4. Accommodation

I stayed in a number of B&Bs, bunk houses and some hotels during my peregrinations in Scotland. One or two choices were truly bad and I would not return to them under any circumstances, but most were really excellent. Hotels typically change markedly over the years as staff and owners change and refurbishments take place. So any recommendations here would soon be out-of-date. High on my list of requirements is an early breakfast. In winter you can lose a third of daylight hours and end up with a very short day if the usual 8 o'clock breakfast is as early as you can get. Especially at that time of year I desire a good safety margin of daylight and so prefer to be on the hill immediately it becomes light enough. As a result, nowadays I prefer to stay in a bunkhouse. Moreover, for lone walkers, it is difficult or expensive to obtain a single room in a hotel or bed and breakfast.

The SYHA has a number of hostels which are reliably good to excellent. They are more organised than independent bunkhouses when it comes to standards because the Association always has experienced staff to call upon. The Scottish Independent Hostels SiH are generally just as good, but some are let down by inexperience and a look at reviews may be useful. There are other bunkhouses which are not in either of these two organisations, such as the Kintail Lodge Hotel Wee Bunkhouse and Rucksacks in Braemar.

Copyright © 2007 & 2012 Colin Walter