Looking to compile a list of "best" hotels for Scotland courses

[CMP]

Hi all -


I'm booking a 2-3 week solo trip (will be joined here and there by friends) to Scotland this June. I'm looking for recommendations on "fun" places to stay. What I'm looking for are places close to the course (so I can either roll off of 18 late in the evening... or on to 1 early in the morning) that have a fun atmosphere, should have whisky, and as a bonus, maybe even food and a conversation with whomever runs it.


Has this been discussed here already? I've searched the forums and picked up a few here and there, but not a full list or compilation. If this exists in a guidebook or otherwise, please do let me know! I will edit this post below as people suggest, maybe this can help some people in the future as well.





Anstruther [Spindrift Guest House]
Askernish
Banff (Duff House Royal)
Barra
Brora [Clynelish Farms behind the distillery in Brora; Royal Marine]
Buckie (Strathlene GC)
Carnoustie (championship)
Carradale
Castle Stuart Golf [close: Invernairne house]
Crail
Cruden Bay [Kilmarnock Arms which is across the street from the course, Cruden Bay Bed & Breakfast]
Dornoch [Royal Golf Hotel, Eagle - more lively, The Castle Hotel (whisky), Links House (fancy)]
Dumbarnie links
Dunaverty
Dunbar
Durness
Elie (golf house club)
Golspie golf club [stone's throw cottage has 2 bed and gets good discount on green fees; Golspie Inn]
Gullane [stay at Ducks; The Open Arms, Dirleton, between Gullane and North Berwick; The Watchman]
Kilspindie [Ducks]
Lanark
Luffness new
Lundin Golf club
Machrie [hotel part of resort]
Machrihanish [Ardell House]
Moray GC, lossiemouth [Links Lodge]
Murcar links
Nairn championship [close: Invernairne house]
North Berwick [Marine Hotel which overlooks the course, The Nether Abbey Hotel -for liveliness- or the B&B 6A, Alan will give you a chat]
Oban
Panmure
Prestwick [Prestwick Old Course Hotel]
Royal Aberdeen
Shiskine
Stonehaven
Troon [Sand Hill house]
Western Gailes

[Wayne_Kozun]

North Berwick - the Marine Hotel which overlooks the course. 
Cruden Bay - the Kilmarnock Arms which is across the street from the course.
For some of the other courses in East Lothian, like Gullane, Luffness and Dunbar it isn't worth moving hotels.  Stay in North Berwick and drive to the others - Gullane and Luffness New are less than 10 minutes from North Berwick

[Tony_Muldoon]

North Berwick.  I'd prefer The Nether Abbey Hotel -for liveliness- or the B&B 6A, Alan will give you a chat !


But one day I'll break my habits and stay at Greywalls - if you book now they might get you on Muirfield (which should be on your list).


Another I haven't done myself - yet - but the view from The Old Course Hotel must be pretty tony! Forget Anstruther play The New,The Eden and Kinghorn in preference.

[Tom_Doak]

CMP:


I will toss in a good work for Duck's Hotel in Aberlady, East Lothian - just west of Gullane.  The proprietor Malcolm Duck is always around, the bar is full of golfers, and the restaurant is very good - Malcolm was a chef before he owned a hotel.


And all of the courses in East Lothian are less than 15 minutes away.


I rarely stay there anymore because I have a room at The Renaissance Club, but I go over there for dinner at least once or twice while I'm in town.


P.S.  The best guidebook on this subject used to be "Following the Fairways" by Nick Edmund, which was updated regularly, but he gave it up 20 years ago.  If you can find an old copy, it's still full of great little hotels and restaurants, most of which will still be there.


P.P.S.  A couple of others for your list that I would recommend from ages ago . . .
The Open Arms, Dirleton, between Gullane and North Berwick
You didn't mention Cullen, but my wife really liked the little Cullen Bay Hotel, which is across the street from the golf course.

[Tony_Muldoon]

P.S.  The best guidebook on this subject used to be "Following the Fairways" by Nick Edmund, which was updated regularly, but he gave it up 20 years ago.  If you can find an old copy, it's still full of great little hotels and restaurants, most of which will still be there.

Finnegan's books are also fast becoming history but he always wrote well about where he stayed.

[Mike Hendren]

A couple of B and B recommendations:

Clynelish Farms behind the distillery in Brora and 2Quail in Dornoch IF Michael is preparing dinner. Like dining in his home, but I hear he is now head chef at Royal Golf Hotel. 


Enjoying a nice port at Clynelish Farms after a late evening round at Brora:

[CMP]

I'm having trouble editing my original post but

CMP:
The best guidebook on this subject used to be "Following the Fairways" by Nick Edmund, which was updated regularly, but he gave it up 20 years ago.  If you can find an old copy, it's still full of great little hotels and restaurants, most of which will still be there.

thank you for the recs, and I'm picking that up tonight.

Enjoying a nice port at Clynelish Farms after a late evening round at Brora:

Yes. This. This is what I'm looking for!

stay at Greywalls - if you book now they might get you on Muirfield (which should be on your list).

That's a different conversation... and a different trip  [size=78%] [/size]

I'm still trying to figure out how to edit my post, I'd think this info to be valuable to others as well. Please keep them coming!

[Stewart Abramson]

I usually stay at small hotels and B&B's. Here are some I've really liked for being clean, great breakfasts, whiskey selection and welcoming hosts.

Anstruther - The Spindrift Guest House has a guest lounge with an honor bar that has a nice collection of spirits. The food was good. They'll make dinner by reservation. They also made us great travelling breakfast for the days we left before the regular breakfast hours

Brora and Golspie - The Golspie Inn is located at the midpoint between Brora and Golspie Golf courses less than 10 minute drive to each of them. They have a good restaurant and a separate pub at the other end of the first floor. It was a festive late night at the pub there the night Matt Fitzpatrick won the U.S. Open.

Castle Stuart -  There is a very modern Courtyard by Marriott that I stayed at the night before my early morning flight out of Inverness. It's not my typical choice, but was too convenient to the airport to pass up and I was pleasantly surprised as it had a busy restaurant and bar. It's 200 yards to the  airport entrance and about three minutes to Castle Stuart. Other times in the area, I've stayed at the Invernairne house which is very convenient to Nairn and Castle Stuart with a beautiful dining room, excellent breakfast, grounds and proprietors

Cruden Bay  -  I stayed at the Cruden Bay B&B, two minutes from the course. Nothing fancy, but convenient and inexpensive. The proprietor will talk golf and golf travel as much as you'd like. His daughter was the ladies club champion at Cruden Bay. She is now a club pro somewhere in the U.S. midwest.

North Berwick  - Seaholm house is a very small B&B a few blocks walk to the West Links and the restaurants in the Village. Nothing fancy but a lovely breakfast

Troon/Prestwick The Sandhill House overlooks Royal Troon and is one of the nicest B&B's I've stayed at. They have a right of way to walk across Royal Troon to get to the beach. Nice big rooms and a great breakfast.

You didn't have Fraserburgh on your list. The course is worth playing on your way from Aberdeen to Inverness and the Heath Hill House is a really good small hotel with a nice bar, beauthiful dining room with good food and service.


Each of these has a website

[David_Tepper]

Re: the 2 Quail in Dornoch

Sorry to say that Michael Carr passed away in September of last year.

https://www.northern-times.co.uk/family-notices/death-notices/carr-aa189530-v1-30/

[David_Tepper]

The Royal Marine Hotel in Brora is within easy walking distance of the course:

https://www.royalmarinebrora.com/

The Stone's Throw Cottage adjacent to the Golspie GC clubhouse is a 2-bedroom apartment available for rent. Tenants get a VERY good deal on Golspie green fees.

https://www.golspiegolfclub.co.uk/stones-throw-cottage/

[CMP]

This is fantastic and really helping my trip take shape - thank you all!


(I finally got my original post updating! Will continue to do so!)

[David_Tepper]

CMP -

Re: Dornoch, I don't know how old your are, but you will probably find a younger (and more local) crowd in the bar of the Eagle than at the Royal Golf.

www.eagledornoch.co.uk

It is hard to beat the location of the Royal Golf (and the food is very good), but the patrons there are an older, more up-scale crowd that is mostly golfers visiting Dornoch.

You might run into a caddie or two at the Eagle. Highly unlikely you will meet one at the Royal Golf. 

DT

[CMP]

Awesome advice! Not about being old or young, I think the idea is that if I'm going across the world to golf, I probably don't need to run into the same folks I'd see at the NY clubs anyway 

CMP -

Re: Dornoch, I don't know how old your are, but you will probably find a younger (and more local) crowd in the bar of the Eagle than at the Royal Golf.

www.eagledornoch.co.uk

It is hard to beat the location of the Royal Golf (and the food is very good), but the patrons there are an older, more up-scale crowd that is mostly golfers visiting Dornoch.

You might run into a caddie or two at the Eagle. Highly unlikely you will meet one at the Royal Golf. 
DT

[Mark Mammel]

In Dornoch I'd also suggest The Castle Hotel. If you like whisky, the bar has perhaps more one-of-a-kind drams than anywhere in the world, as well as the usual favorites. They also virtually always have at least 1, often 2 real ales on the pump. It's lively at night and I often stop on for a pint.

[Mark Smolens]

While I'm not certain that I'd go back there based upon the current ownership, in my '91 trip across the pond the night we spent at the Turnberry Hotel was pretty special, albeit very expensive even then. From the awesome pitch and putt course at the base of the hill the hotel sits upon (after my buddies got tired and left, I had the course to myself and went around a dozen or so times, trying to see what single club I could shoot the lowest score with) to the infinity pool overlooking Ailsa Craig with the music piped in under water, and the haggis in the restaurant (our bet was most shots to that point in the trip had to eat haggis -- my caddy at Prestwick thought that was a bet he wouldn't mind losing!), it was a pretty impressive place to stay.

[JohnVDB]

If you want the fanciest hotel in Dornoch, I’d suggest Links House which is next to the clubhouse down Golf Road.  It is small boutique hotel with a very good restaurant.  I haven’t stayed there, but I did have dinner once and it was excellent.

[Lynn_Shackelford]

CMP:


I will toss in a good work for Duck's Hotel in Aberlady, East Lothian - just west of Gullane.  The proprietor Malcolm Duck is always around, the bar is full of golfers, and the restaurant is very good - Malcolm was a chef before he owned a hotel.






I rarely stay there anymore because I have a room at The Renaissance Club, but I go over there for dinner at least once or twice while I'm in town.


P.S.  The best guidebook on this subject used to be "Following the Fairways" by Nick Edmund, which was updated regularly, but he gave it up 20 years ago.  If you can find an old copy, it's still full of great little hotels and restaurants, most of which will still be there.


Just returned from a week and a half in Gullane.  I hooked up with a local one day, good player, and he said almost only golfers hang at


P.P.S.  A couple of others for your list that I would recommend from ages ago . . .
The Open Arms, Dirleton, between Gullane and North Berwick
You didn't mention Cullen, but my wife really liked the little Cullen Bay Hotel, which is across the street from the golf course.

Just returned from a week and a half in Gullane.  I met a good player playing Glen Club, he is a member at Kilspindie, and he told me Duck's is all about talking golf.  He said Rich Beem comes in there, might stay there, and holds court for hours with stories.  I think a bunch of the Kilspindie members hang there as well.  He acted like there was nothing like it anywhere in East Lothian.  I stayed at The Watchman in Gullane, and would recommend it.  Ask for rooms overlooking the golf courses.  Breakfast there is excellent.