VILLAGE PEOPLE
JK Rowling, Alan Cumming and the lure of Scotland’s best rural idyll . . . Aberfeldy
IT is a small market town in Perthshire which charmed Robert Burns and counts JK Rowling and actor Alan Cumming as famous residents.
Now, Aberfeldy has been judged the best village in Scotland in a new survey.
Aberfeldy, beside Scotland’s longest river, the River Tay, and described by its champions as “the best of Scotland in a nutshell”, beat competition from some eye-catching rivals.
With more that 2,710 people who had visited the UK’S towns and villages between April 2019 and April 2021 surveyed to establish the Which? rankings, just three Scots towns and villages registered in the list of 59.
Notable absentees from the survey by the consumer organisation include St Andrews in Fife, Portree on the Isle of Skye, the Argyll resort town of Oban, and Tobermory on the Isle of Mull among others.
Aberfeldy, Scotland’s highestscoring town, was given an 82 per cent scoring for its five-star scenery, a fourstar rating for peace and quiet, and three stars for attractiveness.
Which? said that the town is today better known for being Scotland’s first Fairtrade town, and for its many attractions including The Watermill containing a book shop, gallery and café, and Dewar’s Aberfeldy Distillery.
The town in which Harry Potter author JK Rowling owns a house nearby and in which Alan Cumming was born, is perhaps best known for being immortalised by Scotland’s bard. He was inspired to write a poem about the Perthshire beauty spot in 1787 after visiting while on a tour of the Highlands with his friend
William Nicol.
In The Birks of Aberfeldy, he admired the crystal streamlets and “little birdies” at one of the area’s many beauty spots.
Waterfalls and birk – or birch – woods surround the pretty Perthshire town which, 200 years on from Burns’s visit, makes for a popular getaway destination.
According to Visitscotland, visitors to the town will be “spoilt for choice” for outdoor adventures in this area, as there are plenty of local activity providers who can take people white water rafting, abseiling, gorge walking, canyoning, mountain biking or even bungee jumping.
It has also become an attraction for salmon and trout fishing.
The second-best Scots beauty spot was judged to be another Perthshire town – said to be a favourite of Queen Victoria.
Pitlochry rated five stars for scenery, four stars for attractiveness, four stars for peace and quiet, and three stars for value for money.
The only other Scots town to make the list was Fort William in the Highlands, which rated five stars for peace and quiet but just one star for attractiveness.
Aberfeldy only finished 16th best across the UK with Pitlochry 24th (80 per cent) and Fort William 51st (73%).
It was a village in Wiltshire where visitors can “order a pint of bitter in the middle of a Neolithic henge” that was named the best in the UK in the survey.
Avebury’s English charm containing a 5,000-year-old stone circle scored near-perfect marks for scenery, attractions, and “peace and quiet”. All of the top three destinations in the survey are located in the south-west of England, with Castle Combe, also in Wiltshire, and Wells, Somerset, placing joint second in the rankings.
At the bottom of the table was Bodmin, in Cornwall, with a destination score of 55%, followed by Matlock Bath in Derbyshire (65%) and Ross-on-wye in Herefordshire (66%).
Rory Boland, Which? travel editor, said: “The UK is full of towns and villages bursting with character and history, many of which are relatively quiet and unspoilt making them perfect destinations for a day trip or a holiday.
“Whether you’re looking for somewhere with peaceful walks and bracing scenery, or simply a selection of independent shops and cosy pubs to idle in, there are a wealth of brilliant towns and villages to explore across the country waiting to be explored.”
A Visitscotland spokesman said: “Scotland’s rural destinations have always been popular with UK visitors and with the pandemic changing attitudes towards travel, making staycations the focus for many, their popularity has only increased during this time.
“We welcome the views of Which? readers who have highlighted Fort William, Aberfeldy and Pitlochry as among the top-rated UK towns and villages.
Across the country we have a fantastic range of coasts, islands, mountains and countryside to explore