It’s around 5:30pm but it feels like midnight. We are driving to remote Ayrshire, making our way via one night on the Durham coast to a Scottish castle. Views of the restless, grey sea are soon replaced with rural scenes. We pass field upon field of lush, almost suede-like grass, scattered with grazing cows and sheep.
For our final hour’s drive, the roads are replaced with winding country lanes and the low sun has rapidly set. It’s abruptly and intensely dark, the sky absent of light pollution, the narrow roads free of street lights. The only flashes we see are from passing farmhouses, illuminated in the pitch-black with twinkling colourful lights and LED snowmen.
We reach the coast. The sea isn’t visible in the darkness but I feel a shift in the air with the ocean so close. There’s no signposts to our destination, and so we follow our directions closely, until we reach automatic gates and are directed through. The driveway is a mile long, with shadowing woodland on either side of us. As the road widens, Glenapp Castle comes into view in all its story-book magic; turrets, towers and all. A lofty Christmas tree glitters in the foreground beneath the stars. Our three-year-old utters a hushed, ‘Wow’.
We are greeted warmly by our car and ushered in from the cold. There’s no lobby but we sign in by guest book in traditional fashion. It’s 2nd December, and intimations of Christmas are everywhere. A tree grazing the ceiling is adorned with purple, silver and frosted leaves. Garlands interlaced with burgundy ribbon weave up the stairs. Benjamin, Glenapp’s genial Operations Manager, shows us to our suite the ‘Earl of Inchcape’, one of 21 luxurious bedrooms named after an element of the castle’s heritage.
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Our suite is spectacular, rich with traditional details. A living room area is the central focus with a fire murmuring beneath a festive garland on the mantelpiece. There are fresh flowers, a florist visits the castle daily delivering new blooms. A 7ft tree has been decorated in the room’s crimson palette. Pattern and texture are pervasive, from the delicate floral wallpaper, pleated curtains and most notably in the suite’s showstopper piece - a gold and red four poster bed with its own miniature chandelier. It’s so enchanting, I wouldn’t be surprised to stumble into Narnia through the wardrobe.
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A quick change and we make our way down to the drawing room which is steeped in old-world charm. There are wreaths with velvet bows at every window, log fires well stoked and a pianist gently playing. There’s no bar, but sit in any of the opulent, period sofas and a menu will be handed to you. The lack of a bar is as intentional as having no lobby, making you feel like a guest in someone’s home, albeit a magnificent one. We order Kir Royale cocktails and hors d'oeuvres are placed before us, including delicious mouthfuls of whipped goats cheese with walnut gel.
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Into the dining room and the atmosphere is serene and intimate. The claret-coloured walls and soft, dim lighting set the mood, with single red candles flickering atop the white tablecloths. There’s a seven-course tasting or A La Carte menu to choose from, designed by Executive Chef Peter Howarth, with an emphasis on local produce, featuring ingredients grown in the castle’s grounds. With the sea so close, we ordered Scottish Langoustine and Monkfish with smoked mussels, the flavours are layered and fragrant. Every detail is artfully crafted in this Scottish castle, right down to the creamy butter embossed with Glenapp’s emblem.
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The next morning, waking up in a four-poster bed, the winter sun seeping in, felt every bit as luxurious as it sounds. There’s no tea and coffee making facilities in the suite. The hotel offers this as a complimentary service, made fresh when requested. I call down and shortly later an elegant tray with loose leaf Earl Grey arrives. It seems like a small detail, but it speaks to the hotel’s deeply attentive ethos. As a devoted tea enthusiast, this ritual becomes one of my favourite parts of the day, elevating a normally simple act into a mindful experience. We have a view of the gardens to our left and the sea to our right. Volcanic rock island, Ailsa Craig, rises out of the sea like a turtle's back, breaking the mist veil on the horizon.
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After breakfast, including morerish local tattie scones, we venture out to explore the grounds. There are 110 magical acres to wander through, including local woodland, a kitchen garden, and a beautifully restored Victorian Glasshouse, transformed into a private dining space ‘Azalea Brasserie’. The Italian gardens, designed by Gertrude Jekyll, the pre-eminent garden designer of the early 20th century, are a great spot to stand and admire the light sandstone battlements from a new angle. Designed by leading architect David Bryce, the Scottish castle was designed in Baronial style blending romantic grandeur with Gothic elements. It’s effortless to immerse yourself in the fairytale setting, our son joyfully searching for dragons as we walked. The hotel also offers a wide range of activities and experiences, from Falconry to a Hebridean sea safari.
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After our walk we are eager to warm up and head to the library, ordering hot chocolate on the way. Steaming cups soon arrive with homemade cookies. The chocolate is thick and velvety, coating the sides of the cup, reminiscent of a chocolat chaud in consistency. I’m told the bespoke blend is unique to the castle, made by famous French chocolatelier Valrhona.
It’s here I meet Paul Szkiler, the owner of Glenapp Castle. As CEO of Truestone, a social impact investment company, he has just returned from West Africa where he has built a chain of restaurants, with the aim of creating job opportunities and an affordable dining experience in the region. He acquired the castle in 2015, with no prior hospitality experience, just a love for South-West Scotland and a desire for a new challenge. He tells me of the castle’s rich and varied history, with a solemn portrait of Churchill hanging behind him. It’s rumoured that Churchill and General Dwight Eisenhower met at Glenapp in 1944 to plan the D-Day landings. Pioneering women have also carved their mark on the history of Glenapp. Philanthropist May Stock, reimagined the formal gardens in the early 1900s with Gertrude Jekyll. She also trained the ladies of the local village in lace making to supplement their incomes. I also learnt of the formidable Elsie Mackay. She was the daughter of James Lyle Mackay, the first Earl of Inchcape who our room was named after and who owned the castle in 1917. She was a successful actress, interior designer, the first female jockey in England, and a highly skilled aviator, likely the second woman since War War I to gain her pilot’s licence. In 1928, she set out to become the first woman to fly across the Atlantic, but tragically the plane was lost off the coast of Ireland.
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For our final morning, we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast, a long drive back ahead of us. Eggs Royale, fresh coffee and more tattie scones were served with a view of the grounds. We had one last walk around the castle, savouring its festiveness, a fire already crackling, the Christmas trees all aglow. Although the hotel exudes opulence, it doesn't feel stiff or pretentious; instead, there's a warmth, from the staff to the overall atmosphere. As we depart, I glance back one last time before we turn, and the castle fades from sight. We begin our quest, 400 miles to home. Plenty of time to plot our return.
Garden View Suite priced at £395 per night during low season, inclusive of full Scottish breakfast and VAT.
For more from Glamour UK’s European Visuals Director Amelia Trevette, follow her on Instagram @ameliatrevette
