Airds Hotel & Restaurant

Airds Hotel & Restaurant is a small country-house hotel of just eleven rooms, magnificently set overlooking Loch Linnhe and the Morvern mountains in peaceful Port Appin on Scotland’s West Coast. As an intimate luxury refuge to escape to and forget about the modern world, we think there is nowhere finer, and when you add the fabulous restaurant overlooking the loch, stylishly smart rooms, and attentive but unobtrusive service, it becomes absolute heaven. And those views! No wonder it is a proud member of Relais & Chateaux.

In the mid-eighteenth century, The Airds started out as an inn for passengers taking the paddle steamer to the Caledonian Canal. Today its modest whitewashed exterior gives few clues to the treasures you’ll discover inside. Glowing log fires, freshly cut flowers, beautiful wallpaper and sofas a-plenty create a wonderfully inviting ambience, perfect for cosying up with a tea (or something a little stronger) and either burying yourself in a good book or hatching plans together.

The Airds’ eight en-suite bedrooms and three suites are all unique in style and have a fresh contemporary feel with warm colours and smart fabrics, along with all the requisite technology. Over half of them come with inspiring views of Loch Linnhe, and bathrooms in most cases are marble with bathrobes and luxurious Bulgari toiletries. There is also a two bedroom self-catering cottage in the grounds ideal for families or for those who prefer a little more privacy and independence.

Thoughtful touches from the complimentary whisky mac and newspaper each morning to in-room spa treatments and a DVD player so that you can borrow a movie from the front desk and curl up in bed to watch the latest blockbuster are typical of the spoiling hospitality you’ll receive at The Airds.

Food is a central part of your stay, and the award-winning restaurant, which has prime time summer sunset views out across the loch towards the Morvern Mountains, serves up outstanding contemporary Scottish cuisine, imaginatively and delicately conjuring up dishes that feature seasonal local produce of impeccable provenance: wild halibut, hand-dived scallops, succulent grouse and venison. After dinner, repair to the Whisky Bar and enjoy a taste journey through the selection of exceptional single malts. Outside, there's a garden where you can enjoy afternoon tea or a game of croquet on the lawn with those same scintillating views.

With such beautiful scenery all around the hotel, there is no shortage of activities available to guests of The Airds. Walking and cycling are two of the most popular activities, with fantastic cycle routes and walking paths starting right outside the hotel, but there’s so much else to do. If history is your thing, then visits to Castle Stalker and brooding Glencoe are musts, and for the ultimate day excursion, why not fly from Oban by light plane to beautiful Islay to taste rare island malt whiskies in the place of their birth?

Oban is the local town and is worthy of a visit. It also acts as the ferry terminal for many of the Hebridean islands, including Mull, which is well worth a day trip. On the sea, you can take a boat to the holy island of Iona; marvel at the extraordinary geology of Fingal’s Cave on Staffa; go sea kayaking or looking for dolphins, killer whales and puffins; cross the world’s third largest whirlpool in a jet-boat; and take a RIB out to the magical inner Hebridean island of Colonsay. Whatever you do, you’ll come back to The Airds secure in the knowledge that you will be extremely well looked after.