas tipi, a fire lit in it, with sheepskins on the stone seats and the pines behind.

For an eveningThe fire pitA stone fire pit beside the tipi, lit for you with logs, cushions, sheepskins and blankets: two and a half hours for £25, for guests in the houses. The spit-roast barbecue is £40.

The Dell Grocer's carved wooden sign hanging from a bracket on a weathered timber wall, the lawn beyond.

On the doorstepThe Dell GrocerThe Dell’s own shop, open Monday to Saturday, with sourdough most Fridays, easy meals, local produce and wine. Order 48 hours ahead and your house is stocked when you arrive.

A classic blue wedding car driving away down a road through the pine forest.

Among the pinesWeddingsA small number of relaxed weddings a year, among the pines, by a loch or out in the hills, with Dell Cottage for an elopement and the lodge for a house party.

Until 27 Nov: The Gather Inn, Friday nights: A Friday pub night round the fire in the Dell of Abernethy’s woodland tipi near Nethy Bridge, with pizza most weeks and no booking.
Sat 31 Oct: Halloween Party with the Wook: A Halloween dance party in the woodland tipi at the Dell of Abernethy with DJ The Wook, and a goody bag for the best costume.
5 Feb to 8 Feb: Ski Touring Retreat with Beyond Fitness: Three days of guided backcountry ski touring in the Cairngorms with Beyond Fitness, staying and eating at the Dell of Abernethy.

Where it is

A mile up Dell Road from Nethy Bridge, on the edge of Abernethy Forest. Aviemore station is 20 minutes away, and Inverness airport an hour.

Close byWhere Polly and Ross send their guests, nearest first by road.