WEEKEND BREAKS: Accommodation for all seasons at The Four Seasons, Loch Earn

SAM | 16th June 2019

On a wet weekend we went to Scotland to escape the humdrum of the city. Thinking that the weather couldn’t get any worse than what are used to, we couldn’t wait to get out of the car after a good few hours’ driving around hair-pin bends as it bucketed down.

 

As we drove through quaint little villages on our way to this little hidden gem for a weekend break, we couldn’t fully appreciate the views of the Scottish Highlands until the next morning after arriving at the hotel in complete darkness.

 

The Four Seasons – no not THE worldwide hotel chain – but a small, well established and independently owned hotel is in a remote location which is perfect if you want to shut yourself off from the rest of the world.

 

It sits on the edge of Loch Earn in St Fillans, an hour or so away from Glasgow within the picturesque Trossachs National Park in Perthshire. It has arguably the best view of most properties on the water’s edge, no matter what the weather conditions are like!

 

And the hotel is not just famous for its name where you might experience all four seasons in one day. It has had many famous names staying here including the Beatles. If it’s good enough for Paul, Ringo and John, then it’s good enough for us.

 

Staying at the hotel while on tour in the sixties, they rented a few of the chalets at the hotel to enjoy the serenity of this beautifully quiet area.

 

We were greeted with a warm Scottish welcome and this charm remained throughout our stay.

 

After a speedy check in, we were shown to our room and given a recce of the hotel along with information on things to see and do in the area.

 

There’s not necessarily lots to do here, especially when the weather is wet, but it’s a great place if you want to collect your thoughts and spend time with loved ones without being connected to digital devices. Wifi is only available in public areas and the signal is a bit hit and miss, as you’d expect in any remote location, but it really doesn’t matter if you are after a digital detox and some R&R. This did fact make our weekend as we had no choice but to converse with others.

 

 

Accommodation

 

There are twelve good sized rooms with ensuite in the main building of the hotel, all facing over the Loch making the most of the spectacular view.

 

There are also six family friendly chalets in the wooded hillside to the rear of the property. These are staggered to ensure privacy and good views of the Loch too.

 

 

Rooms are fully furnished with a small flat screen TV, Bose radio although you have to borrow DVDs from ‘Harry Potter’-themed library. There’s complementary filtered water and homemade Scottish shortbread in the rooms, which we thought was a nice personal touch.

 

There’s a bar full of various whiskies for a ‘wee-dram’ or more. There’s an impressive wine list, a wide variety of cask ales, beers and a fine spirits menu. I doubt the place would ever run dry. The bar area is the perfect place to sit admire the view or read in front of roaring fire. People were playing board games with other guests while sharing stories.  All very quaint.

 

There’s plenty of space throughout if conversing isn’t high on the agenda, with the hotel full of nooks and crannies that are decorated in different themes which gives the place its Scottish character.

 

Dining

 

The food at the Four Seasons is superb. It has two restaurants although just the one was open during our stay given it was low season.

 

However, during peak season, it offers fine dining experiences with cuisine of fresh fish, beef and game a locally sourced produce.

 

The Tarken Bistro, which is where we dined both nights, is a more informal setting with a similar menu. Using fresh Scottish produce, the menu has an attractively local, modern feel to it and caters for all appetites.

 

Options besides the carte include the set Rosette menu with the likes of semi-cured pigeon breast with bang-on-trend seared baby gem and a pomegranate glaze.

 

 

We had the Shetland scallops served with honey-glazed pork belly, apple and crackling. The scallops were beautifully plump and paired well with sauce and salad vegetables.

 

Mains include hung, local beef fillet, teamed with braised beef cheek and foie gras for that extra wow factor, as well as venison or locally caught turbot with sauce vierge. The turbot was meaty although moist and very light. It was a pleasant spring fish dish that was very well presented and bursting with flavour.

 

The locally sourced steak was cooked perfectly and accompanied by triple cooked chips, onion rings and a delicious Bernaise sauce.

 

 

For desserts, there was sticky date pudding which is right up there in terms of one of the best puddings that we’ve ever tried. This was followed by a combination of soft and hard locally sourced artisan cheese.

 

Breakfast the next day was equally impressive, with a small buffet, a full Scottish spread of locally sourced meats, eggs cooked anyway you liked, kippers and of course Scottish Oats with whisky. What a way to start the day!

 

There’s a real warm feel and fantastically friendly vibe from the staff – nothing seemed like too much trouble. We were pleasantly surprised how chilled out we were as we bunkered down in the beautiful countryside in the Highlands. We felt very much at home!

 

What is there to do?  

 

If walking and hiking is your thing then this is the place to be, whatever the weather. We visited Deanston world of whisky and there are many other distilleries in the area if you are a fan of the stuff.

 

Andy Murray has a hotel nearby and you can pop in for a cream tea, or you can visit the one of the many other quaint little villages and towns that are nestled around the Loch for a spot of shopping.

 

Prices start from £90 for a classic double or twin room. It’s worth noting that the place is pet friendly and during our stay there were three of four couples with dogs.

 

See here for more information on short breaks to Scotland with Four Seasons.

 

 

 

 

Album 1