Aldourie Castle, Lochness, Scotland Vacation Rental

Enjoy the very best of Scottish Highland hospitality at the historic. Aldourie Castle Estate, on the shores of fabled Loch Ness.

This historic Castle and Estate is situated on the southern shore of Loch Ness, close to the city of Inverness, capital of the Scottish Highlands. Aldourie Castle offers grandeur and comfort, beauty and tranquillity in a breathtaking setting, which epitomises the timeless magic and heritage of Scotland.

For a truly memorable experience, the Castle and Estate are available for private house parties, celebrations, product launches and other important occasions, on an exclusive basis

The estate is the only habitable Castle on the shores of Loch Ness and has occupied this site for hundreds of years. While less than five miles from Inverness, the Estate seems in a world of its own, with an unforgettably atmospheric sense of calm and tranquillity that will soothe the mind and energise the spirit.

It offers all the fairytale grandeur and glamour you could wish for from a Listed Grade A Highland Castle, with turrets, towers, nooks and crannies aplenty. This is a wonderfully authentic and homely place, blazing with warmth and hospitality, seducing its guests as much with its gorgeous interiors as with its majestic setting.

The Castle has been beautifully restored, from the deepest wine cellar to the tip of its spires, to create a luxurious yet intimate home, in which the attention to heritage and period detail is matched by the quality and comfort of the furnishings. The ambience is warm and welcoming throughout the seasons, in the true, time-honoured style of Scottish hospitality.

Love and attention have been lavished outdoors too, with the gardens and woodland also restored to the splendour of their 19th century heyday. A winding, tree-lined drive leads to the Castle and a broad lawn slopes gently down to Loch Ness itself – a world of total peace and privacy. Guests may take cocktails on the Terrace, or stroll through the woods to the leafy Marina.

As well as a formal garden, the original kitchen gardens have been preserved, with splendid historic greenhouses and fine shrubs and walkways to delight the eye. Both outside and indoors, Aldourie Castle exudes a sense of poetic history unique to a Highland Estate. This is a place to relax, to live well, to enjoy the company of friends and family – perhaps even to dream a little.

Today, Aldourie Castle is the perfect destination for your exclusive private occasion. Stay for a week, or even a month, and enjoy the ultimate house party: the freedom of an entire Castle and Estate in one of the world’s most iconic locations. For a birthday celebration, a wedding, a business event, or just to get away from it all, the castle provides a magical environment.

Tradition, opulence, classic style and total comfort – guests will find these qualities in abundance. The interiors have the grace and scale of an historic house, yet the intimacy and cosy warmth that dispel any notion of formality. From the moment you arrive, Castle Estate will relax and enchant you.

Furnishings throughout the Castle are of the highest quality, with rich fabrics, elegant furniture and fine antiques. From the light and airy hall to the deep ruby of the Red Drawing Room; from the magnificent Dining Room to the panelled Laird’s Room, it is a place where the cares of the world seem far, far away.

The Castle Estate conveys the impression that the owners departed a hundred years ago and that little has changed since then, so quintessentially Scottish has the atmosphere remained. Yet every interior is pristine and every amenity belongs firmly in the 21st century: this is a luxury home for modern times too.

Come to stay here and immerse yourself in a book by a roaring log fire, or savour a drink and good conversation around the table; enjoy some traditional indoor pursuits or perhaps gaze serenely across the lawns to the beauty of Loch Ness and the Highland landscape beyond.

There are fifteen bedrooms at the Castle, ranging from grand four-posters, swathed in sumptuous velvets and brocades, to the cosiest little single rooms, with a charm all of their own. Each bedroom and bathroom is entirely individual: one may be furnished with classic simplicity, another with generous dashes of eccentricity, yet all are wonderfully comfortable. Each of the bedrooms has its own personality, as well as its own distinctive furnishings. Some are decorated in honour of a previous owner at the Castle; some are themed around a period style and others around the architectural features of that particular room. The bathrooms are equipped with the very best of classic British fitments, designed in traditional style.

Nine of the fifteen bedrooms are on the first floor and these tend to have taller ceilings and larger windows, as befits the traditions of an authentic historic Castle. Many of the rooms have their own ensuite bathroom and some also inter-connect with other rooms, which is often convenient for family groups.

Throughout the Castle you will discover imaginative little decorative touches – sometimes practical, sometimes thoughtful, sometimes whimsical, yet always welcome. Equally appreciated are the finest cotton sheets, the thick, fluffy towels and the sense of generous hospitality wherever you go.

FRASER WING – a self-contained apartment, with a sitting room, four-poster bedroom, little study and ensuite bathroom.

MORRIS – a king or twin-bedded room with Arts and Crafts ensuite bathroom.

LORIMER – a four-poster room with distinctive Arts and Crafts wood panelling and a large ensuite bathroom.

LOCH – a delightful four-poster room, smaller in scale, with the Nymph Bathroom adjacent.

GARDEN ROOM – a traditional double bedroom, connecting with the Print Bathroom.

NAPOLEON – a charming single room, connecting with Mackintosh.

MACKINTOSH – a splendid four-poster room, with ensuite marble shower room.

LADY GREY – a classic four-poster bedroom, with ensuite bathroom; connects with Peacock.

PEACOCK – a single room, connecting with Lady Grey.

There are six further bedrooms on the second floor at the Castle – though “second floor” hardly describes this fascinating maze of landings, towers, doorways and stone staircases. The bedrooms are cosy, imaginative and as generously proportioned as those on the first floor.

TWIN CHIMNIES is a king or twin-bedded room, reached by its own stone spiral staircase, with ensuite bath and shower. The TOWER ROOM is a classic Elizabethan four-poster and has adjacent stone stairs leading up to the twin-bedded CHINESE ROOM, with ensuite bathroom.

The OLD NURSERY is a king or twin-bedded room, next door to the Nursery Kitchen, which offers its own cooking and dining facilities and is ideal for families with children.

LADY CAMERON is a spacious and beautifully interiored king or twin-bedded room, adjacent to the Turret Bathroom.

Finally, FOUR IN HAND is a double room, unusual in shape, featuring a large alcove and the adjacent Wildlife Bathroom. As if the delights of Lochness Castle itself were not enough, the great outdoors offers equally spectacular appeal. Quite apart from the history, geography and poetry of Loch Ness, the whole region is a paradise for walkers, hikers, golfers, cyclists, hunters, fishermen, falconers and nature lovers alike.

We have developed a local network of experts who can guide you, coach you, teach you and talk to you about a vast range of interests and activities. Whatever your questions or enthusiasms, we can provide a specialist to enhance your enjoyment, deepen your understanding or just show you how to do it.

Here you can immerse yourself in silence or celebrate with the most glamorous birthday party ever. You can be married, or you can write a novel in solitary splendour. You can plan commercial strategies with business colleagues or launch a new product upon an eager audience. Stay at the Castle and five hundred acre Estate are yours in their entirety.

Different occasions will require different solutions and the staff can be as flexible as your own home. Unlike a private club or hotel, there are no rules and regulations (other than respect and common sense) and no set times for anything.

Some house parties may prefer to take care of their own catering and housekeeping arrangements. However, we always have our own team of chefs, housekeepers, managers and facilitators on hand, who can be engaged as and when required all year round. Whatever your preferred arrangements, we will ensure that you experience the very best of Scottish hospitality.

Aldourie Castle has a commercial galley kitchen, with pantry, storage and cold rooms, which enable on-site catering at an ambitious level and for considerable numbers of guests. In addition, there is the Nursery Kitchen on the second floor, ideal for catering for younger members of a party.

Check in 4 PM

Check out 10 AM

No Smoking

Children Welcome

Pets on Site

20% VAT

Damage Deposit Due with last payment

Picture ID required at check in

50% Down to book

Balance Due 60 days prior

Ask about Travelers Insurance

Rates and fees subject to change without notice