Hotel Dalmunzie Castle (Spittal of Glenshee, United Kingdom)

"It was so calm and so solitary... all seemed to breath freedom and peace, and to make one forget the world and its sad turmoils." Queen Victoria's diary, 1848, en-route to Balmoral via Glenshee The individually designed, antique-furnished rooms all include en suite bathrooms. Complimentary breakfast is served in an expansive, white-tablecloth dining room, which also offers a fine-dining menu of Scottish cuisine made from locally sourced produce. There are wood-panelled lounges, a library and a snug bar, as well as a 9-hole golf course, a tennis court and numerous hiking trails. Dalmunzie Castle is a stunning quintessential laird’s mansion, turreted in the Scots Baronial style and standing proudly at the head of a 6500-acre estate, dating back to 1510. Although hidden at the end of a quiet and secluded glen, Dalmunzie has been witness to many events over thousands of years. Today's visitor can easily be unaware that Dalmunzie was once home to hundreds of people speaking a language that has only recently disappeared. The standing stone and burial cairn near the Glenshee parish church date from the Bronze Age when people were first settling the area, and the fermtoun of Cuthil.