Balgonie
Country House Hotel
Braemar Place, Ballater
Royal Deeside, AB35 5NQ
Tel
/ Fax 013397 55482
E-mail balgoniech@aol.com
Ballater
and the Area
Location of the Balgonie Country House Hotel
After
reaching Ballater the easiest way of finding the Balgonie
Hotel is to head toward the centre of the village and
the village sqaure. From here follow the signs toward
Breamar taking a left after approximately half a mile
from the village square and before the road starts to
rise. The Balgonie Hotel from this turn-off is well
signposted and should be easy to find.
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Ballater
is surrounded by
fragrant pine-clad hills, Ballater is a place beloved
of walkers, cyclists and anyone able to appreciate the
particular grace and charm of this picturesque Scottish
town. Rushing headlong away from the town is Glen Muick,
a wonderfully curvaceous slice of Highland scenery,
that simply begs to be explored.
Balmoral
Dominating the physical and historical landscape of
Royal Deeside is Balmoral Castle, a masterpiece of muscular
Baronial architecture, softened by the exquisite surrounding
countryside - the stately River Dee and, rising imperiously
through the haze, that mountain of myth and legend,
Lochnagar. Balmoral rose from the rubble of an altogether
more humble abode when Victoria and Albert purchased
the land in 1852. Dominated by a tower soaring some
80 feet in the clean, crisp Deeside air, the castle
opens its gates to visitors during the months of May,
June and July each year.
Braemar
Royal Deeside has been captivating visitors since the
days of Queen Victoria, when she felt compelled to write
about this country, "so wild and grand". But
the charming village of Braemar has enjoyed royal patronage
since long before Victoria's day. As far back as the
eleventh century, Malcolm III of Scotland initiated
the Braemar Gathering to find his hardiest soldiers
and fleetest messengers. Taking place close to Braemar
Castle it flourishes to this day - the most celebrated
and celebrity-attended Highland games in Scotland.
Crathie
Rare is the place in Royal Deeside that escapes Queen
Victoria's influence - but even in this land of royal
patronage, Crathie, an utterly captivating village,
has a rather special royal history. The neat cottages
that populate this tiny speck of a place were built
for the workers of the Balmoral estate. And, to sustain
their religious fortitude with the same rigour as the
residents maintained the walls of Balmoral itself, a
pretty grey granite church was added in 1895.
The last resting place of John Brown, Victoria's favourite
ghillie, Crathie Church remains, to this day, a royal
place of worship
"One of the most
attractive small hotels it has been my pleasure to visit."
- SELECTED
PREMIER HOTELS
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Site last updated
20 November, 2003
