Kinloch Lodge is a family run property in a truly spectacular location. Tucked away on Skye’s southern shores, the lodge is remote – you’ll need a car to reach it, but it’s worth any journey. Once a 16th-century hunting lodge, the Kinloch is now a charming hotel that pays homage to its own history while offering a home-from-home experience – if, of course, your home is a sprawling property on the edge of a loch. For over 50 years, the hotel has been run by Lady Claire and Lord Godfrey Macdonald, with their daughter Isabella now at the helm. Inside, bedrooms have been decorated in colours and textures that reflect Skye's distinctive landscape, while a bar with boardgames, a cosy fire and family portraits waits after dinner. Guests can eat in the restaurant or, in summer months, dine al fresco beside a firepit looking out across the loch. Don’t miss Sunday lunch, featuring whisky-aged venison or Highland beef.

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Eilean Shona is a three-hour drive through the Highlands from Glasgow. It’s the island where author and playwright JM Barrie took inspiration from moss-covered woods, open hills and white sand beaches and first imagined the Neverland of Peter Pan. Eilean Shona is now owned by Vanessa Branson, who has applied the design skills honed at her Moroccan luxury hotel El Fenn to turn it into one of the Highlands’ finest destinations. Dotted around the island are nine cottages that sleep between two and eight people. Shepherd’s Cottage is an off-grid bolthole perfect for couples; the Old Schoolhouse is a luxurious conversion of the long-gone island community’s school; the newest conversion is Timber Cottage, a single-storey, one-bedroomed cottage with lovely touches such as a Victorian roll-top bath and splashes of colour from textiles and furnishings sourced from Marrakech. Once at Dorlin Pier on the mainland, the island boat picks guests up for the five-minute crossing. A quad and trailer transports luggage and provisions to and from the cottages on arrival and departure.

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If you’re looking for some serious escapism, look no further than the beautiful Fife Arms, which can be found in Braemar. Close to the royal hideaway of Balmoral, this appealing village is famous in its own right for its Highland Games. Set against the majestic mountainous backdrop of Cairngorms National Park, the hotel dates to the 19th century when it was built by the Duke of Fife as a coaching inn after Queen Victoria’s purchase of Balmoral sent the popularity of Braemar through the roof. In late 2018, the hotel was overhauled by Iwan and Manuela Wirth, the couple behind the Swiss art collective Hauser & Wirth, which owns galleries in places around the world. The Fife Arms has 46 bedrooms, encompassing everything from royal suites to interconnecting family rooms. Each has been uniquely decorated using plush wallpapers, furnishings and ephemera that reflects the hotel’s history. For views of the mountains, book one of the Nature & Poetry rooms inspired by Scottish poets – or go all out with one of the Royal Suites, which have grand four-poster beds, spacious living areas and copper roll-top baths.

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Perhaps the country’s most exciting launch of 2024, the historic Penicuik estate in Midlothian now hides a collection of stylish homes throughout its 400-hectare designed landscape. Just a 30-minute drive from Edinburgh, and set against the magnificent backdrop of the Pentland Hills, Penicuik has been under the stewardship of the same family since 1654. It features a collection of beautifully restored houses, cottages and lodges, with more planned over the next few years. Dotted throughout the estate’s ancient woodlands and meadows, each property includes a genuinely state-of-the-art kitchen (think top-of-the-range Quooker taps, Miele ovens and a wine fridge), a sitting room with a wood burner, and luxurious en-suite bedrooms. Each has a private terrace with an outdoor wood burner, Big Green Egg BBQs (all ready to go, with daily cleaning) and secluded cedar hot tubs. Guests can order organic breakfast and BBQ hampers to each property. Penicuik House is set to open this summer. Sleeping 32, the former stables will be fitted out with salvaged architecture, furniture and art from Old Penicuik House, and will have two grand reception rooms and a formal dining room.

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Also in the small village of Tongue, Lundies House is a former church manse that’s been carefully reimagined as a boutique hotel on Scotland’s popular North Coast 500 route. The hotel combines warm hospitality, well-rated food and contemporary design to create a Highland home where guests can gather in the kitchen for communal coffee, dinner and drinks. Carefully restored original details, such as stone-floors and large shuttered-windows, make the place feel timeless, while works from eminent Danish artists sit alongside bespoke furniture and cabinetry from Scottish makers. Overlooking the scenic Kyle of Tongue and mountains beyond, the house comprises a ground floor of communal areas, while the upstairs is given over to spacious and private en-suite bedrooms.

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Wildland is a leading conservation-focused organisation in Scotland, dedicated to protecting and regenerating the natural landscapes of the Scottish Highlands, through its collection of distinctive, restored properties across three significant Scottish estates. Killiehuntly Farmhouse in the Cairngorms National Park is an easy-going, friendly guest house and collection of self-catered cottages. In the main farmhouse, you’ll find four cosy bedrooms – alongside a well-stocked honesty bar, breakfast each day and a hearty shared supper. In the self-catering cottages, you’ll find a kitchen full of good things (think eggs laid by the farm’s hens, plus fish and meat from friends in the community), a roaring log burning stove and a home from home to call your own.

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