World's best hotel wedding venue named - and it's in Scotland

The four-star hotel was crowned the global '˜Wedding Retreat of the Year' at the Haute Grandeur global hotel awards, which took place at the Palazzo Versace in Dubai on Thursday.

Balbirnie House Hotel

An unprecedented result for Scotland’s hospitality and tourism sectors, this is the first time a UK hotel has been given the prestigious title.

Six members of the events and wedding planning team at Balbirnie House Hotel in Fife travelled to the Middle East to collect the award, which saw the hotel go up against the world’s finest establishments.

It’s the third year in a row that Balbirnie House has seen success at the by-invitation-only awards – last year, owners Nicholas and Gaynor Russell travelled to Thailand to accept the titles of Europe’s Best Romantic Hotel, Europe’s Best Function Venue Hotel and Europe’s Best Destination Wedding Hotel, while 2016 saw the hotel named ‘Europe’s Best Destination Wedding Retreat’.

Nicholas Russell said: “To see Balbirnie House go number one in the world, and achieve something for Scotland that has never ever been achieved before, is remarkable. The award is dedicated to our brigade past and present.”

In celebration of the award, Scotland Saltire blue smoke was seen coming out of the chimneys of the Grade A-Listed building.