Black Sheep Hotels

PR INVITE – Black Sheep Hotels

Black Sheep Hotels have 4 different accommodations in different locations in Scotland. These are The Cluanie Inn, The Whispering Pine Lodge, Rokeby Manor and Black Sheep Cabins. We managed to visit all of these apart from Rokeby Manor due to us unfortunately running out of time as we would have loved to see all 4!

Black Sheep Hotels mission – Black Sheep Hotels brings together experience and expertise through its collection of country hotels, strategically located to showcase the true spirit and beauty of the Scottish Highlands. Our hotels provide an opportunity to explore the outdoors and experience the local culture and heritage. We care for our guests through our innovative approach in providing distinctive, authentic hospitality. We employ individuals with a positive, enthusiastic demeanour who are considerate to every guest’s needs. We are dedicated to creating a ‘family style’ yet dynamic work environment that is enriching and rewarding for all —– I would say they do this very well. The hotels have stunning views and remind you what a beautiful country Scotland is. I love nothing more than waking up to the mountains and this is what you see when you stay at these hotels. The interior is what I would say old fashion traditional Scottish. Nowadays the interior of hotels is usually modern and contemporary and minimalistic so it was lovely to be brought back in time and remind ourselves of our Scottish heritage. The decor is so well thought of and it makes it feel like an old home you are staying in which makes you feel at ease instantly.

Cluanie Inn – We stayed at the Cluanie Inn to begin with and we were so pleasantly surprised when we walked in. Greeted instantly by friendly staff and could smell and hear the crackling fire and instant warmth. We arrived around 2pm and check in wasn’t until 3pm but they were very accommodating offering us something to drink and offered to take our bags in for us. We stayed in a suite which was very large and full of useful amenities, coffee, tea, hot chocolate, biscuits, shampoo, conditioner etc. Fraser and I are VERY particular about the beds we sleep in, sometimes we can have bad backs for days after a bad nights sleep but we were impressed with their mattresses! The room had the most gorgeous views and we often found ourselves lying in bed in silence just staring out of the window.

Cluanie bar and restaurant – Now anyone that knows us knows we are massive foodies and really enjoy good food but if I’m going to be honest with this restaurant being in a hotel and with it being in the middle of nowhere we didn’t have high expectations. We decided to get 3 courses to try as much of it as we could and I must say we were very very surprised and very impressed. The food was piping hot and freshly cooked and we could not fault a single part of it. Infact it only left us wanting more! We couldn’t wait to go to the restaurant the next day to try out more food. We loved it so much that we have agreed we would both happily travel an hour and 20 minutes to eat here again. Don’t take my word for it, just have a look at the video and that will be enough to make you want to go!

Black Sheep Cabins – Next we stayed at the most beautiful Scottish cabins (I say cabins but usually when you think of cabins you think of small accommodation but these were huge) huge living rooms, kitchens, 3 bathrooms, 2 huge bedrooms and you could get bigger cabins too! We stayed in the cabin called Pebble Shore and we had so many plans for when we arrived there but when we got to the cabin we didn’t want to leave, with the view of the Loch and mountains we could have sat watching the world go by for hours. The cabin was stocked with everything you need and more. There were games, nuts, water, milk, fruit, wine, cookies, everything you needed for cooking and staying there for a long period of time!

Lochside Brasserie – The restaurant at the Whispering Pine Lodge was on another level. The views, I don’t even have any words for. The set up they had was so lovely you really felt like you were fine dining. Again, like the other restaurant every single thing we tried to we loved, even the bloody vanilla ice cream was amazing!!! The staff are so accommodating and are always on hand for whenever you need them for anything. They were so lovely to Tommy, he loved it because they made him feel very important!

The Burns Bar – There was the cutest Scottish whisky bar in The Whispering Pine lodge that was open until 11pm. The menus was 23 pages long that’s how many drinks they had to pick from! They probably have almost every type of alcohol! It is Robert Burns themed inside and has a lot of references to his poems which we loved, it was a great opportunity to teach Tommy about who he is and why we celebrate Burns Night.

Spa – The Little Salon and Spa is in the Whispering Pine Lodge and is open for guests and outside customers also! It really is little but I think they have done so well with the space they have. The smells and sounds you hear walking into the salon are instantly calming and the staff speak so gently to you which makes you feel so zen. I have to say, I’ve been to a few spas and the massage I had here (the signature massage) was the best one I’ve ever had. I’ve never experienced anything like it, the lady told me it was a mixture between East and West techniques. It involved a lot of stretching which I haven’t experienced in a massage before but I really really enjoyed it. I would definitely pop in here if I was passing or staying again.

Weddings – something I was very surprised at (yet slightly annoyed) is that they do weddings at the Whispering Pine Lodge. Fraser and I spent a long long time searching for somewhere to get married in Scotland with views of the mountains and lochs as that is where we feel most calm and happy and we ended up traveling 4.5 hours away to get married when here could have been the perfect place! Especially with it only being an hour and 20 minutes away from home! Nothing we can do now but maybe when and if we renew our vows? Hint hint Fraser.

As you can probably tell I am so delighted with our stay here and everything about Black Sheep Hotels. We had the honour of being invited here but we would absolutely return here without a shadow of a doubt. Tommy loved every second and didn’t want to come home. Thank you Black Sheep Hotels for being so welcoming, so accommodating and making our little family trip away so special.

They have very kindly shared a code with me incase anyone wanted to book and wanted 10% off their booking – use code BECKY

https://www.blacksheephotels.com

Fairmont – St Andrews

PR TRIP –

Bare with me while I bring myself back down to earth after the most amazing 3 days…

We had the absolute PRIVILEGE of working with The Fairmont Hotel in St Andrews, Scotland. It is a 5 star luxurious resort with two amazing 18 hole golf courses, a spa, a sports bar, restaurant and lots more!

We have been looking forward to this well needed trip for the last few months and can now 100% say it was absolutely well worth the wait. We were lucky enough to have the sun shining for us when we arrived and were blown away driving up to the hotel. See for yourselves ⬇️

As soon as we stepped foot out of our car there was a member of staff there to welcome and accommodate you. He offered to take our luggage in and directed us on where to go to check in. When we checked in the lady who dealt with us was so friendly. Sometimes you feel a bit intimidated walking into a 5 star hotel but absolutely not this one. They made you feel calm and at ease but like you were their friend at the same time! Check in was super fast and we then got to go and see our room…

I think that picture speaks for itself doesn’t it? THE VIEW!!!!!! If I could wake up to that view for the rest of my life I’d be a very very VERY happy girl.

Once dropping off our bags in the room we thought we would have a wander around the hotel and have a little explore. We came across a bar, a sports bar, a restaurant, a toy room, the spa, a shop and conference rooms. It barely took Fraser 10 seconds to decide he wanted to try out the sports bar and….. GOLF SIMULATOR! How could this hotel be ticking so many boxes! There was a wide variety of alcohol in the sports bar, in-fact it had everything we asked for! The staff behind the bar were so lovely and there were tvs all over the bar with sports on them. Oh you could even get food here! From haggis bon bons to burgers!

After the sports bar and a wander around the grounds, it was dinner time! We booked the Mediterranean restaurant – La Cucina. Again we could not fault the staff, so accommodating and nothing was ever too much for them. We both had a 3 course meal and enjoyed every single bit. Scroll down – Warning — may cause drooling.

The next morning Fraser was booked to play golf on the Kittocks course (I will post pictures below but I will probably get in trouble because I don’t know how good is position / posture is in them or if he even managed to hit the ball 😂) and while he was playing I got to spend most of the morning enjoying the view before heading for breakfast! I’m not usually a fan of breakfast but this breakfast was by far both of our favourites ever! There was so much to choose from and all cooked fresh, some even right infront of your face! My favourite being the pancakes of course, mmmmmm! 🥞

We spent the afternoon in the town and beach in St Andrews and what a stunning town it is. I think it could be my new favourite. So many restaurants, cafes, bars and ice cream shops to choose from and not forgetting clothing shops… there’s loads!!!

When we got back from the town we then used the spa facilities (which are free to use if you are a guest) they have a swimming pool, jacuzzi, sauna, steam room and a cold bucket shower! I was in my element in the steam room and sauna, 10 minutes of PEACE and RELAXATION! I was then booked for a facial in the spa with a lovely lady called Alexandra. I never like to book in for any treatments when I’m away as it just feels selfish of me for some reason but my goodness I have been missing a trick and I won’t be listening to that old motto anymore! The spa has relaxing music and smells even walking past which makes it hard not to go in and it only gets better when you do. The facial was absolutely amazing, she made sure she used the products my skin would benefit from most, for example I have quite dry skin so she used nourishing gentle products on me. You could tell she was experiences and knew exactly what she was talking about and had a passion for what she does.

I can’t tell you how sad I am to leave this amazing hotel and amazing staff. This has been the best trip for my husband and I and we’re already looking at dates to book again and to bring our little boy too. I would give this hotel more stars if I could but it is absolutely 5 star all around. Please book in if you can, you will not regret a single second of it.

The Dunstane Houses

PR STAY – The Dunstane Houses – http://thedunstane.com/

We have just had a lovely 2 night stay at the Dunstane House as a family of 3. We have been looking forward to this for months and were so excited when it finally came around!

The Dunstane Houses is a family-run, five-star boutique hotel, over 2 Victorian townhouses set across the road from each other, that offer guests the best of the Scottish capital. Set in two newly refurbished heritage buildings quite unlike anywhere you’ve ever stayed before, The Dunstane Houses is a breath of fresh Orkney air in the heart of Edinburgh – my husband has been to Orkney unfortunately I haven’t but he said there were a lot of things that reminded him of Orkney which was so lovely to see.

When we arrived we were welcomed by a very welcoming, friendly gentleman who was very helpful and attentive and offered tea and coffee while waiting for our room. The staff took our luggage from us and took it to the room for us which was extremely helpful and something you don’t see often but is a brilliant gesture and it’s the little things that make your trip so special.

I was taken to our room and fell in love instantly. It felt classy and traditional but had a modern touch which we loved. Everything was very well thought of in the room and you could tell. We are in the process of looking for a new house and I now want my room exactly like our suite in Dunstane haha! Thanks for the inspo! I must say the bed was the comfiest bed I have ever ever slept in and I will be dreaming about it forever 😂 I even went inside the sheets to try and find out where the they were from and where the mattress was from… I need it in my life!!

There was a ginormous bath in our suite right by the window with the gorgeous sun shining in and blue skies to look at. We were barely in the room 2 minutes when Tommy was demanding a bath! (I think all 3 of us could have fitted in!)



We had a 3 course meal in the garden. I loved the atmosphere in the garden. Sitting out in the sunshine listening to the relaxing music with a cold gin or Prosecco with the waiters ready to fill your glass up as soon as it’s empty, what more could you want? The set dinner had 3 starters to choose from, 3 mains and 3 puddings… I can be quite a fussy eater but this was the perfect opportunity for me to try new things as I knew anything I tried would be amazing. This was Frasers first time trying scallops and now he’s worried to eat them anywhere else because they have set such a high standard they were that good!!



We also had breakfast both mornings here and they were always so lovely to Tommy making sure his cup was always full. Fraser really enjoyed the fruit breakfasts you could choose from, he said he felt really refreshed and energised for the morning after his.

As if breakfast and dinner wasn’t enough, we even got to have an afternoon tea in the Ba Bar. The food was the perfect amount and again we tried food we have never tried before like mackerel pate! Which we probably wouldn’t have tried before and were very pleasantly surprised at!



I would absolutely recommend staying at the Dunstane Houses and allow yourself to enjoy the 5 star service they provide. This was Frasers first time ever in Edinburgh and my goodness what a fantastic way to welcome you to Edinburgh. Thank you so much for giving our family these special memories.

http://thedunstane.com/