There's nothing like a baronial pile for a stay-at-home vacation – and it need not be expensive

Published on Wednesday 24 June 2009 14:58

IT MAY seem ironic, but in cash-strapped times we might want to consider copying the wealthy and spend our holidays in Brideshead Revisited-style country houses. Although your eyes may initially water at the price tag for renting a rambling pile for a week, if your group goes Dutch, you could end up paying much less per head than you would at a bed-and-breakfast.

So, if you do decide to forego your annual week in the Mediterranean for a "staycation", take a leaf out of the book of Dru McPherson, owner of a soft fruit and foliage business. "We're renting a big country house, which is something that we often do, as it means we can take friends and family to some fairly impressive properties and entertain them in style," he explains.

"It's tremendously good value and you don't have anyone breathing down your neck, as you might in a hotel."

This businessman's next holiday is a weekend at Wester Brewlands, a dower house that is part of an estate dating from 1226, in the Cairngorm National Park, Perthshire. This seven-bedroom property, which has been in the same family for 150 years, boasts formal gardens set against a picturesque backdrop of mountains and forests. Some of the loveliest touches are in the grounds, where there is a giant chess set, floral borders featuring bright blue grandifloras and an Edwardian revolving summerhouse that you can turn round to catch the sun or shelter from the wind.

Those who have rented this place, once the holiday home of George W Bush ("My husband used to have pine-cone fights with him," explains Lady Ivory, owner of the estate), have included American ambassadors, family reunion parties and even an amateur theatre group who spent their entire visit rehearsing their production of Romeo and Juliet on the staircase.

You could say that Wester Brewlands is the perfect venue for thespians –after all, you couldn't do the Shakespearean balcony scene justice in a Travelodge.

If you are used to the clean anonymity of hotels, the idea of staying in a home packed with heirlooms might give you the sensation of trespassing on someone else's personal space.

On the other hand, many holidaymakers actively seek out the feeling of being laird of their ready-made country manor – even it is a very temporary title.

"I think what people love about this place is that it's a family home. The house contains interesting objects including presents we've received from Japanese royals, family portraits and there's even a letter dated from the American Civil War, which is granting an ancestor free passage," explains Ivory.

"It's definitely not an empty shell which has had furniture planted in it; it's grown with generations and relaxed into its own surroundings."

The look of this home is traditional Scottish country house throughout – though contemporary mod cons such as power showers, kitchen ranges and other facilities have been added over the years.

"I don't think a 19th-century bathroom would appeal to modern visitors," explains Ivory.

To fit in with the country house theme, the decor in this three-storey property includes soft furnishings printed with the family's dark blue MacDonald tartan and chintz curtains by Colefax & Fowler.

The pinky-beige painted hall features the obligatory stag's head, the dining room has a table big enough to seat 14 people and all the bedrooms boast Savoir beds (a company that supplies the Savoy Hotel in London), some of which have been topped with Cartland-esque romantic floral swags.

If you love your high-definition telly programmes, bear in mind that a new-fangled plasma screen might ruin the old-fashioned ambience of this house, something guests from the UK and, even more so, overseas demand. Despite this, other elements of the decor are less countrified, with robust cream carpets and walls that have been painted in fresh, neutral shades. These practical touches suit visitors like McPherson down to the ground.

"We like to visit very typical Scottish country houses, but not ones that are over the top," he says.

"If you go into some of the National Trust properties, you can feel like you're in a mausoleum. This kind of place seems more like a comfortable second home, with fittings that are really quite serviceable, so you don't have to worry too much when you're wandering around in welly boots."

A little wet footwear may be permitted, but dogs are certainly not allowed at Wester Brewlands – a wagging tail could easily knock over a piece of 19th-century porcelain, while muddy paws might wreck one of the Caucasian rugs on the floors of the drawing and sitting rooms.

Still, as long as you do not make as much mess as a labrador, there is always the resident housekeeper, who visits the property for two hours of cleaning every day, to tidy up after you.

Which is just perfect for McPherson, who plans to have the perfect weekend "staycation" here. "We're going to get our family and friends together and take our own chef – in order to enjoy three days of debauchery." sm

n Wester Brewlands in Perthshire is available from 2,100 a week, or 150 per head per week (on full occupancy of 14). Short breaks from 600 per night, or 42 per head per night (based on full occupancy). Tel: [phone] or visit www.cottages-and-castles.co.uk