Copyright ok
With Celebrity Traitors boosting searches for Scottish holiday destinations, we explored a country estate that's a sort of Center Parcs meets five-star hotel. Wyndham Duchally Country Estate , which sits in 27 acres of Perthshire countryside, easily rivals the grandeur of the Highlands scenery, has nine hotel rooms and 55 self-catering lodges. The lodges are all two or three bedrooms (with two or three bathrooms) and are easily as well-equipped (if not more so) than our experience of Center Parcs, for example. The kitchens include everything you need for a proper self-catering holiday (no mini fridges here) - toaster, kettle, oven, hob, dishwasher and microwave, as well as a full-size fridge and freezer. Our lodge also had some very efficient electric radiators with individual controllers on them, so despite the cold and wet outside - we stayed toasty and warm (be mindful of these if you’re travelling with kids - the higher temperatures are hot). There’s complimentary WiFi in all the lodges and within the main hotel, and we found it worked well. You’re able to connect up to four devices per hotel room or lodge, FYI, many of the lodges are being replaced with top-of-the-range new buildings and while we didn't see or hear any signs of the works, it may be worth calling the Estate to get an idea of timelines of these. There's often deals available if you book direct, such as 25% off lodge stays between December 1, 2025, and March 21, 2026. There are two on-site options for food and drinks - the a la carte Monteath’s Restaurant, and The Gatehouse Bar. The latter serves a light menu from 12.30pm to 9pm, and you can also order from the restaurant between 5pm and 9pm. A tip - we can recommend trying the Estate’s very own Gatehouse Gin - and our bartender made a mean espresso martini! The restaurant has a fairly solid menu, with traditional Scottish fare like smoked salmon pate (£10) and Haggis pakora (£10) on the starter menu (we can vouch for the Haggis pakora although be warned - the portions were generous!), and fish and chips (£18.5), mac and cheese (£17) and 8oz Sirloin Steak (£39) on the mains. The steak was particularly good, and despite emptying our plates, we still had room for a delicious sticky toffee pudding (£9) for dessert. Yes, very. There's lots of safe spaces for young ones to run around, plus a separate kids' pool in the Leisure Centre. Our lodge had a retractable stair gate downstairs, useful for keeping both four-legged and small children on one floor. The pub has a large outdoor area with lots of tables - and if you’re lucky with the weather, a selection of things to entertain large and small kids, including an inflatable slide and a giant Connect 4 game. The Beauty by Brenda spa also offers a Little Miss Manicure for ages seven to 12 (£15), which we thought was a sweet addition to the menu. The spa area itself is free for Estate guests, you just need to call ahead to book a slot, or show up and hope for the best. Towels were provided and we were able to store our clothes in electronic lockers using a pin number, so we didn’t need to worry about keeping track of wristbands, which is always a bonus. As well as the heated indoor pool, there’s also a hot tub (set on a timer, and you have to leave when the bubbles stop), sauna and steam room - plus a gym, for those more dedicated than us! The leisure centre’s spa - Beauty By Brenda - seems to hold something of a cult status around these parts, and while we didn’t meet Brenda herself, we can testify that our head and shoulders massage, and our 30-minute luxury facial, was worth the hype. There is one treatment room, so booking is essential. We particularly liked the range of treatment durations (and prices) on offer - from a half hour aromatherapy massage (£50) up to a 90-minute Top to Toe massage (£90). This is one of the perks - it’s a dog-friendly site and a maximum of two dogs are allowed in selected lodges. FYI you have to book a pet space in advance, and they’re not allowed in the main hotel rooms, Monteath's restaurant, or hotel bar. The location is a perfect base for walkers and their well-behaved pooches (we felt rather sorry for the man in chest-height pond water trying to retrieve his excited duck-chasing dog!) It’s definitely an excellent location if you’re an outdoorsy person (but equally, cosying up in a lodge for the weekend is just as good!), with a huge amount of countryside and public foot paths, fishing spots and mountain bike trails around. It’s around a 30-minute drive from Perth, and there’s also Drummond Castle and Scone Palace nearby. If you have kids (or just like animals), Blair Drummond Safari Park is also around 30 minutes’ away by car, and Estate guests get 10% off the entrance fee. The famous Gleneagles hotel and golf course is a stone’s throw away, as is the Auchterarder Golf Club, so if you want to play golf but don’t want to pay the hotel’s prices, the Wyndham Estate is a win-win. As fans of all the Traitors series, we were thrilled to experience our very own murder mystery night at Wyndham Estate. Hosted by Spirit of Glasgow company, we enjoyed a fun live action murder mystery play - The Dalliance - combined with a three-course dinner and some opportunities for some bonafide detective work. The cast members stay in part and occasionally pop out into the dining area to speak to each other and answer guest's questions (not that it helped our team). Sadly, our team did about as well as the current selection of Celebrity Traitor faithfuls, and failed to correctly identify the killer.... But it was a brilliantly fun evening, with a mixture of singles, couples, friends and a hen party. Find out more about the Estate and book at Wyndham Duchally Country Estate .
