Prestonfield House
If the blonde wood, brown leather and brushed steel of modern boutique hotels leave you cold, then this is the place for you...
Scotland provides a comprehensive choice of accommodation to suit all visitors.
For budget travel, the options are campsites, hostels and cheap B&Bs. In highland areas you'll find bothies – simple walkers' hostels and shelters – and in the Shetlands there are böds (characterful but basic shared accommodation).
Above this price level is a plethora of comfortable B&Bs and guesthouses (£25 to £40 per person per night). Midrange hotels are present in most places, while in the higher price bracket (£65-plus per person a night) there are some superb hotels, the most interesting being converted castles and mansions, or chic designer options in cities.
If you're travelling solo, expect to pay a supplement in hotels and B&Bs, meaning you'll often be forking over 75% of the price of a double for your single room.
Almost all B&Bs, guesthouses and hotels (and even some hostels) include breakfast in the room price.
Prices increase over the peak tourist season (June to September) and are at their highest in July and August. Outside of these months, and particularly in winter, special deals are often available at guesthouses and hotels.
If you're going to be in Edinburgh in August (festival month) or at Hogmanay (New Year), book as far in advance as you can – a year if possible – as the city will be packed.
Tourist offices have an accommodation booking service (£4), which can be handy over summer. However, note that they can only book the ever-decreasing number of places that are registered with VisitScotland. There are many other fine accommodation options that, mostly due to the hefty registration fee, choose not to register with the tourist board. Registered places tend to be a little pricier than nonregistered ones. Visit Scotland's star system is based on a rather arbitrary set of criteria, so don't set too much store by it.
If the blonde wood, brown leather and brushed steel of modern boutique hotels leave you cold, then this is the place for you...
The Italian fashion house has established a style icon in the heart of the medieval Old Town with this bold statement of a hotel – modernistic architecture, black-and-white decor with well-judged splashes of colour, impeccably mannered staff and, mo...
Here’s something a little out of the ordinary – a six-bedroom ‘restaurant with rooms’ housed in a converted 19th-century church...
Boutique chic meets the Highlands in this slick and sophisticated little hotel, where an elegant Georgian exterior conceals an oasis of contemporary cool...
Stylishly refurbished in plum and grey, this central but peaceful hotel is Kirkwall’s finest address. Comfortable contemporary rooms in a variety of categories sport superinviting beds and smart bathrooms...
A big (620 beds), bright, modern hostel that feels more like a hotel, with a convivial cafe where you can buy breakfast, and mod cons such as keycard access and secure charging stations for mobile phones, MP3 players and laptops...
You want central? This is central. Overlooking George Sq, the massive Victorian building constructed for the Tobacco Lords is now a top luxury hotel blessed with helpful and attentive staff...
The Bonham is one of the few Edinburgh hotels that manages a successful fusion of traditional Victorian interiors with bold modern colours and contemporary design - check out the crimson spiral sofa in the lobby...
<p>The former offices of the <em>Scotsman</em> newspaper – opened in 1904 and hailed as ‘the most magnificent newspaper building in the world’ – are now home to this luxury hotel...
Luxury without snobbery is this hotel's hallmark, and more power to them. To call it a house is being coy; it's an elegant baronial mansion, 2 miles north of Peebles on the A703, set in lush, wooded grounds...
Luxurious boutique hotel on the banks of the River Ness. Can organise golfing and fishing for guests.
Medieval meets modern at Dalhousie Castle, an impressive fortress and country residence built in the 15th century for the Ramsay family. Situated on the banks of the River South Esk, just 7mi south of Edinburgh, it was converted to a hotel in 1972...
The delightfully quaint Pierhouse Hotel sits on the waterfront above the pier for the Lismore ferry, and has stylish modern rooms, a sauna and an excellent restaurant that enjoys a view across the wate...
The unusual Stirling Highland Hotel is a sympathetic refurbishment of the old high school. The curious place still feels institutional in parts, but has great facilities that include pool, spa, gym, sauna and squash courts...
A byword for golfing luxury, this hotel is right alongside the famous 17th hole and has huge rooms, excellent service and a raft of facilities, including a spa complex. Fork out the extra £50 or so for a view over the Old Course...
Centrally located and with good business facilities, the 171-room Apex has stylish, modern décor, large, luxurious bedrooms, a rooftop restaurant and great views of the castle.
Popular with business travellers and ideally located for attractions along the riverfront, rooms are very modern, compact and chock-a-block full of gadgetry (modern conveniences), although not all that spacious, reflecting their functional nature...
A cut above other chain hotels of this ilk, Glasgow's version of the Marriott is a very fine one with excellent facilities for business travellers, or those who really want a decent bit of pampering (and like having doors opened for them at every tu...
Simpson's, a mile west of Union St, is a stylish boutique hotel decorated with a Mediterranean-Italian theme in shades of sand, terracotta and aqua. It's aimed at both business and private guests, and is totally wheelchair accessible...
The Quality Hotel is a down-to-earth, charismatic option right on Central station. Inside, everything is in huge proportion, the corridors are endless and the chandeliers baroque...
The Craigellachie has a wonderfully old-fashioned, hunting-lodge atmosphere, from the wood-panelled lobby to the opulent drawing room where you can sink into a sofa in front of the log fire...
Only in Glasgow could such a hip, exclusive hotel emerge free from pretensions...
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