“Escape the hustle and bustle”

After a hectic couple of months, it was time for a much needed relaxing night away and perfect timing for taking my partner (Stephen) away for his birthday.  I spotted one of our great offers at the luxury 4 star Dunkeld House Hotel located in Perthshire which has recently had a £2m refurbishment and decided to book this. I was not disappointed!

The journey from the Glasgow area takes around 2 hours (depending if you are as slow a driver as me) via the M8 and A9. The drive was very scenic, particularly after Perth which was very picturesque. Once we arrived in Dunkeld, google maps took us down the back road to the hotel which was very narrow, however we eventually found our way and arrived safely. It was beautiful. The hotel is situated on a well maintained and natural woodland and overlooked the wide and fast flowing River Tay. There was also plenty of car parking spaces. I knew this would be the relaxing retreat I was in need of!

We arrived at the Dunkeld House around 3.30pm, I was surprised at how busy the hotel already was with guests. The hotel was well signed posted and we were able to locate the reception desk easily. We were warmly welcomed by the receptionist Simona who was friendly and efficient who told us about all the hotel facilities and advised to book in for a meal time at the bar area. There were only two times left so I opted for the later time of 8.30pm. I would strongly recommend booking your dinner reservation.

We proceeded to our room (115) which was on the first floor, I was happy to find a lift to take us – with the amount of bags I had for 1 night! On entering the room, it was very modern, clean and spacious with high ceilings and beautiful views across to the woodland! I particularly liked the way it was decorated – very modern. The room had all the facilities you would expect, toiletries, WiFi, tea & coffee facilities and a Perthshire Destination Guide Book. In the room was also a box of complimentary chocolates and a card for my partners birthday which we thought was a lovely touch!

We decided to make our way to the leisure facilities at the hotel, it is worth a note that to get to the facilities you have to go out of the main hotel building, which was fine by us. They were open until 9.00pm and we had the swimming pool to ourselves which was great! The health and leisure club also had whirlpool bath, sauna and steam room as well as spa treatments. Ian on duty was efficient and friendly. I cannot comment on the gymnasium, as I did not use this, however Stephen said it was well equipped. The swimming pool had a lovely view of the surrounding area.

After our swim, we decided to get ready for our dinner reservation at 8.30pm. We had a couple of drinks in the bar prior to our reservation which were reasonable priced! I was happy to see a cocktail menu and would recommend the Mojito – my favourite!

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The restaurant within the hotel was very busy, I was glad I had booked! We were greeted by Mark, our server, was who was very friendly and hardworking. It was nice to see bread rolls and water on our table too. We were booked on a Dinner, Bed & Breakfast rate, the menu was a three course set meal with plenty of options as well as daily specials. I decided to opt for a usual of mine – prawn cocktail then Feather Blade of Beef Wellington and a Drambuie Crème Brûlée for dessert . My partner also opted for the Beef Wellington however when this arrived they forgot the mash and vegetables, this was corrected promptly by Mark .  All were delicious! I especially enjoyed Stephen’s white wine and garlic mussels (a special) which I helped him with! Overall the food was one of the highlights of our stay!

After a couple more drinks at the bar, we decided to head to bed where we had a great nights sleep, the beds were very comfortable!

We decided to get up early the next day so we had time to explore the surrounding area. We made our way down to breakfast at 8.30am. Our tea and coffee order was taken promptly. We ate in the main restaurant, the same as the night before. It was a buffet style however you could order cooked items for a supplementary charge of £5. The food was fresh and there was plenty of choice! I must say the scrambled egg was particularly good! There was also a full continental breakfast option if you preferred something lighter which has a variety of cereals, fresh fruits and breakfast pastries – pain au chocolats (my favourite)!

Check-out was very efficient and we paid our bill at the end of our stay. Overall we thought this was fantastic value for money, very modern with friendly staff and great food! I could not fault any of the food I had during our stay and would highly recommend a night or two here at this luxury four star hotel for a relaxing getaway!

Dunkeld

The lovely village of Dunkeld sits on the banks of the River Tay. You can walk along Atholl Street where you can experience a variety of quality independent shops, cathedral, churches, galleries and a variety of eateries. I would particular recommend going over Dunkeld Bridge which provides excellent views.

Iain Burnett – The Highland Chocolatier 

As a self-confessed chocoholic… what better place to visit than the 4-star “Iain Burnett – The Highland Chocolatier” exhibition only 15 minutes away from Dunkeld located in Grandtully. Iain Burnett’s truffles have won over 40 awards including world gold at the International Chocolate awards 2015 & 2016. I must say this attraction is well worth the visit where you can experience the small multimedia chocolate exhibition, chocolate shop and gift showroom (all free entry). There is an opportunity to watch chocolatier’s in action most weekdays while in production too.

You are then welcomed in the adjoining Chocolate lounge where you can have small savoury snacks, drinks, cakes and of course chocolate! I would particularly recommend the banana fudge cake, and white chocolate mocha – delicious! I decided to buy the Passion-fruit Velvet Truffle and the Strawberry Truffle which were equally as good! A great experience overall for chocolate lovers!

Escape the hustle and bustle and experience this great hotel break for yourself. We are running a great offer at the Dunkeld House Hotel which includes wine, three course evening meal, overnight accommodation and full Scottish Breakfast from only £69.50pp – click here!