A 1924 railway palace in Perthshire with three championship courses and two Michelin stars
Donald Matheson, general manager of the Caledonian Railway, dreamed up a country house hotel with its own golf while on holiday in Strathearn, at the foot of the Ochil Hills. The courses came first: James Braid's King's and Queen's opened on 1 May 1919, five years before the hotel was ready in June 1924. Gleneagles served as a military hospital in the Second World War, reopened in 1947 and has stayed open all year only since 1982. Ennismore bought it from Diageo in 2015 and began a six-year renovation the following year.
Golf is still the reason many guests come. Jack Nicklaus added the PGA Centenary Course in 1993, where Europe won the Ryder Cup in 2014 and the Solheim Cup in 2019, and the Wee Course of nine short holes suits a first round with children. None of the courses asks for a handicap certificate. Off the fairways, Restaurant Andrew Fairlie has held two Michelin stars since 2006; after Fairlie's death in 2019 his head chef Stevie McLaughlin took over and has kept them. The Strathearn serves modern Scottish dishes with gueridon service by candlelight, and the Century Bar lists more than 400 whiskies.
Families have the Little Glen crèche and, for older children, The Den, while dogs up to the size of a Labrador sleep in the bedrooms. The Spa, with 20 treatment rooms and a warm vitality pool, fills the wet afternoons that Perthshire reliably supplies.
Three championship courses on the estate: James Braid's King's and Queen's of 1919 and the Nicklaus PGA Centenary, Ryder Cup venue in 2014.
Conceived by the Caledonian Railway and opened in June 1924, the house is a Category B listed building in an 850 acre estate.
Restaurant Andrew Fairlie, in the hotel since 2001, holds two Michelin stars in the 2026 Guide.
The Spa has 20 treatment rooms, a warm vitality pool, sauna and steam; the health club adds indoor pools and an outdoor thermal pool.
The Little Glen crèche takes children from 30 months to eight, one session a day free, and The Den keeps older children busy.
Dogs up to Labrador size stay in the bedrooms for a nightly charge, with bed and bowls supplied; bars and restaurants stay dog free.
Ask for an Estate Room in Braid House: most have a balcony and a working fireplace, and they look over the entrance drive to the Ochil Hills.
The courses are open all year, but in June daylight lasts past ten in the evening. Reserve Restaurant Andrew Fairlie together with the room, as its dining room is intimate.
Dogs may not enter the bars or restaurants, but the Garden Cafe in the atrium welcomes them, and that is where regulars take coffee before a walk across the estate.
Edinburgh and Glasgow airports are both about an hour away by car. The hotel runs a private chauffeur service, bookable at least 24 hours ahead, and collects rail guests from Gleneagles station free of charge on request.
Golfers of every standard, families travelling with children or a dog, and anyone who wants a grand Scottish country house with serious cooking.
Advantages verified on 2026-09-26 against the hotel’s own information. Policies change; confirm before you book. hotelris earns nothing from bookings. Links lead straight to the hotel.
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