A CARAVAN CONVERT
Perthshire site boasts luxury and family fun
CArDS on the table, there was a reason I got to the grand old age of 40-something never having stayed in a caravan. To me, the only thing worse would be a tent. However, anyone with a young child will tell you that there comes a point when you have to wave goodbye to those wonderful city breaks where you lose yourself in a chi-chi European capital and while away afternoons people-watching while sipping a glass of something chilled.
Unlike me, my other half comes over all misty-eyed at the mere mention of a caravan, having spent most childhood holidays in a tin can one near Ballantrae, with memories of tables that folded into beds and torch-lit trips to the toilets.
And so it was that we found ourselves trundling up the M80 to Perthshire and, just 90 minutes after leaving Glasgow, we arrived in the simply stunning Blair Castle Caravan Park.
For poor hubby, there wasn’t much to remember about his old caravan. We stepped into a spotless chalet-style, two-bedroom one fitted with everything you would need. There was even an en suite in the master bedroom.
Crisp white linen, bathrooms fitted out to boutique hotel standards and complimentary toiletries all added to the style.
But the sun was shining and we wanted to explore. Our fouryear-old, Eliza, loved the children’s play area, and mountain biking, ponies and Segways are also on site.
The estate offers lodges that can sleep up to 20 and for smaller parties woodland lodges and pods are available. Head up to Blair Castle for even grander surroundings. A short drive or pleasant 20-minute walk from the site, it is home to the Duke of Atholl, who currently resides in South Africa.
The family cracked the tourist market here in a bid to maintain their 13th century home and have merged history with the practicalities of family holidays.
With beautiful gardens, an adventure playground and, of course, the castle to visit, you can tap into a bit of history while the kids get plenty of exercise. They can also relax on a 90minute vintage tractor and trailer ride round the grounds.
Over 19 generations, the Stewarts and Murrays of Atholl have backed winners and losers, fallen in and out of political favour, won battles and lost them.
They have almost all, in one way or another, left their mark on Blair Castle. The story will take you from Mary, Queen of Scots, to the Civil War, and from the Act of Union to the Jacobite cause and disaster of Culloden. In more recent times, the family gave us Scotland’s first female MP, Katharine Murray.
The castle is nestled in beautiful Perthshire countryside and is a short drive from a wealth of tourist attractions. We’d never been to the area before but will return – especially at this time of year when the trees provide a stunning backdrop.
As a castle guide whispered: ‘I’ve seen Canada in the fall but it didn’t compare to here.’
So, a castle with grounds as colourful as its family history.