A Little History

Luxury country house hotel in Perthshire with 2 AA red rosette dining in central Scotland

Ballathie House Hotel, set in quiet seclusion in the gateway to the Scottish Highlands, offers one of the highest standards of luxury hotel accommodation in Scotland.

Originally built in 1880, Ballathie is now a privately owned hotel which has been extensively upgraded with a comprehensive refurbishment programme carried out in a manner befitting a building of such grand style.

This has further enhanced Ballathie's appeal. It now enjoys a deserved reputation as an outstanding country house hotel of exceptional character and rare distinction, recently winning the accolade of Country Sporting Hotel of the Year.

The Ballathie fishing beats on the River Tay are highly regarded amongst anglers, in addtion to fishing, the Estate also offers a variety of outdoor sports and activities including walking, cycling, clay pigeon shooting, all just a short stroll from the hotel.

The house over the years has held many a spectacular 'house party' particularly lending itself to using all the ground floor public rooms for an evening party, allowing guests to mingle and to dance the night away - none more so fond as the late Queen Mother.

In 1922, a year before she married Albert, the Duke of York, when the Queen Mother was only 22, she came to Ballathie to party. The following extract is from the official biography by William Shawcross - Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother.

"… Meanwhile, her (Queen Mother) autumn continued much as before, with friends to stay at Glamis and house parties elsewhere. And she was seeing more of James Stuart. He came back to Glamis on 2nd October for a week to shoot and a few days later she drove with him unchaperoned to Ballathie House on the River Tay near Perth, where Doris Gordon-Lennox was staying in a house party with her sister Amy's parents-in-law, Sir Stuart and Lady Coats. Doris wrote to her afterwards that the whole family adored seeing her and tried to put her mind to rest about her arrival alone with James Stuart - a rather risqué thing for a young woman to do…"

Nearly 100 years on, Ballathie still welcomes guests to party and celebrate special occasions.

Download more about the History of Ballathie House here