Perfectly placed to enjoy a distillery tour or to follow the whisky trail, Sonia Marshall's Victorian house in the heart of Speyside stands in mature grounds on the edge of a swathe of the ancient Scots pine woodland that surrounds Grantown. The ambience is more intimate guest house than hotel, with just six bedrooms, a wide choice of malt whiskies to sample by the fire, and a locally sourced, four-course dinner cooked by the hostess. Rooms on the first floor have high, ornate ceilings. Craigevar is spacious, with views over woodland and the Hills of Cromdale, a king-sized bed, and both a double-ended bath and separate shower in the bathroom. On the second floor, Inveraray enjoys the same view but has a single bed and lower ceilings, with a small shower room. Dinner brings food that might include fillet of monkfish tail with crayfish and parmesan sauce. After a freshly cooked breakfast of Scottish produce such as smoked salmon and scrambled egg, head out to explore the Cairngorms national park, fish in the Spey, or take an exhilarating ride on the funicular to the summit of Cairngorm Mountain.