We loved it... yeah, yeah, yeah
Beatles’spirit is kept alive in chalets
Our family of four has not been anywhere since March 3 when we last set foot inside a restaurant so it was a big occasion to go for a short break to the Four Seasons Hotel at Loch Earn.
Like other families making a first stab at a holiday closer to home, we felt a little odd to leave our home bubble and put ourselves in the hands of others, but we need not have worried, the hotel overlooking the loch on the edge of St Fillans had everything - very comfortably - covered.
We had the dog in tow so it made perfect sense to book one of the wooden chalets and we found our wooden nook just in time for dinner.
Clutching my mask, I made our arrival known in the main hotel reception.
My two children were out skipping around on the pontoon at the water’s
The tourism sector in Perth and Kinross has been badly hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many hotels across the region are taking part in the Scottish Food and Drink Fortnight, which runs until next Sunday, September 20.
The Four Seasons Hotel at St Fillans invited the PA along to see how important locally produced food was to the tourism sector, and to see what it is like to holiday in the region during the time of COVID-19.
Reporter MELANIE BONN took her family along to find out.
edge when I came out and begged to know if we had one of the two chalets the Beatles had stayed at in October 1964.
It didn’t matter that ours didn’t have that claim to fame and anyway, housekeeping had done such a deep clean in the current climate, no John or Paul DNA could have possibly survived.
We were directed up the slope behind the hotel to a cute and private-feeling cabin where we could park right outside. We didn’t bring our Labrador to dinner but left him snoozing in our room with a view. The chalet had a big window with leafy branches framing a gorgeous view of Loch Earn.
Others had gone for the whole dog experience and brought their canine to dine.
We got a table in the other half of the dining room without having to be on duty to socially distance our pet which could have been hard work.
The Four Seasons currently has a Perthshire Food and Drink Fortnight menu too changing every night, but found everything we wanted from the Seasons View restaurant’s regular menu.
My husband was keen to try some fish and took to the battered megrim presented as a tasty fish supper with chips and peas. Both children were very excited with the appetising choice of home-made burgers and plumped for one venison with smoked cheese and one beef steak and caremalised onion.
I had the pan-fried duck with orange and kale. It arrived pink and perfect.
We parents had a lovely bottle of Romanian Pinot Grigio white wine which was the perfect accompaniment.
Our waitress Maddie regaled us with tales of being an Outlander extra and rocked the tartan mask look, as well as taking excellent care of our table.
Dinner was truly relaxing and fun, the hotel’s accommodating and reassuring staff provided the perfect setting for us to feel at home away from home, a delightful place to shelter from the worries of the year of COVID-19.
Feeling overfed from four lovely desserts (the lemon posset was the stand-out winner), we walked the short distance to the chalet. What luxury not to have to go anywhere further.
Despite all six chalets being occupied we didn’t hear a peep from anyone else and slept soundly.
In the morning before breakfast my husband found the old railway path running just behind the Four Seasons an excellent place to go for a run. I walked the dog along there too, enjoying not having to worry about passing cars.
The children excitedly led me to what has to be one of the best new play parks in Perthshire – a delightful wooden den of obstacles and climbing frames set into the hillside giving children rewarding challenges and nature combined.
Back at the hotel for breakfast, we filled up on a hearty serving of scrambled eggs, bacon and more and even gave a kipper a try.
There was a convivial atmosphere and looking out on water was a superb way to start the day. We could not have wished for anything more.
Kudos to the new owners, who have kept the spirit of the Beatles alive in the unfussy chalets which have a homely quaintness all of their own.
The dog-friendly offer kept us all together and had we wanted it we could have even had an in-house sitter and walker.