Unique and unusual places to stay in Scotland

From lighthouses and treehouses to a floating hotel and a spaceship-like pod on a Highland hillside, here are my favourite unique and unusual places to stay in Scotland.

Scotland does characterful, one-of-a-kind stays better than almost anywhere, and this is my ever-growing round-up of the most unusual places to lay your head.

A wee word to the wise: the best of these are tiny, hugely popular and often booked months ahead, so if something catches your eye, don’t dither, book now.

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Lighthouses Boats Private islands Treehouses Off-grid Trains & buses Gypsy caravans Lodges and Conversions Hobbit Houses Cave Houses Brochs & Blackhouses Glamping Domes Sleep in a castle Frequently asked questions You might also like

Lighthouses

There’s nothing quite like falling asleep to a working lighthouse beam sweeping past the window, usually in some of the wildest, most wave-battered spots in the country. Here are my favourite lighthouses in Scotland you can stay in.

Corsewall Lighthouse Hotel, Dumfries & Galloway – my pick if you want the romance of a lighthouse with hotel comforts and dinner laid on. Built in 1815 by Robert Stevenson (grandfather of the Treasure Island author), this A-listed working lighthouse near Stranraer has just eleven individually designed rooms in the old keepers’ quarters, 20 acres of wild coast, and dinner on site. On a clear night you can count the beams of several Scottish and Irish lighthouses out across the sea. Book Corsewall Lighthouse Hotel.

Rua Reidh Lighthouse, Wester Ross – for proper end-of-the-world remoteness. This Grade B-listed lighthouse sits at the end of a three-mile private track on the wild north-west coast, with Skye and the Outer Hebrides blinking across the Minch. Take the Principal Keeper’s House, the First Officer’s Quarters or the wee courtyard Hide, glorious for whales, otters, sea eagles and, in the darker months, the Northern Lights. Stay at Rua Reidh.

Northern Lighthouse Board cottages, various – the NLB lets a handful of former keepers’ cottages around the Scottish coast, from Dunnet Head (the northernmost point of the mainland) to a remote keeper’s cottage on the Isle of Mull. Simple, spectacular and about as away-from-it-all as it gets. Browse them at the Northern Lighthouse Board.

Boats

From a permanently moored luxury ship to bobbing wee boathouses, some of Scotland’s most memorable stays are the ones on the water.

Fingal, Edinburgh – a former Northern Lighthouse Board ship reborn as a permanently berthed luxury floating hotel by the Royal Yacht Britannia team, moored in Leith just north of the city centre. Twenty-three art-deco cabins named after Scottish lighthouses, a sweeping staircase and a glamorous bar — about as close to a Bond film as a hotel gets, and a wonderfully different base for Edinburgh. Book at Fingal.

The Four Sisters Boatel, Edinburgh – a luxury four-star canal houseboat permanently moored in Lochrin Basin, a ten-minute stroll from the city centre. Because she’s a static wide-beam barge with no tides or currents, you get all the novelty of sleeping on the water without needing your sea legs. Two pretty double cabins, a full galley kitchen, a wee canopied deck for watching the canal drift by. The Four Sisters is dog-friendly too. A brilliantly quirky base for the city. Book The Four Sisters Boatel.

You might also like The Leannan Boathouse, Angus – a beautifully converted former boathouse tucked into the quiet Angus countryside, all cosy romance for two. One for a special occasion. Book The Leannan Boathouse.

Private islands

For the ultimate away-from-it-all: whole islands, or island cottages, where the only way in is by boat or a wee bridge.

Eilean Shona, west coast – a car-free private island cradled in a sea loch near Acharacle on the dramatic west coast, and one of the most magical places in Scotland to disappear for a week. Eilean Shona House suits big family gatherings, with a scattering of romantic cottages besides, all reached by boat; days are for wild swimming, kayaking, campfires and woodland walks, with not a road or a car in sight. J.M. Barrie wrote a Peter Pan screenplay here — and it still feels like Neverland. Stay at Eilean Shona.

Dry Island, Badachro, Wester Ross – a tiny private island in Gair Loch, ringed by the Torridon mountains and reached across its own floating bridge (or by your own boat, if you’ve got one). Three self-catering cottages, including the old fish-Curing Station, share the whole island between just a handful of guests, 90 minutes from Inverness. Blissful, remote and quietly dramatic. Book Dry Island.

Treehouses

Grown-up treehouses, most with a wood-burner, floor-to-ceiling glass and – the detail that gets everyone – an outdoor bath among the branches.

The Treehouses at Lanrick, Perthshire – five exquisite self-catering treehouses on the banks of the River Teith, bordering the Trossachs National Park yet only an hour from both Glasgow and Edinburgh. Log-burning stoves, treetop terraces, outdoor copper baths and, latterly, a woodland sauna with a plunge pool. Built from home-grown estate timber, so light on the land too. Book The Treehouses at Lanrick.

The Treehouses at Leckie, near Stirling – four eco-friendly luxury treehouses with bunk rooms for the kids and step-free access, again just an hour from both cities — a rare treehouse stay that genuinely suits families. Stay at Leckie Treehouses.

Bracken Treehouse, Fife – a cleverly designed cabin on stilts in the heart of Airdit Woods, perched above the Eden Estuary near St Andrews. Floor-to-ceiling windows, a skylight above the bed for stargazing and an outdoor bath on the deck. A romantic hideaway for two. Book Bracken Treehouse.

Silver Birch Treehouse, Cairngorms – a lofty treehouse escape in the Cairngorms with panoramic mountain views and a secluded hot tub. Perfect for big-sky, big-mountain seclusion. Book Silver Birch.

Off-grid

For a proper digital detox: contemporary cabins and tiny houses tucked into Scottish woodland and hillside, most with a wood-burner and a hot tub under the stars.

AirShip 002, Drimnin, West Highlands – regularly crowned the most unusual stay in Scotland, and you can see why: a curved aluminium pod with dragonfly-wing windows at each end, perched on a remote hillside above the Sound of Mull looking across to Tobermory. Part spaceship, part Bond lair, all magic — though getting there is an adventure in itself (40-odd miles of single-track). Its sister, the retro-aviation PilotHouse, sits nearby. Find them via Cool Stays.

RiverBeds, Glencoe – a cluster of luxe little wooden lodges perched above the River Coe, each with its own private hot tub on the deck and everything cleverly packed into a tiny footprint. A brilliant base for dramatic Glencoe. Search RiverBeds on Booking.com.

Inverlonan Bothies, Oban – Three offgrid reimagined bothies hidden high up in the hills beside Oban. Slow down, light the fire, and experience the ultimate Scottish bothy at Inverlonan.

Trains & buses

Some of Scotland’s most memorable stays are the ones you’d normally expect to be moving – railway carriages and buses given a wildly comfortable second life and parked somewhere beautiful.

The Carriage at Creagan, Appin, Argyll – a lovingly and luxuriously restored Great Western Railway carriage — once used to carry milk along the line — now permanently parked at a former Edwardian station on the gorgeous coast between Oban and Fort William. Adults-only and romantic, it sleeps two under a handmade king bed dressed in Egyptian cotton, with a wood-burner and original curved roof intact. The showstopper is the covered outdoor rolltop bath with its own gas firepit — a soak under the stars in a designated National Scenic Area. Castle Stalker and Appin’s walks and watersports are right on the doorstep. Book The Carriage at Creagan.

The Railway Carriage, Melrose, Scottish Borders – a Scandi-style studio-for-two created from a former railway carriage, with a wood-burner, a window seat and panoramic views over the Borders countryside. Book The Railway Carriage.

The Bus Stop, East Lothian – glamping, but on a converted vintage bus. Three of them, on a working farm half an hour from Edinburgh, each with a big double bed, wood-burner, proper bathroom and its own hot tub. Great fun, and handy for the city. Book The Bus Stop

Gypsy caravans

Roulotte Retreat, Scottish Borders – a cluster of beautifully painted French gypsy caravans (roulottes) gathered around a wee lochan near Melrose, each snug for two with a wood-burner, champagne flutes at the ready and access to an eco hot tub and wood-fired sauna. Romantic, whimsical and gloriously grown-up. Book Roulotte Retreat.

Lodges and Conversions

Scotland’s flair for reinvention runs to its grandest old buildings too — kirks, schoolhouses, a gatehouse and even an abbey, all lovingly reborn as places to stay.

East Gatehouse Lodge, Monzie, Perthshire – a gothic 19th-century gatehouse guarding Monzie Castle, with all the cosiness of a cottage and the grandeur of a mini-castle, set in 4,000 acres of countryside. Browse it via Host Unusual.

The Porter’s Lodge at Dunrobin Castle – Fancy staying in your own miniature castle and indulging in some real Scottish history? Welcome to Porter’s Lodge at Dunrobin Castle. A hideaway for two, but just outside Golspie, this lovely luxury self catering rental is truly unique! Plus you get access to Dunrobin Castle – the entrance is even down the same drive! Read more about Dunrobin Cottages.

The Highland Club, Fort Augustus, Loch Ness – self-catering apartments and cottages inside a Grade A-listed former Benedictine abbey right on the shore of Loch Ness. Once a military fort, then a monastery, it’s now a gothic fairytale of cloisters, vaulted ceilings and turrets that guests regularly compare to Hogwarts, with a heated pool, sauna and gym on site and the Caledonian Canal at the front door. Stay at The Highland Club.

Porter’s Lodge, Dunrobin Castle

Hobbit Houses

For something genuinely ancient or otherworldly — round doors, drystone walls and roofs of turf and thatch, some of them echoing designs thousands of years old.

The Hobbit Hideaway, Speyside – a hand-built, hobbit-style eco-home tucked into a valley at the foot of Ben Rinnes near Aberlour, right down to the round door and a roof dome for lying back and watching the stars. Its award-winning green credentials (solar panels and a windmill keep it self-sufficient) are the icing on the cake — and it’s dog-friendly, and perfectly placed for the Speyside whisky trail. Stay at Hideaway Under the Stars.

Cave Houses

The Warren, Loch Tay, Perthshire – a luxurious underground cave house burrowed into a secluded hillside on the north shore of Loch Tay, built in proper hobbit style with a grass roof, porthole windows and curving doors, reached over a wee bridge across a bubbling stream, with a private hot tub out on the patio. Stay at The Warren.

Brochs & Blackhouses

The Brochs of Coigach, near Achiltibuie, Wester Ross – two extraordinary eco-homes modelled on the Iron Age broch, the drystone roundhouse our ancestors built here more than 2,000 years ago, reimagined with floor-to-ceiling glass, a wood-burner, a sauna and “IMAX-quality” views across sea and mountain on the wild Coigach peninsula. Each sleeps two; hire one or both. There’s no telly, and you won’t miss it. Book The Brochs of Coigach.

Geàrrannan Blackhouse Village, Isle of Lewis – sleep inside a restored traditional Hebridean blackhouse, in a whole conservation village of them strung along the wild Atlantic coast of Lewis. The thick double drystone walls and thatched roofs kept out the weather for centuries — and still do — while inside you’ll find a solid-fuel stove, underfloor heating and sea views: history you can genuinely sleep in. Choose a snug cottage for two or a bunkhouse for the whole group. Stay at Geàrrannan Blackhouse Village.

Boloquoy Victorian Farm & Watermill, Sanday, Orkney – perhaps the most unusual stay of the lot: a lovingly restored Victorian farm and watermill on the remote Orkney island of Sanday, where you don’t just visit history, you live in it. Step through the door into the lives of the Fea family, in a farmhouse returned to exactly how it would have been between 1880 and 1950 – comfortable, yes, but designed to make you slow right down and reflect on how differently people once lived. Costumed tours and events run alongside the stays. Book Boloquoy.

Glamping Domes

Dome Sweet Dome, Appin – glamping taken to the extreme: two geodesic domes hidden in birch woodland near Oban, each over 750 square feet, with a wood stove, underfloor heating, a cedar bathroom and huge windows framing Castle Stalker and Loch Linnhe. The Castle Stalker View café (run by the same folk) is just a wander through the trees. Stay at Dome Sweet Dome.

Sleep in a castle

The ultimate Scottish stay, from five-star Highland grandeur to a self-catering turret you can have all to yourselves. Rather than repeat myself here, I’ve rounded up my favourites — Glenapp, Inverlochy, Fonab, Dalhousie and many more — in a dedicated guide.

Frequently asked questions

What is the most unusual place to stay in Scotland?

It’s a hard one to call, but the AirShip 002 near Drimnin — a curved aluminium pod with dragonfly-wing windows over the Sound of Mull — takes a lot of the votes, closely followed by The Warren, an underground cave house on Loch Tay. If you’d like your novelty with hotel comforts, a night in a working lighthouse (Corsewall) or aboard the floating Fingal in Leith is hard to beat.

Can you really stay in a lighthouse, castle or on a private island in Scotland?

You can, and it’s easier than you’d think. Corsewall runs as a lighthouse hotel, there are dozens of castle stays (see my dedicated guide), and you can have a whole island like Eilean Shona or Dry Island more or less to yourself. Just book well ahead — these places have very few beds.

Where can you stay in a treehouse in Scotland?

The best clusters are the Treehouses at Lanrick (Perthshire) and Leckie (near Stirling), both about an hour from Glasgow and Edinburgh, plus Bracken in Fife and Silver Birch in the Cairngorms. Most sleep two (some with room for children) and come with that all-important outdoor bath among the branches.

Are these unusual stays expensive?

It varies hugely. A glamping pod or a gypsy caravan can cost about the same as ordinary self-catering, while a lighthouse hotel, a private island or a night on the Fingal is a proper treat-yourself price. As a rule, the more one-of-a-kind and remote the stay, the more you’ll pay — and the further ahead you’ll need to book.

Which unusual stays are easiest to reach from Edinburgh or Glasgow?

Plenty are within an hour or so: the Four Sisters houseboat and Fingal in Edinburgh itself, the Bus Stop in East Lothian, Roulotte Retreat in the Borders, and the Lanrick and Leckie treehouses in the central Highlands. The islands, Orkney and the Outer Hebrides are the ones to set aside more time for.

When should I book?

As early as you can. The most distinctive places have only one or two units, so summer weekends and school holidays go months ahead. Spring and autumn are quieter and often cheaper — and for lighthouses, brochs and remote cabins, autumn brings the bonus of dark skies and a real chance of the Northern Lights.

Wherever you choose to lay your head, I hope it’s one of those stays you’re still talking about years later. If I’ve missed a favourite, let me know — I’m always adding to this list.

Love from Scotland x

Downright unique and unusual places to stay in Scotland