Best hotels for Christmas in Scotland

Scotland knows how to celebrate the holidays in style, with bracing walks to work up an appetite, abundant decorations, exquisite food and the perfect combination of tradition combined with modern hospitality. Mince pies, mulled wine, plenty of whisky and even the odd winter picnic if you’re up for it, whether it’s family holidays, a romantic break for two, or celebrations with friends, Christmas in Scotland is about feeling totally spoiled but right at home at the same time.

Choose from city escapes in the likes of Edinburgh, where enchantment is in full force, to country retreats where you can fully relax and unwind with never ending views of wild and frozen landscapes. Tuck into local fare and enjoy regional specialities, lots of homemade favourites, and plenty of music, carols, fireworks, good cheer and games to carry you through the season.

Celebrate Christmas in Scotland with all the cheer and none of the washing up. Here are some of our favourite hotel with seasonal packages for celebrating Christmas in Scotland.

Hotels for Christmas in Scotland

Featured hotels with Special Offers

The Dunstane Houses - 'Stay Longer, Save More' Special Offer

Edinburgh

This luxury boutique hotel is a magical place at any time of year, but at Christmas The Dunstane Houses takes on all the charm of this historic city.

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babyfriendly
boutique
child_friendly
conferencemeeting_friendly
garden
honeymoon
parking
romantic
vegetarian_friendly
walking
weddings
wifi
veganfriendly
dog_friendly

Cringletie House - 'Winter Escape' Special Offer

Peebles

A small baronial mansion surrounded by magnificent gardens, Cringletie House adds a real touch of Scotland to the Christmas period.

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babyfriendly
child_friendly
conferencemeeting_friendly
country_house
disabled_facilities
dog_friendly
electric_charging_point
fishing
garden
horse_riding
hot_tub_jacuzzi
parking
romantic
rooms_with_a_view
vegetarian_friendly
walking
weddings
wheelchair_accessible
wifi
veganfriendly
outdoor_pursuits_hunting

More of the best Christmas hotels in Scotland

The Airds Hotel, Port Appin

'Spectacular views' across Loch Linnhe to the Morvern mountains are available from some of the rooms, from the fine-dining restaurant (Relais & Châteaux), and from the waterside gardens just across the road from this former ferry inn.

Knockinaam Lodge, Portpatrick

A ‘wonderful country house hotel in a peaceful location by the sea’ this former Victorian hunting lodge comes with panelled walls, log fires, period furniture, the obligatory stag’s head, a dazzling array of malt whiskies, and views across the water to Northern Ireland.

Kilcamb Lodge, Strontian

‘The situation is absolutely beautiful; perfect for wild swimmers,’ write readers this year, in praise of this remote hideaway hotel on the shores of Loch Sunart.

Kinloch Lodge, Isle of Skye

‘A great place to stay if you’re after excellent food and high standards of comfort’, the family home of Lord Macdonald and his wife, cookery writer Lady Claire Macdonald, is ‘in a beautiful position’ on the shores of Loch Na Dal.

Forss House, Thurso

The River Forss curves around the wooded grounds of this late Georgian country house, run today as a ‘wonderful hotel’ with salmon fishing at the bottom of the garden.

Blackaddie House, Sanquhar

Traditional hospitality, home comforts and creative modern cooking are a winning combination at this mellow-stone manse with the River Nith surging past the garden.

Coll Hotel, Isle of Coll

‘Run by generations of the Oliphant family since 1963’, Coll’s welcoming social hub and only hotel sits at the head of Loch Eatharna, close to the ferry terminal.

Shieldaig Lodge, Gairloch

With 'wonderful views' of Loch Gairloch, this Victorian hunting lodge on a wooded estate where falconry, fishing and deer stalking can all be laid on for guests now accepts dogs in its bedrooms and bar.

The Ship Inn, Elie

With its own beach cricket team, Rachel and Graham Bucknall’s white-and-blue friendly gastropub on a no through road to the sailing club overlooks a sandy bay on the Firth of Forth.

Woodcroft House, Perth

In an elevated position, on a private no through road, with views over the pointy roofscape of Perth to the mountains, Claire Dingwall Slater and Alick Slater’s Arts and Crafts-style Victorian guest house enters the Guide this year with lavish praise from our inspectors.

Dunalastair Hotel Suites, Kinloch Rannoch

The grandeur of the surrounding scenery – its hills, crags, forests and glens – sweeps in to this stone-built Victorian hotel, in a remote village on the edge of Loch Rannoch.

Saorsa 1875, Pitlochry

A thoughtful take on modern hospitality, the McLaren-Stewart family’s vegan hotel and restaurant bring together a deeply considered environmental ethos with contemporary style.

Achray House, St Fillans

Watch the osprey swoop over the water from this ‘likeable’ small hotel, which stands beside Loch Earn within Loch Lomond and the Trossachs national park – a ‘beautiful part of Perthshire’.

Loch Melfort Hotel, Oban

It’s all about the views at this lochside hotel, with panoramic seascapes from many of its rooms across Asknish Bay to the Sound of Jura and the Inner Hebrides.

The Torridon, Torridon

It’s hard to beat the setting of this Victorian baronial-style hunting lodge, in a wooded estate at the head of Loch Torridon.

Greywalls, Gullane

One of just two Scottish buildings designed by Edwin Lutyens, this crescent-shaped house by Muirfield golf course is the epitome of Edwardian Arts and Crafts comfort.

Monachyle Mhor, Lochearnhead

Overlooking lochs and hills, it feels wild and remote, but this farmhouse turned restaurant-with-rooms is surprisingly glamorous.

Glenapp Castle, Ballantrae

Gazing out over the Ayrshire coast to the Isle of Arran, Glenapp may be towered and turreted, but the Scottish Baronial-style hotel (Relais & Châteaux) is more luxury country house than castle.

Boath House, Nairn

The Matheson family’s classical Regency mansion stands in 22 acres of spectacular walled and woodland gardens, so ‘the rustle of the leaves in the trees’ drowns out any traffic noise from the Aberdeen–Inverness road.

Douneside House, Tarland

An Edwardian Scottish Baronial fantasy mansion, with crow-stepped gables and castellation, stands on the edge of the Cairngorms national park with views over the Howe of Cromar.

The Fife Arms, Braemar

Never was a hotel more thoroughly transformed than this landmark Victorian coaching inn, curated by its owners, the Swiss gallerists behind Hauser and Wirth.

The Bonnie Badger, Gullane

There’s a definite Scandi-Scottish style at Tom and Michaela Kitchin’s gastropub-with-rooms. The impressive beamed restaurant in the former village inn’s horse stables has a stripped-back look, with designer lighting, original stone walls and a massive fireplace, while bedrooms might feature wallpaper with a thistle design or Nordic birch forests.

Bunchrew House, Inverness

On the tranquil shore of the Beauly Firth, this ‘very pleasant’ 17th-century mansion stands in large grounds that lead into woodland laced with walking paths.

Pine Trees Hotel, Pitlochry

There’s old-world charm aplenty at this white-painted Victorian mansion, in ‘a delightful setting’ on the outskirts of town.

Bridgend Hotel, Isle of Islay

On the Inner Hebrides island of Islay, this stone-built hotel – a village landmark where two main roads meet – has welcomed visitors for more than 150 years.

Atholl Hotel, Aberdeen

The spires of this Victorian Gothic Revival building make this traditional hotel an easy-to-spot beacon in a quiet location within reach of the city centre.

The Balmoral, Edinburgh

An Edinburgh icon fronted by a kilted doorman, this Victorian railway stop-over is today a grand 21st-century hotel (Rocco Forte Hotels) with a Michelin-starred restaurant, a chic brasserie, an award-winning spa and a choice of inviting places to take tea.

Allanton Inn, Allanton

In a sleepy village with a spirited history, Katrina and William Reynolds’s 18th-century coaching inn is a ‘good-value’ base for walkers, cyclists, fisherfolk and visitors in search of a tranquil rural break.

The Tontine, Peebles

In the heart of a busy, arty town on the River Tweed, Kate and Gordon Innes’s comfortable hotel is liked for its ‘first-class atmosphere’.

Marmalade Hotel, Isle of Skye

A short walk from the bustle of the island’s main harbour town, this refurbished Edwardian country house in landscaped gardens has a coolly contemporary interior and views that stretch to the bay.

Hotels for Christmas not in the Guide that you may want to consider

Ardanaiseig

Kilchrenan

Swing round a winding road to this turreted, Jacobean-style baronial mansion in a beautiful setting on the shores of Loch Awe. It is filled it with a dazzling collection of artwork and statuary. From the marble-pillared drawing room there are views over gardens, loch and woodland across to the distant peak of Ben Lui. Well-supplied bedrooms might have a four-poster bed, fireplace or roll-top bath. A three-course menu is served in the informal dining room.

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child_friendly
conferencemeeting_friendly
country_house
dog_friendly
fishing
garden
historic
honeymoon
romantic
rooms_with_a_view
walking
weddings
wifi
good_value

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Hotels for Christmas in Scotland

Hotels for Christmas in Scotland

Hotels for Christmas in Scotland

The Dunstane Houses - 'Stay Longer, Save More' Special Offer

Edinburgh

Cringletie House - 'Winter Escape' Special Offer

Peebles

More of the best Christmas hotels in Scotland

Hotels for Christmas in Scotland

Hotels for Christmas not in the Guide that you may want to consider

Hotels for Christmas in Scotland

Ardanaiseig

Kilchrenan

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