Is a nature retreat in Scotland the tech detox your loved ones wants this summer time?

Just a half-hour drive east of Cairngorms National Park, this forgotten nook of Aberdeenshire in northeast Scotland is memorable terrain for a household vacation. Its heather-strewn moors and cairn-topped hills have seen mercifully little improvement, whereas the patchy cellular sign helps guests of all ages reconnect with the rhythms of nature. Close by are an limitless collection of inspiring daytrips, from storybook castles to pristine, empty seashores.

Forest college

Glen Dye in Aberdeenshire is a perfect base for outdoorsy households, with 11 trendy, riverside cabins and cottages scattered throughout the 15,000-acre property. Its Discovery and Adventure Centre, which opened in June 2024, affords programs in wilderness expertise. Tuition takes place beside a roaring campfire, the place youngsters can discover ways to begin their very own blaze, observe carving and whittling expertise and check out axe-throwing.

Exploring the property

Glen Dye’s Discovery & Adventure Trail is a brand new, one-mile circuit via dense pine forest that unfolds like a treasure hunt, unveiling interactive options akin to a hidden tunnel, a spider web-like cargo internet and a mirror maze. For a tougher hike, there’s 1,932ft-high Clachnaben. Scaling this Tolkienesque, granite-topped peak takes round 1.5 hours, although little legs may have longer. Adults and older youngsters with power to burn can rent mountain bikes for the hilly 7.5-mile loop out to Charr Bothy. From £15 for half a day.

Off-grid downtime

Don’t miss a session within the Glen Dye sauna, adopted by an ice tub within the orange out of doors tubs or wild swimming within the River Dye. Every property at Glen Dye has its personal wood-fired scorching tub and barbecue. Come night, stroll to the property’s BYOB pub, the Glen Dye Arms, for its dartboard and report participant. Camping from £49; B&B rooms from £175; and cottages from £275.

Forest feasting

For a extra refined culinary expertise, there’s Glen Dye’s pop-up The Seed Store Restaurant, which seats simply 12 in a transformed Nineteenth-century barn and operates on Saturdays solely throughout July and August. Guest cooks draw on the property’s considerable pure larder to create dishes cooked over hearth; final yr’s menus featured every thing from samosa chaat to raspberry cranachan. For a simple lunch out, head to the close by Finzean Estate’s giant, light-filled tearoom, which affords sandwiches, salads and a cut price kids’s menu for beneath £5. Parents can take turns shopping within the farm store whereas kids use the small out of doors playground.

Coastal highs

Just a half-hour drive east of the property is Aberdeenshire’s quite underrated shoreline. Begin at St Cyrus — a three-mile sweep of sand — then drive 25 minutes north to Stonehaven. This harbour city is residence to each Dunnottar Castle and Carron Fish Bar; the latter is broadly credited with inventing the deep-fried Mars bar.

Exploring additional afield

A forty five-minute drive west within the Cairngorms is Balmoral Castle, the Queen’s favorite royal residence. Her Majesty would approve of its two-hour expedition tour: a guided journey via the property by Land Rover, with binoculars supplied to maximise the possibility of recognizing purple deer. Close by in Braemar is The Fife Arms, a training inn transformed by gallerists Hauser & Wirth — mother and father can linger over a meal in its muralled eating room whereas kids can have a couple of matches of desk soccer or play one of many many board video games within the Family Room.