The best hotels in Scotland 2025

For half a century, Kinloch Lodge – tiny, remote, eccentric – has been among the best-loved of Scottish hotels. Yet when it opened in the spring of 1972, its proprietors, Claire and Godfrey Macdonald, were far from sure it would still be a going concern by the autumn. A couple of years previously, Godfrey had inherited a roster of ancient titles along with a vast estate. He had also inherited colossal debts. Kinloch, a run-down, whitewashed shooting lodge on ravishingly pretty Loch na Dal, near the southern tip of Skye, was practically all he and Claire had left. They welcomed their first guests to a hotel that had no electricity, only two log fires for heating, and a single telephone under the stairs. Kinloch’s reputation grew, however. The sheer beauty of the place. The unstuffy charm of the owners and their four kids – each of whom became adept at taking bookings and making beds. Claire’s brilliant, ultra-local, entirely seasonal cooking, decades ahead of its time. In 2002, Godfrey and Claire retired, and their daughter Isabella took over as manager. She has revamped the 18 rooms with sensitivity, flair, and discreet contemporary flourishes. There’s still an heirloom-forward, country-house grandeur about it, but zero pomposity. Instead, a warmth and intimacy derive from the Macdonalds’ commitment to doing simple things very well and taking proper care of their guests. That sounds easy but isn’t. Kinloch Lodge is one of a kind. Steve King

Address: A851, Sleat, Isle of Skye IV43 8QY
Price: From about £230 per night