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The biggest town in Perthshire and one of the best – according to Queen Victoria – Pitlochry’s grand Scottish Baronial architecture lays at the feet of a mountain and has excellent transport links while offering first-rate holidays complete with walking routes and outdoor activities.

Whether you want to get on the golf course and harness your handicap, don your hiking gear and hit the trail or saddle up and cycle, Pitlochry – the gateway to the Highlands – is the place.

Pitlochry Golf Course is one of Scotland’s most popular inland facilities with an 18-hole par 69 golf 5,700-yard course and breath-taking vistas of the Tummel Valley. Home to the Gents’ Highland Open and the Ladies’ Highland Open, this is a must-visit for golfing go-getters.

You can venture the moorlands on a six-mile climb up to Ben-Y-Vrackie’s peak, amble the woodlands around Loch Dunmor or explore the nature trail on your way to Faskally via Garry Bridge.

While Etape Caledonia, a mass participation cycling event with an 85-mile route or 40-mile route option that attracts 1000s of riders countrywide, is hard work rewarded by stunning views and a wonderful atmosphere.

Fancy a wee dram and a night on the town? In Pitlochry there’s a choice of two distilleries as well as one of the top Scottish theatres whose large-scale summer productions are second to none. More into Highland swing than fling? Pitlochry’s Highland Nights are a seasonal programme of traditional Scottish entertainment where you can experience everything from pipe music to country dance.

Seeking something more sedate? Check out Explorers Garden Pitlochry, where the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh tells the story of Scottish plant collectors through flowers. Visit during the multi-award-winning Pitlochry in Bloom for a full-on floral foray. The Enchanted Forest in the autumn combines music and design and is regarded Scotland’s top sound and light experience while February’s Winter Words Festival is a warming celebration of the arts in the midst of the hoary Highlands.

Make sure you stop by the Pitlochry Dam Visitor Centre, featuring exhibitions of local heritage and Highland hydro schemes as well as insight into the life cycle of salmon and information on green energy and conservation. Free entry and open seven days a week, this is a fascinating all-weather activity. Don’t forget to cross the fish-ladder!

If, like us, you Love Cottages book a cosy Pitlochry holiday cottage today.