We were in the beautiful Highlands of Scotland sourcing a venue and activities for our wellbeing client. Aviemore is a beautiful location. It is a great base to explore the Highlands. With many activities a short drive away, meaning you are not constantly on transfers to and from venues and activities.
Flying into Inverness, just 1 hour and 30 minutes from London. But there are plenty of direct flights from Gatwick, Heathrow, Liverpool and Manchester. Then just 40 minutes drive through picturesque winding roads, rolling hills, mountains, green fields and beautiful forests, we arrived at The MacDonald Hotels and Resorts in Aviemore. The journey is a a real feast for the eyes!
The Resort and Hotel:
There are 3 hotels at The MacDonald Resort: The Highland Hotel, Morlich Hotel, Aviemore Hotel, along with some 2 and 3 bedroomed Woodland retreats. We had a wonderful lunch of local produce at The Highland Hotel, this was also the hotel we stayed in. We had a delicious dinner in the Aspects Restaurant. The food and service were outstanding.
The hotels are decorated beautifully and to a high standard with traditional Scottish check and tartan throughout, showing the Scottish heritage. The rooms are very spacious with everything you need. They are warm, inviting and cozy – the bed and crisp white bed linen were very comfortable!
The MacDonald Hotel and Resorts has so many facilities for business, wellness, corporate and leisure. Not only does it have a substantial amount of hotel rooms throughout the resorts. There are many meeting spaces, venue spaces for gala dinners etc, along with an auditorium which accommodates 240 people. 3 restaurants on site - A Scottish restaurant, an Italian restaurant and a burger restaurant. All of the restaurants cater for all tastes and allergies. On our final night I was able to get some gluten free pasta and experience the wonderful prawn pasta dish in Giovanni’s Italian restaurant. In addition to the restaurant, there is a coffee shop, and of course a whisky and cocktail bar.
For the larger groups, the hotels can be privatised and exclusive. If your group is that big, the resort can also be booked out exclusively!
Exploring the region:
Out first stop was the beautiful Rothiemurchus Estate. Just a 10 minute drive from the resort. This vast estate has many acres of land including Scottish munroes (small mountains) within the estate and lochs. This makes the Rothiemurchus Estate an excellent option for activities.
There is something for everyone: adrenaline driven activities, walking and hiking, wellness and nature, country pursuits. They also have venue options such as a tepee overlooking the mountains. A country manor with barn which would lend itself to hire for conferences, meetings, gala dinners etc. They also have self-catering accommodation on the estate.
They have a large tepee which overlooks the Cairngorm mountains, the rolling hills and green fields. Perfect for large or smaller group. It can be set up for a lunch, dinner, a meeting or presentation. We then went on to view a beautiful country house situated next to one of the lochs on the estate. This venue is quite exclusive as a family live in the house and has limited availability. But it is great option for a party or corporate event.
We then went onto do a hairy coo safari. A hairy coo? This is the famous Scottish Highland cow and while seeing the cows, we saw some highland hares bouncing and chasing each other. They were the size of a domestic cat! The estate is rewilding some of the area within the estate and we were able to see the deer living on the estate, which were separated from the rewilding. We fed the stag and the does, they were very gentle. The does allowed us to come into the field and stroke them. This was an amazing, calming experience, with the wow factor!
Loch An Eilein has breath taking views of the peaceful loch. It was just what we were looking for as an option for our client's wellness retreat. But would also work well for team building activities. We then drove along the winding roads taking in the spectacular views of the mountains and lochs, passing Loch Morlich which event has its own beach.
Our next destination was the newly re-opened Funicular mountain railway, which runs up the side of the Cairngorms Mountains. The short smooth ride within the glass train took in the views of the Cairngorm mountains. Once at the top. We took in the stunning views of the mountains and the surrounding lochs. The air was crisp and clean. It is simply an experience that needs to had by all who come here!
After the Cairngorm mountains, we headed back down the road to the Cairngorm Reindeer Centre. It is a walk/hike to the location of the reindeer. But again you take in amazing views and fresh air on the way. We met some orphaned hand reared reindeers before we went on to a heard of reindeer. There was a talk about the reindeer and their health and safety. We then fed these beautiful creatures who were gentle and unphased at our presence. They wandered gracefully where they wanted to, whether you were in their way or not. Another wonderful and amazing experience.
Summary:
Aviemore has so much to offer for all event needs. The short flight times from the UK and short transfers once you are there, makes everything easily accessible a great destination for an offsite, wellness event, conference, meetings or a team building event. With the natural beauty of the mountain landscape and the lochs, it certainly has the wow factor.
For those looking for something of a slightly faster pace in terms of activities. Take a look at our last trip here, where we experienced zipwires, go-karts and tasting activities - click here
Or why not start the discussion about Aviemore and the Highlands for your next event? - info@wearemeat.com
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