The little village of Boat of Garten (shop, restaurant, hotel/bar) has a great deal to commend it. Only a couple of miles from the main A9 Perth-Inverness road, 5 miles from Aviemore (all facilities), it is in the heart of the Highlands and the Cairngorm National Park, just across from Glen Mhor with lovely Loch Morlich (beach, water sports), the Cairngorm Mountain Railway and the chairlift to the top of Cairgorm (ski-ing). Wild life and bird enthusiasts in particular will know it as the home of the first breeding pair of osprey to return to Scotland after an absence of over 100 years. The RSPB reserve there is a mecca for those wanting to see these magnificent birds. It has an 18 hole golf course, tennis courts and as if all that were not enough, it is also on the route of the Strathspey Steam Railway, with a regular service to Aviemore.
Finchwood is a spacious and unique property in a quiet location in the village providing ideal, hi-spec. holiday accommodation for families and larger parties wishing to enjoy all the attractions of this glorious area. Modern in design, it stands in a large, enclosed, mature garden with patio area (barbecue, furniture) where children can enjoy freedom to roam and play. From there you have direct access to the woodland behind with paths leading to the village and to picturesque Loch Vaa or the more adventurous can cycle off road on tracks leading into the center of Aviemore)
Inside, it has plenty of room for everyone to spread out in comfort, main lounge with open fire, separate family room with balcony, an excellent dining kitchen, four bedrooms and three bathrooms (one en suite, where two further single beds can also be made available for a small extra charge). Upstairs, the family room has further space where children can play or adults chill out, with doors to a balcony/decking area (furniture), ideal for relaxing in the sunshine. Useful extras such as a utility room and porch/boot room complete the accommodation, while the garage, with table tennis table and basketball net mean the children (and maybe the adults too) will be happily entertained without even leaving the premises!
Apart from the obvious activities such as climbing, walking, pony trekking, sailing and fishing for which this area is rightly famous, Aviemore offers a leisure pool with flumes and wave machine, championship golf course and all manner of attractions. The Landmark Theme Park, with its Advertureworld and Watercoaster is within a couple of miles, and is bound to appeal to younger party members. At Newtonmore and Laggan Wolftrax there are superb mountain biking trails and no trip to this part of the world would be complete without a visit to Inverness, the 'Capital of the Highlands'. Treat yourself to a bit of history while you are there and visit the battlefield at Culloden and the fort at Fort George, where you can also watch the dolphins swimming through the narrows. For the serious golfer the world famous Nairn Golf Club is just over half an hour away. There's far too much to do in a week or even a fortnight, so you'll have every excuse for returning again and again!
Bed linen, towels, £15 of oil central heating and £20 electricity are all INCLUDED. Up to two well behaved pets are welcome by arrangement. Sorry, no smoking in the property.
