The Isle of Skye has won a richly deserved reputation among travelling gastronauts. Thanks to restaurants such as the multi-award-winning Three Chimneys and the Kinloch Lodge Hotel, this rocky island outpost is a dangerous place for devotees of the skinny jean - even more so now that The Spoons, on the banks of Loch Snizort, has opened.
Having previously run a hotel on a private Scottish island, owners Ian and Marie Lewis wanted to go it alone and spent two years converting a working croft on the island’s rugged northeast coast into their own bijou boutique B&B. The Spoons’ glamorous French-Scottish interiors, along with its lavish, elegantly served breakfasts – utilising the best of fresh, local and (wherever possible) organic produce – are a complete and indulgent antidote to the austere snow-muffled hills and lochs that surround this sleepy outpost.
Free WiFi and iPod docking stations mean that you can stay in touch with the outside world – if you must. But with only three king-size-bedded rooms (one at ground-floor level, which can be configured as a twin) each kitted out with organic toiletries, Nespresso machines and Egyptian cotton bedlinen, it’s a perfect destination for private house parties, when you and your friends want the run of your own chic bolthole.
What’s hot?
- Owner Marie Lewis will cook up a starrier-than-Michelin supper for house parties with an exclusive-use reservation
- The scenery is unbeatable
- The famous Three Chimneys restaurant is a short drive away
What’s not?
- Breakfast finishes at 10am
Need to Know: The Spoons
Number of rooms: 3
Check-in/check-out times: 4pm and 11am
Swimming pool: No
Spa: No
Dogs welcome: No
Eating and drinking: The Spoons turns out a fabulous breakfast in the handsome dining room, where you can soak up views of Loch Snizort as you eat. Dinner can be arranged for house parties, otherwise the owners will advise you on the best restaurants in Portree.
Near to? It’s all about the wilds of the west coast Scottish landscape here, so pack your walking gear – or a good book. The B&B is also taxi-distance from the famous Three Chimneys restaurant, plus the many restaurants in busier Portree.
Getting there: Fly to Inverness Airport then rent a car. The journey from east to west coast takes about two hours. On arrival at the west coast, cross the Skye Bridge from the Kyle of Lochalsh to Kyleakin. From there, the remaining journey to The Spoons should take around 45 minutes.
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