What goes on in Crieff?

Visitors to Crieff, Perthshire

After Perth, Crieff, once a cattle frontier town, is the second largest town in Perthshire. It's rise to prominence was very much as a result of the military road-building by General Wade in the early 1700's, when he positioned the town on his main marching route from Stirling to Perth, and it continued to grow in size, wealth and stature after that.

Situated centrally on the southern borders of the Scottish Highlands, it's ideally located as a centre for the exploration of the immediate Highlands, where the visitor can be alone in the rugged wilderness within twenty minutes in one direction, or in Glasgow and Edinburgh one hour in the other.

For the self-catering holiday maker, the town offers a lot of everything to make your stay enjoyable and memorable. There is a comprehensive range of cottage, lodge, house and apartment properties available in the surrounding area, including within the town itself, and you'll receive a fine Perthshire welcome wherever you go. Many will also welcome your pet, so a family holiday can be totally complete - and there's certainly no shortage of walks for Fido!

A leisurely stroll through the town will reveal a host of privately and family-owned shops and boutiques, selling the best in locally made gifts, knitwear, food and produce. And you'll be made feel as welcome as a browser as you would be as a shopper. There are also many cafes, inns and restaurants serving a host of styles and cuisines, so mealtimes and refreshments need not be confined to the cottage kitchen! Be prepared, though, to be regaled by local tales of Bonnie Prince Charlie, Rob Roy Macgregor, Robert Burns and various members of royalty having walked the town's very self same High Street in the past!

The town has some famous records it is proud to boast about. It is home to Glenturret, Scotland's oldest malt whiskey distillery (dating back to the late 1700's), and in the late 17th Century became the site of Scotland's first - and now of course oldest - public lending library. It is also said that the Macrosty Park, with its fabulous mature trees, is one of the prettiest in Scotland, and certainly the finest for a romantic stroll or two.

There is plenty to see and do in and around the town. To the south of the town, the Drummond Castle Gardens are well worth a visit, with their redesigned terraces dating back to the early 19th Century. The Auchingarrich Wildlife Centre, set in a spectacular 100 acres has over 150 species, a unique wild bird hatchery, play areas for the children and a rural life museum. And for those seeing something a little out of the ordinary, the nearby village of Comrie has the recently refurbished and the UK's first seismological station at earthquake House. For the outdoor types there's salmon, sea and brown trout and grayling angling on the River earn, or you could opt for a round of golf, or following a cycling route.

And as mentioned, there are more walks and hikes than you would possibly have the time to do!

And at the end of the day, you can retire back to your cottage, put the children out to pasture (in the back room, that is, with a book or their hand-held computer game!) and enjoy a glass of Glenturret with some local fruit cake and cheese, feet up in front of your log fire.