Choosing which of the many whisky distilleries to visit in Speyside might be a difficult task, but selecting a hotel for our whisky trail experience ended up being fairly easy and painless. There are several towns along the trail that make a good base for distillery-hopping, so my advice is to narrow down the distilleries you plan to visit and then see what accommodations are central to your selections, or at least close to one of them. Everything is pretty much within a 10 or 15-minute drive in between stops, so you won’t end up spending too much time in the car either way.
Chris selected eight whisky distilleries in the region to visit and we decided to stay at The Station Hotel in Rothes, which is in walking distance of Glen Grant (one of the eight on our list).
Our room is pictured below on the second floor above the front entrance and the restaurant, Toots. Normally that location would be a deal-breaker for me due to the noise potential, but the Glenrothes suite was so beautiful and comfortable I didn’t want to move to another room, and it ended up being quiet enough and super comfortable.
The super spacious Glenrothes suite offers a wonderful view of the centre of Rothes town, although when we visited in mid-summer we kept the shades drawn most of the time to help with the sun and heat. The room warmed up rather quickly! The first night we did have a little trouble sleeping with the windows open due to the street noise, but the second night I cranked up my white noise machine and drowned out the sound of the lorries passing by. And let’s be honest, a day of whisky tasting probably also helped with the sleeping.
With a clawfoot tub, marble tile, natural light, and a towel warmer, I couldn’t love the spacious, spotless bathroom more. Fluffy robes and beautiful toiletries rounded out the list of reasons this might have been my most favorite hotel bathroom ever.
And of course, a proper trailside hotel offers Speyside whisky upon arrival.
If you don’t get your fill on the trail or if there’s a whisky brand you would like to try, the bar & bistro on the ground level, Toots, has an impressive selection of spirits and a cozy atmosphere in which to have a wee dram. Not pictured, The Spirit Safe on the same floor is another option for drams and cocktails.
And while Speyside is all about the whisky, we thoroughly enjoyed our dining options at the hotel as well. I tried Welsh rarebit for the first time (yum!), and Toots offers an amazing sticky toffee pudding that we may or may not have eaten more than once.
Our three nights at The Station Hotel provided just what we needed at the end of our long days touring Speyside’s distilleries, and we would absolutely stay there again! And we would order the sticky toffee pudding again (and again). In fact, if you don’t stay at the hotel, it’s worth popping by just for dessert.
Note: The hotel did not sponsor this post – we just really enjoyed our stay!
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