Northeast Scotland - Scotland - page 517

The interior of the village hotel, the Pennan Inn , also appeared in the film, though one
of the houses further along the seafront to the east doubled for the exterior of the fictional
hotel. The beach scenes were filmed on the other side of the country, at Camasdarach
Beach in Arisaig.
Bus 273 from Fraserburgh to Banff stops at the Pennan road end (25 minutes, two a
day, Saturday only), 350m south of (and a steep climb uphill from) the village.
HUNTLY
POP 4400
An impressive ruined castle and an attractive main square make this small town worth a
stopover between Aberdeen and Elgin. The tourist office ( 01466-792255; The Square;
10am-5.30pm Mon-Sat, 10am-3pm Sun Jul & Aug, 10am-1pm & 2-5pm Mon-Sat Apr-
Jun, Sep & Oct) is on the main square, next to a bank with an ATM.
Castle St (beside the Huntly Hotel) runs north from the town square to an arched gate-
way and tree-lined avenue that leads to 16th-century Huntly Castle (HS; adult/child £5/3;
9.30am-5.30pm Apr-Sep, 9.30am-4.30pm Sat-Wed Oct-Mar) , the former stronghold of
the Gordons on the banks of the River Deveron. Over the main door is a superb carving
that includes the royal arms and the figures of Christ and St Michael.
Just off the A96, 3 miles northwest of Huntly, is the Peregrine WildWatch Centre
( www.forestry.gov.uk/huntlyperegrines ; adult/child £3/1; 10am-5pm Apr-Aug) where
you can observe rare peregrine falcons, both live from a hide and via a remote camera
monitoring their nest site.
Sleeping
There are a couple of hotels on the main square and a handful of B&Bs in the surrounding
streets; the hospitable Hillview ( 01466-794870; www.hillviewbb.com ; Provost St; s/d
£30/50; ) and its tasty breakfast pancakes are recommended.
If you want to spoil yourself, continue along the drive beyond the castle to the Castle
Hotel ( 01466-792696; www.castlehotel.uk.com ; s/d from £90/130; ) , a splendid
18th-century mansion set amid acres of parkland. It's comfortably old fashioned, with a
grand wooden staircase, convoluted corridors, the odd creaky floorboard and rattling sash
window, but must be among the most affordable country-house hotels in Scotland.