Gleneagles, Scotland

The Ochil Hills are a 25-mile stretch of mountains, occasionally peaking at a cloud-piercing 2,000 ft that stretch from the Firth of Tay to Stirling, playing their role in making this part of Scotland so spectacular. Beneath the Ochils in prime Perthshire countryside you find the 850 acres of the Gleneagles estate, where you can indulge in, almost literally, an A-Z of country pursuits. Making the most of the greatest of great outdoors, you can ramble, horse ride or cycle through endless woodland, cairn, riverside and forest trails that inspired the likes of Wordsworth.

Try your hand at everything from falconry and clay or game shooting to archery, salmon and trout fishing, or even work with gundogs and ferrets. When you’re tired form the day’s adventures, you’ve got the splendour of the 232-room Gleneagles hotel, arguably the world’s most luxurious golf hotel, dating back to the 1920s era of railway resorts, now thoroughly modern, but in all the right places, still boasting character and first-class service at every turn. Later, dining at the two-Michelin-starred Restaurant Andrew Fairlie, you have the perfect day, and that’s before you tackle the three Championship course, including the two original King’s and Queen’s courses and the PGA Centenary Course, host of the 2014 Ryder Cup and 2019 Solheim Cup.

Where You Stay

Gleneagles

Whether in the main house amid all its resplendent history and sweeping staircase, or, keeping the gym, spa and pool handy in Braid House, every room is full of countryside cosiness, but with the luxury touches that come at this end of the hotel scale.

Where You Play

The King’s Course

Dating back to 1919, and designed by five-times Open champion James Braid with mountain views aplenty, this was where USA faced Great Britain in 1921 in what would be a pre-cursor to the Ryder Cup.

The Queen’s Course

Also designed by Braid, with CK Hutchison, this more compact course opened before the King’s, in 1917, and was renovated in 2017. It’s been graced by the likes of Tom Watson, Greg Norman and Seve Ballesteros.

The PGA Centenary

Every tee offers up views of the Ochils, and this course by Jack Nicklaus, although dating back to just 1993, is already among the greats. Described by Nicklaus as ‘the finest parcel of land in the world I have ever been given to work with’, it hosted the 2014 Ryder Cup and 2019 Solheim Cup.

The Must Do

Take afternoon tea in the Glendevon, enjoying cake, delicate pastries and refined sandwiches in the same setting where world leaders once met for the G8 Summit.

When To Visit 

May to September.