Hidden luxury in the Highlands

Alladale is a vast estate packed with natural beauty. It can also host visitors in luxury. Ian Mitchell visited it

Set in the gorgeous Northern Highlands, close to the Sutherland/Ross-Shire border, Alladale Estate is so remote that I had some difficulty locating it on the map before visiting.

Remote – yet accessible at only an hour's drive from Inverness airport or rail station.

The estate has become a high focus place over the last few years, with the stated aims of its owner, Paul Lister, to re-introduce formerly native Scottish species such as wolf, boar, lynx-and brown bear.

Advocates and supporters of such visionary ideas have been loud in their comments. But why not go, as I did, to Alladale and judge for yourselfand have the opportunity to ‘live like a laird' at the same time?

Or possibly I should say ‘live like a Maharaja' since Alladale was built in 1877 as a traditional hunting lodge for an Indian prince.

It is now fully renovated and refurbished providing an unrivalled opportunity to sample the ultimate getaway location.

Lying equidistant between the Atlantic and the North Sea – both can be seen from Alladale's mountain tops on a clear day – Alladale's 23,000 acres, five glens, three rivers and 10 lochs are the home to golden eagles, red deer, pine martens, badgers, salmon and other wildlife.

The estate is accessible only by a two mile drive on a private road from where the public road ends.

Alladale Lodge itself provides the ultimate in luxury accommodation for up to 16 people. It is not a hotel open to the public, but a retreat which recreates a ‘house par...

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• By : Ian Mitchell
• In : Best of Scotland
• Issue : 24
• Page : 44
• Words : 912