Balbirnie House Hotel wins top global accolade

A Fife hotel has been hailed as one of the best in the world after scooping a prestigious international award.

Balbirnie House Hotel in Markinch has been named as the winner of the Global Wedding Retreat of the Year award at the glittering Haute Grandeur Hotel Awards ceremony, which took place at the Palazzo Versace in Dubai this week.

Six representatives of Balbirnie’s staff – the hotel’s events and wedding planning team – travelled to the Middle East to collect the award, which saw the Scottish hotel go up against the world’s finest establishments.

It is the third year in a row that Balbirnie House has seen success at the invitation-only awards.

Last year, Balbirnie’s owners Nicholas and Gaynor Russell travelled to Thailand to accept the titles of Europe’s Best Romantic Hotel, Europe’s Best Function Venue Hotel and Europe’s Best Destination Wedding Hotel, while 2016 saw the hotel named Europe’s Best Destination Wedding Retreat.

Mr Russell said the award win had been an unprecedented result for Scotland’s hospitality and tourism sectors and thanked all those who made it possible.

“To see Balbirnie House go number one in the world, and achieve something for Scotland that has never ever been achieved before, is remarkable,” he said.

“The award is dedicated to our brigade past and present.”

In celebration of the new global award, blue smoke was seen coming out of the chimneys of the Grade A-Listed Balbirnie House.