Grantown-on-Spey

Last summer I had the pleasure of spending some time in Grantown-on-Spey located in the highlands of Scotland. The town is quite close to Cairngorms National Park which is absolutely breathtaking and I will be writing separate blog posts about the Cairngorms. I wanted to share a little bit from my trip and start by focusing on my home for the trip, Grantown-on-Spey!

Lodging

I stayed in a lovely Victorian Hall that has been divided into flats and holiday rentals. It was nice to chat with the locals living in the victorian house. One of the things that is really nice about the town is all of the smaller bnb options for lodging. While there are hotels in the town there is also quite a bit of bnbs that have fewer rooms and provide excellent service. My parents also stayed in a different bnb called the Willowbank which was so lovely. They loved it, it was so clean and the breakfast was a highlight for them. My mom still raves about their porridge.

Food

I didn’t eat out very often during my stay in Grantown, I enjoy cooking and it was really enjoyable going to the local supermarket. I did eat at a few restaurants and bakeries though and they were so good.

KJ’s Bothy Bakery I would be remiss to not mention KJ’s. I would suggests traveling to Grantown just to try KJ’s it is seriously that delicious. I loved absolutely everything I tried and I tried a lot.

I kept wanting to take photos of her lovely bakes but every visit my husband and I got so eager that we inhaled it before I had a chance to photograph our goods. I am not the biggest fan of white chocolate but she has made me a believer because of how sparingly and expertly she uses it on scones and muffins. I loved the chocolate beetroot cake and pretty much any scone I ate. On the plus side she does have a cookbook that I purchased as soon as I got back home with some of her recipes including the chocolate beetroot cake which I made. While KJ’s is a short drive away from downtown Grantown-on-Spey they do sell some of their baked goods in downtown in a red doorway, be sure to have cash as this is on the honor system. I loved going to that red doorstep to get cake, I wish this was more common!

Andersons Pizza which is located right beside KJ’s, their pizza is so good!

The Royal Fish Bar No trip to Scotland is complete without eating fish-n-chips for dinner, this place was recommended by our hosts and it really was delicious!

Coffee

I really loved the lattes from Fiona’s Whole Foods and Refills. I will say, I didn’t find iced coffee or drip coffee very often in the places that I visited in Scotland. Sometimes, I did but I mostly ordered espresso based drinks while I was there.

Giftshops and other stores

Donaldsons Hardware Store is one of my favorite spots to shop. They have a wide variety of things from gifts, hardware supplies, gardening supplies, and kitchenware.

Ewe and Me gifts also had a good selection of gifts, lotions, stationary, and some accessories.

The Bookmark a lovely bookstore on the highstreet. The owner was really lovely and her selection was well curated and had many authors that were canonical for Scottish literature. It was difficult to not purchase too many books, I was worried I wouldn't be able to fit them all in my suitcase! I really loved her selection of local books and books about Scotland, and if you want a recommendation on a book she was truly a resource. I highly recommend The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd and the novel Highland River by Neil M. Gunn.

Speyside Center located just outside of Grantown on Spey this gift shop, restaurant, cafe, and garden center is a wonderful stop for all sorts of Scottish goods. I also enjoyed iced lattes from here. This is quite a large facility and it really does have a wonderful selection of whisky, books, accessories, lotion, candles, children’s gifts, and food items.

Rothiemurchus Farm Shop and The Barn is also a great stop for gifts and food! This shop is close to Aviemore located on the Rothiemurchus estate. I really loved their selection of shortbread.

I also loved all of the local walks that you could do from Grantown-on-Spey and spending time by the River Spey. It is such a lovely place and I hope to return soon!