Country houses, luxury hotels, B&Bs and castles in Scotland

Scotland has some of the most dramatic and beautiful scenery in western Europe.  Described as ‘Europe’s last great wilderness’, it comprises mountains, lakes, moors and castles, and is a paradise for walkers, climbers and birdwatchers.

It is divided by the Great Glen, with its series of lochs. At the most famous one, Loch Ness, hopeful monster hunters still gather. Culloden, near Inverness, is the site of the battle where the Duke of Cumberland defeated Bonnie Prince Charlie and oversaw the killing of 1,200 Highlanders in 1746. Glen Coe, one of the most beautiful of the glens, also has a tragic history: it is remembered for the massacre of the MacDonalds by the Campbells in 1692. North of the Great Glen are the magnificent Caingorm Mountains, centred on Aviemore and popular with skiers; to the south, Fort William, dominated by Ben Nevis (Britain’s highest peak).

The administrative region also includes some of the islands, notably rugged Skye, 50 miles from end to end, dominated by the Cuillin Hills, and a popular tourist venue. The richness and diversity of where to stay in Scotland is well represented by the Good Hotel Guide. It includes value hotels, romantic hotels, Scottish hotel wedding venues, hotels for golf, and fishing hotels. It also includes inns which are very much part of local life, and Restaurants with Rooms, making the most of wonderful local produce.

Here  are some of the popular areas in Scotland: Argyll and Bute, Scottish Borders, Dumfries and Galloway, Highland, Perth and Kinross, Isle of Skye, Isle of Islay, and Loch Lomomd and The Trossachs. And here are some of its major cities: Edinburgh, Glasgow.