Bargain! Now it’s ‘just’ £10k to join top club
IT is one of Scotland’s most exclusive clubs, counting superstars such as Mick Jagger, Madonna and Robbie Williams among its guests.
Skibo Castle in Sutherland charges £25,000 for lifetime membership of its elite Carnegie Club.
Now, for the first time, it is offering discount membership – with a joining fee of only £10,000.
Members will gain exclusive access to a newly refurbished 18hole golf course – and be granted private entry to a shooting range, an aluminium-floored, glass-walled indoor pool and a lakeside spa.
Previously, members would have been charged a one-off joining fee of £25,000, plus an annual membership of £8,000. They would also have been expected to pay £1,280 per night for a large double room – all inclusive.
But the elite club is offering prospective members a trial year for a mere £10,000 – without the joining fee – plus various room rates. It is also allowing prospective guests to stay for a trial weekend from £2,100 a night before they apply for membership.
In order to maintain its exclusive reputation, Skibo has not ‘advertised’ for new members but is instead ‘inviting’ applications. Membership peaked at 400 before the recession and although Peter Crome, chairman and managing director of Skibo Ltd, would not disclose the exact number of spaces available, he said the present membership was between 350 and 400.
Mr Crome added: ‘We have some vacancies for membership. The recession had a negative effect and we are trying hard to get it back up to 400. It is a targeted market. We don’t advertise but we have some personal promotion going on in America.
‘I don’t think any one of our members are average. They come from all walks of life – from the arts, finance, technology etc. We have 25 nationalities represented in our membership – the largest single group are American, but 44 per cent of our members do live in the UK.
‘I think people are attracted by the castle, its history, the location and that it’s reasonably exclusive. We are not in it for profit – we plough everything back and use as many local suppliers as possible.’ Skibo – which can accommodate 50 guests across 20 rooms and 11 cottages – was thrust into the spotlight in 2000 when it was chosen by pop icon Madonna and film director Guy Ritchie as their wedding venue, following the christening of their son Rocco in Dornoch Cathedral.
Scots racing driver Dario Franchitti and actress Ashley Judd followed suit in 2001, while pop star Robbie Williams celebrated his 30th birthday at the castle in 2004.
A total of £25 million has been ploughed into the castle over the past decade, including a £2.5 million extension to the clubhouse due to open next month.
Owner Ellis Short, who is also chairman of English Premiership football club Sunderland, bought the Highland retreat of the rich and famous in 2003 for a reported £23 million.
Aside from celebrity weddings and birthdays, famous guests also include former US presidents George Bush Snr and Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew, the Duchess of York, Bill Gates, Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta Jones, Sir Sean Connery and Jack Nicholson.