Faraway Fairways operates three broad travel class categories

• Luxury
• Premier
• Affordable

In it’s simplistic terms, they broadly align with the international star system of five, four and three respectively

We should say however that Faraway Fairways applies some of our own judgement in selections rather than blindly relying on the ratings agencies

There was a time when the UK’s two premier motoring organisations (the AA & the RAC) used to exclusively rate hotels. Since then many more agencies have joined the eco-system (some with potential clashes of interest). In the pursuit of objectivity they use a tick-box assessment which allows a savvy management to potentially game the system and achieve a better rating than they deserve

Faraway Fairways tends to the same view of the motoring organisations however, as they permit subjective judgement and place greater emphasis on room quality and bed comfort, than ‘health clubs’ and ‘swimming pools’. There are plenty of 5-star rooms that can only achieve a 4-star rating because they choose not to incur the cost of expensive and frequently under-used swimming pools

For the most part luxury selections are focused on resort hotels like Gleneagles, Turnberry, and the five-stars of St Andrews, or the top-range ‘country house’ hotels like Greywalls for Muirfield.

In addition to these dedicated golf ‘resorts’, the large cities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Aberdeen also support international standard five-star hotels complete with all the trappings with which you’ll be familiar with, and the recently opened Ness Walk Hotel in Inverness has also achieved enough 5-star recommendations to be considered (as has nearby Culloden House).

St Andrews has three hotels that are widely considered to be five-star, (The Old Course Hotel, the Fairmont, and the boutique offering at Seaton House) plus a fourth one that should be, (the Rusacks) and a fifth one that could be on the borderline (the Hotel du Vin). We say ‘widely considered’ so as to eliminate the outlier ratings that can sometimes occur when one agency takes a view that isn’t shared by the others

We should perhaps name Inverlochy Castle and Fonab Castle too, which although they don’t really appear as golf options, they would otherwise be considered the choice 5-star options we can use transiting between regions

If we require a degree of luxury that goes beyond ‘comfort’, but stops short of the ostentatious luxury, then we invite you to consider our first-class ‘premier’ options. These are normally 4-star hotels where you can expect the same international standards from this category band. To some extent you get the best of both worlds.

There are a plethora of 4-star hotels throughout the cities of Scotland, and it’s definitely worth being aware that some of these operate at or very close to 5-star standards, the only thing that prevents them achieving the extra star is the absence of a swimming pool or health club

We might think of these as hidden five-stars. They’d includes places such as the Rusacks Hotel in St Andrews, the Marine Hotels at North Berwick and Troon, as well as the Scotsman Hotel in Edinburgh. Other possible candidates would be Culloden House, near Inverness In truth we have seen some agencies grade this 5-star) and the Hotel du Vin in St Andrews

If you adhere to the view that all you need from a room is:
Somewhere to sleep, a comfortable bed, en-suite facilities, convenient and central location, good cleanliness, safe environment, attentive and friendly staff, and would rather have the money saved in your pocket …then you’ll be fine. Budget chain hotels are typically the sorts used by ‘Brits’, business travellers, or short duration/ weekend-breaks.

It would be a mistake however to assume that ‘affordable’ equals budget chain in each and every instance. It doesn’t.

It’s worth being aware that price is very often a function of destination rather than facilities.

There are good 4-star hotels in places like Troon, Aberdeen and Carnoustie that we could legitimately describe as ‘affordable’ if the benchmark being used is St Andrews or Edinburgh

Another tip that’s worth looking into for independent owned three-star (those which aren’t part of a chain) is their suites. They’ll typically have a couple of suites which will out-perform guestrooms in a 4-star

Although it’s a more difficult booking to make than you might imagine, the B&B and Guesthouse sector is another sub-division of the affordable market that can be used

Scotland has some iconic ‘golf hotels’, a stay in which can legitimately be considered to be part of the experience

Sitting a top a hill overlooking the links below, the red roofed, white stone, Turnberry hotel is one of the most recognisable and visually impressive

Since it’s been able to co-opt the course name, the Old Course Hotel at St Andrews is another, although expensive and frequently sold-out.

The Old Course Hotel overlooks the seventeenth fairway, although it’s a relatively modern introduction to the golf eco-system. It’s actually the Rusacks Hotel that overlooks the eighteenth fairway that has the deeper association with St Andrews

Gleneagles is set in a magnificent Perthshire estate of about 900 acres and something of a brand name associated with style, class and luxury

The white stone Carnoustie Course Hotel overlooks the eighteenth green but is actually a class lower than the others (it’s a 4-star). We note this not to diminish it, but purely to manage expectations as visitors often think it’s at the same level as the others they recognise from watching the Open Championship. The Carnoustie Hotel is surprisingly inexpensive by contrast, and offers better views. It’s often worth paying a little bit more for an outside balcony room in the summer

The Marine Hotel at Troon which overlooks the par 3, seventeenth green is another that television viewers might recognise. It’s recently been the subject of a significant upgrade and investment, alongside another ‘Marine Hotel’ at North Berwick, which runs along the closing inward holes.

Turnberry was the world’s first golf resort (1906) and was followed just over decade later by Gleneagles, but the concept of a resort perhaps never truly took-off in Scotland.

A lot of the best golf courses had already set a high bar, and they were either private members clubs or public (St Andrews and Carnoustie). It was difficult for any resort development to build golf courses that could capture the imagination to the same degree, and at the end of the day, any golf resort that can’t pass the quality of golf test, will fail in the face of easy to access alternatives being just a few miles away.

The St Andrews Bay Development centred around the Fairmont Hotel sometimes presents itself as a resort, but people staying there will usually look to play the towns courses with Kingsbarns before they play the Torrance and Kittocks courses

Machrihanish Dunes markets itself as a resort too, but it lacks an identifiable campus or landmark building. It offers a patchwork of hotels and private lets dotted around the Campbeltown area instead, which means guests rarely realises they’re in a resort

Consequently the lines between what we might understand to be a resort or a golf hotel has become a bit blurred. It’s perhaps not particularly helpful to think in terms of golf resorts outside of Gleneagles and maybe Turnberry

Many visitors regard a B&B as a quintessential experience. They have a reputation for being friendly and intimate, often lending a more personal touch. They also enjoy a good reputation for their food, typically wholesome and generously served. For the most part, the quality is quite high, especially so in the golf playing regions, or St Andrews town.

In terms of price, B&B’s are traditionally thought of as being the least expensive operators in the sector, but this is changing as we start to see higher-quality offers emerge

A B&B in St Andrews for example, will normally more expensive than a budget chain hotel, but less expensive than a four-star hotel. It’s often a mistake to think they’re some kind of ‘cheap’ option. They don’t necessarily represent the bottom of the market any more, and some of them can be quite exclusive.

Regulations mean B&B’s can’t exceed six rooms. It can become difficult to accommodate a medium sized party without splitting up. We’ll often need a property to be close to completely vacant at the time of enquiry to fit a group in. For high demand locations like St Andrews, this doesn’t happen very often.

One possible drawback to B&B’s is that however we try and cut it, we are staying in someone else’s house as a guest. The relationship can become a little bit more uncomfortable as a result of this (even though proprietors have a reputation for being friendly). With a hotel for the example, the booking is a lot more transactional. The bonding between the property and a hotel employee isn’t the same as someone who owns the B&B. It can sometimes feel as if we’re under a little bit more scrutiny in a B&B

Providers such Airbnb or VRBO don’t allow third party bookings, so you have to deal with this yourselves. There is very little Faraway Fairways (or any agent) can do about this

Serviced apartments (Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness and Aberdeen) and AirBnB (nationwide) have grown in popularity in recent years, but they’ve still never really taken off in the UK to the same extent that they have elsewhere in the world. This means there is often opportunity in this sector

One destination where the self-catering angle can work is St Andrews, as a large party that is able to burden share the costs can achieve notable savings in what is a particularly expensive market. We should however sound a slightly cautionary note since the trend in the last few years has been for self-catering options to start falling into line with the per night rates of hotels. The gap has narrowed

One thing to be wary of is that providers (or ‘hosts’ to give them their operative title) have a habit of over-describing their capacities. Fold out and bunk beds will often appear in the inventory. Be sure to check every room off against every bed type before committing

Scottish castles undoubtedly have an air of class and romance about them. Unlike their English or Welsh counterparts, Scottish castles don’t tend to be heavily fortified defensive structures. Instead they’re more akin to ‘strong houses’ that clan territories were ruled from. The consequence of this is that many have been subject to high-quality conversions, while hopefully retaining their character.

Scottish castles don’t always have the largest room capacities. Demand easily exceeds supply so they can be expensive and book-up outside of the window that golfers typically observe when planning a trip. There is simply no point in us advertising something only to tell you that it sold out a year ago. We advise that you consider lead times in the region of 9–15 months, although it is possible to work inside of this timescale off-peak.

They do have a habit of attracting wedding parties at weekends however and maybe best kept to midweek

They aren’t usually as expensive as you think they might be

Options include

• Dornoch Castle Hotel – Dornoch
• Tulloch Castle – Dingwall (Highlands)
• Fonab Castle – Pitlochry
• Culzean Castle – Maybole (near Turnberry) but isolated otherwise and difficult to secure one of the main castle rooms
• Sherbroke Castle Hotel – Glasgow (not always easy to ‘get’ due to minimum stay policies)
• Dalhousie Castle – Edinburgh area (very ‘castley’ but not connected to the city. Can be isolated as a result)
• Inverlochy Castle Hotel – Fort William (luxury option but only really used if passing through, there is little golf in the area)

Scotland doesn’t lack for landscape, and we have witnessed another boom in specialist log cabins and converted hunting lodge accommodations. The big attraction is they’re usually located in amongst stunning scenery. Cabins and lodges cater for all sizes of parties and bedroom combinations. They’re particular good for families sharing, or groups. They can come to represent great value however

Cabins and lodges normally look to achieve a minimum stay of 7 nights, although 3 night weekend blocks can be offered, and naturally anyone offering 3 nights, has to offer 4 weekday nights too. They book out prescribed slots to their calendar rather than our travel plans though, so we probably need to make this decision first, and then seek to book golf around the dates we can do

They are in high demand and will sell-out.

A ‘fixed’ base needn’t always be compatible with golfers though, who are more nomadic in their ambitions.

Staying in a cabin or lodge tends to involve an additional transport burden since they’re rarely on top of a golf course.

The following tend to feature

• St Andrews – Charismatic and atmospheric, but expensive
• Edinburgh – It might involve a 45 min drive to Muirfield or North Berwick, but it offers a lot more as a base (especially if we have non-golfers involved)
• North Berwick – if we’re playing the Lothian coast and don’t want to travel in from Edinburgh each day
• Inverness – surprisingly expensive but the best equipped destination for the highlands
• Troon – probably the best of the Ayrshire towns if we prefer not to pay for Turnberry
• Aberdeen – relatively inexpensive and the best equipped destination for the trio of Aberdeenshire courses
• Stirling – Limited supply, but a good central location for going to different parts of the country. A legitimate visitor destination in its own right, but can also be handled as a day trip from Edinburgh
• Gleneagles – Luxury resort that can act as an alternative to Stirling, but only tends to feature if we’re playing rounds of golf there
• Carnoustie – a less charismatic but cheaper alternative to St Andrews, can help lessen the burden on the price if used selectively
• Pitlochry – charismatic gateway town to the highlands that can act as a stepping stone. Keeps us within range of different places but doesn’t have enough golf surrounding it to work as a base for an extended period. Useful for non-golfers though
• Campbeltown – the only sensible option for Machrihanish

We occasionally get asked for a “traditional St Andrews experience”, and it always brings a smile to our faces. If people knew what a ‘traditional St Andrews experience’ looked like, they wouldn’t want it!

Despite its heritage, golf travel is a relatively recent evolution. It was only in 1970 that the Old Course Hotel was built. Prior to that we we’re faced with a random collection of B&B’s many of which will have been of questionable quality.

When the Scores Hotel closed ahead of their refurbishment one of their managers opined “everyone wants to be a five star these days”. So it’s proved

The three star market is seemingly in terminal retreat and it shows no sign of slowing down. B&B proprietors are being made offers they can’t refuse for properties that are being converted into luxury apartments, whilst the 3-star hotel sector is being upgraded to boutique 5-stars as owners take the plunge or sell up to leisure operators or property developers

St Andrews has recently overtaken Edinburgh as the most expensive destination in Scotland. It seems entirely possible that it will continue to evolve and become something of an exclusive 5-star resort as we head into the 2030’s

The pool of 3-star accommodation gets smaller with each year that passes, and even those which survive have taken the opportunity to price accordingly. There are plenty of St Andrews B&B’s or guesthouse providers who charge more than 4-star hotels elsewhere in the country. Indeed, we can think of a few 5-star hotels in other locations which are less expensive too

If we need to try and manage budget, then the answer is to book early as we scrap for what little remains. It’s not the golf course availability that’s the problem in St Andrews, it’s the affordability of accommodation