Darwin Cottage

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Cottage |3 bedrooms |Sleeps 6

Speyside in Elgin

From £300 per week |  From £80 per night

3 nights minimum stay

Changeover Saturday

Be the first to write a review

Key info  Beach or lakeside relaxation, car not necessary, private garden, may take pets - please enquire

About the home

Darwin Cottage - A Peaceful Self-Catering Holiday Cottage close to Elgin City Centre.

Darwin Cottage lies high on the banks of the River Lossie and has panoramic views over Elgin City. It is a sunny cottage facing directly South and is tucked away amidst the peaceful grounds of Braemorriston House.The grounds are a haven for wildlife with hedgehogs, frogs, red squirrels, an abundance of wild birds and a few lucky pheasants. There are also occasional sightings of bird of prey, roe deer and foxes.

The Cottage is the former home of the Head Gardener. It formerly had a lean-to greenhouse on its South wall as does the former family home of Charles Darwin in Kent. Here were grown exotic fruit and flowers for the main House.

The entire Cottage is at ground level apart from the fun 'tower' room which is built into a raised turret. With a double bedroom, a twin bedroom and a large sofa bed in the 'tower' room, six people can easily feel at home here. A camp bed can also be provided for an extra guest and there is a travel cot for a young child. The double bedroom has a cushioned window seat, and the tower room can be used as a games room by children when the adults need some peace. There is a large lounge with a dining table, a kitchen diner, two WC's (one with a shower and the other with a bath), a large enclosed garden and private parking for up to three cars.

The Cottage was recently decorated and renovated to HMO certificate Health and Safety standards. For the comfort of guests we operate a no-smoking policy within the Cottage. There is a patio area to front and rear and a covered porchway to the West.

Shops for essential supplies are a short stroll from the cottage site, and Elgin City centre, just 5 minutes walk away, offers a wide selection of shops, restaurants, pubs and nightclubs.

Darwin Cottage is ideal for golfing, for fishing holidays, for touring the Malt Whisky and Castle trails, for short trips to the seaside, or for day trips to the Cairngorms and Loch Ness for sight-seeing or skiing. The cottage is suitable for either family holidays or quiet breaks. It is also perfect for professionals, businessmen and trademen requiring a private base close to Elgin centre. We invite you to take a break with us – you can be sure of a hearty welcome at any time of year!

Facilities

Further details indoors:
The cottage has the following facilities: Linen and towels provided, Electric oven and hob
Microwave, Fridge, Washing machine, electric iron and ironing board, FreeSat TV and DVD /CD player, Central Heating, Double Glazing, trouser press, crockery, pots and pans, kitchen utensils, glasses, cutlery etc. A camp bed and a travel cot is available (guests must bring their own bedding).

Further details outdoors:
Private parking for up to three cars
Two patio areas one front one rear.
Garden furniture with tilt parasol.
Large garden on south side with mature plum trees, rhubarb, gooseberry bushes and shrub planted borders.
Small charcoal BBQ for summer evenings.

Further details

Rusty French & Norwegian (and English!) spoken on premises.

Conditions

Linen, towels and general electricity are provided free as is heating to the value of £30 per week in winter. A well-behaved dog is allowed but sorry no cats.
Strictly no smoking INSIDE the cottage but smokers are welcome and can smoke outside (there are patios to front and rear and a covered porch to the side of the cottage).
A deposit of 25% of rental fee is required to secure the booking or the full amount if within eight weeks of arrival.
Property available from 4pm on day of arrival. Check out by 10am. Changeover day is Saturday.

Photos

 

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Darwin Cottage from West in Spring

 

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View of Elgin from Darwin Cottage in Spring

 

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Darwin Cottage from South in Spring

 

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Braemorriston House & Gardens in Spring

The Scottish Highlands region

A few ideas: Visit the local seaside (Lossiemouth has beautiful sandy beaches and Hopeman has cliffs and sandy coves), visit the WDCS Wildlife centre at Spey Bay, see the Bottlenose dolphins and porpoises in the Moray Firth or get closer with a boat trip, go fishing for trout or salmon, go sea fishing at a local village harbour or from a boat, go seal spotting around the coast, visit Findhorn to go sailing or to get some spiritual healing at the Findhorn Foundation Ecovillage.

Visit the falconry centre at Huntly to see and fly some beautiful birds of prey, visit Spynie Palace just outside Elgin, visit Baxters Visitor Centre at Fochabers, visit a distillery on the Speyside Whisky trail, visit the Cooperage Visitor Centre in Speyside, visit a castle (Brodie Castle, Cawdor Castle, Huntly and Ballindalloch Castles are beautiful nearby examples), attend the Highland Games in any one of a number of local towns throughout the Summer, drive south to see the beautiful mountains scenery and visit lovely Scottish towns such as Aberlour, Granton-on-Spey and Tomintoul.

Visit Inverness the capital of the Highlands (45 mins drive) then drive down the banks of Loch Ness to see if you can spot the Loch Ness Monster - you can't help but look out for him!- or drive North and drive across the bridge to the Black Isle and visit Cromarty where you will see beautiful scenery, pass good vantage points to spot dolphins and see massive oil riggs along the shore of the Cromarty Firth.

Go skiing at The Lecht (the local mountain Ski Resort), visit Fort George at Ardersier- a protective Fort built in 1769 and presently used as army barracks - it's fascinating how modern it looks (30 mins drive).

The Elgin / Speyside area

Things to 'see and do'- In Elgin
See the ruins of Elgin Cathedral, visit the biblical garden alongside, walk to Mary Hill Tower for a panoramic view over Elgin, enjoy riverside walks along the wooded banks of the River Lossie from Darwin Cottage, walk in the other direction and view visit Cooper Park and take the children boating in the Pond, visit the local Elgin Natural History Museum to learn about the amazing geology and fossil finds in the area or the ongoing archeological dig at Birnie (just outside Elgin).

See the collection of vintage cars and motor cycles at Moray Motor Museum, visit Johnstons Cashmere Visitor Centre and Shop, play golf at Elgin Golf Club or practice on the driving range, go ten-pin bowling, ice skating or go-kart racing else shop for a special malt whisky at the Gordon & Macphail shop.

How to get there

Darwin Cottage What's nearby: Attractions Restaurants Click map icons for more information

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Travel via the Airports
Elgin is mid-way between Inverness airport (40 miles) and Aberdeen airport (65 miles) and is easily accessible from anywhere in the world. There is car hire readily available at both airports.

Travel by Car
From either Inverness or Aberdeen follow the main A96 into Elgin. If you are travelling from the Edinburgh-Glasgow Central Belt to the South then take the A9 North to Aviemore then the A95 down the Spey Valley, then north via Rothes to Elgin on the A941. If using a Satellite Navigation system then use postcode IV30 4DL

Darwin Cottage is 500 metres from the town centre. Detailed directions are on our website.

Travel by Train
Elgin is on the Inverness to Aberdeen route, both of which have excellent links with the rest of mainland UK.

Travel by Bus
Elgin has a bus terminal 5 minutes walk from Darwin Cottage. The travel buses are Stagecoach Bluebird. There are good links from all over the UK.

Travel by Sea
There is a direct year round ferry from Zeebrugge, Belgium to Rosyth Scotland (close to Edinburgh).

Activities near Elgin

Guestbook for Darwin Cottage

"Beautiful cottage- ideal base for a great holiday." Neil & Angela Rodway, W. Midlands
"Thoroughly enjoyed our stay, garden a peaceful suntrap." Toye family, Glasgow
"The cottage provided an excellent 'home from home' whilst on a week's business in Elgin. Very peaceful but handy for the town centre. Well equipped (the most coat hangers I've ever had in a cottage!). Friendly and helpful proprieter" M Cunliffe, Edinburgh
"A most enjoyable stay. Welcoming and very comfortable. Thank you." L & N Brockbank, Northumberland.
"We've had a really great holiday in your beautiful cottage. Thanks for all your care..." Neill Family, Edinburgh.
"Darwin Cottage was beautiful and suited our needs." Jesse & Ciara Hargrove, Maine, USA
"Thank you so much for a very comfortable stay." Morgan-Law's, Edinburgh
"Thank you very much for a warm and pleasant stay." Norgaard family, Kolding, Denmark
"Darwin Cottage very comfortable. Will be back again." Mason family, Linlithgow

Rental prices

Prices for group size 6
Period	From	To	Weekly	Nightly rate		Minimum  stay
				Weekday	Weekend
Summer break	19 Aug 11	23 Aug 11	300£ 300	0-	0-	1 Week
Autumn	3 Sep 11	29 Oct 11	450£ 450	0-	0-	1 Week
Off-Peak	29 Oct 11	17 Dec 11	375£ 375	8080	8080	3 Nights
Festive Period	17 Dec 11	7 Jan 12	575£ 575	0-	0-	1 Week
Off-Peak	7 Jan 12	31 Mar 12	375£ 375	8080	8080	3 Nights
Easter Hols/Spring	31 Mar 12	5 May 12	450£ 450	0-	0-	1 Week
Late Spring	5 May 12	30 Jun 12	475£ 475	0-	0-	1 Week
Summer Peak	30 Jun 12	1 Sep 12	575£ 575	0-	0-	1 Week
Autumn	1 Sep 12	27 Oct 12	450£ 450	0-	0-	1 Week

The property's weekend rates apply to: Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights

NB: Prices may be subject to change at the advertiser's discretion.

Payment preferred by debit card. Cheques or Bank transfer are accepted.

Deposit of 25% of rental amount with booking - and the balance within 8 weeks of stay.

We may accept shorter rental periods than a week if we are vacant at short notice.

Working men- please enquire for special terms.

No additional charge for more than 6 guests (e.g. with use of travel cot or camp-bed).

Availability

See below for next 9 months' availability - to see the next 24 months click here

Contact the owner

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You are contacting Andrew Seymour Landline +44 01343 545856 Mobile +44 07974 940909 Web Visit site Languages spoken The owner is based in the United Kingdom and has advertised with Holiday Lettings since 2011. This cottage has so far received 0 reviews.