Stable Cottage is located in the heart of the Lochnaw Castle Estate, two miles from the village of Leswalt and just six miles from Stranraer. Lochnaw Castle is the former ancestral home of Clan Agnew, for several centuries the hereditary Sheriffs of Galloway. The cottage occupies a portion of the castle stable block and is a short walk to Lochnaw Loch. Guests that stay are free to enjoy the historic estate grounds, including the woodland walks and the large variety of bird and wildlife to which it is home. Fishing can also be arranged on the loch and guests have access to the estate's sandy beach at nearby Larbrax.
The property has been converted, and throughout is tastefully decorated and is furnished and equipped to a good standard. The accommodation comprises: a spacious entrance hall leading to a ground floor cloakroom and utility room with sink and washing machine and spacious fully fitted family kitchen/diner. The kitchen has a fully working Aga plus electric oven, grill and hob. Off the kitchen is a large lounge with comfortable sofas, open fire and a satellite TV. On the first floor there are two double bedrooms, one with and en-suite and a twin bedroom, a family bathroom with shower completes the facilities. Outside the cottage has a small external enclosed patio area, and an open garden leading to the surrounding woodland. The property also benefits from having wifi and oil fired central heating throughout.
Stable Cottage offers a relaxing break surrounded by nature, with convenience on your doorstep. The busy town of Stranraer is a 15-minute drive from away, with a variety of restaurants, shops and supermarkets, so you never have to worry about going without. For some advice about the local area, head to the Gateway to Galloway tourist information centre. The Stranraer Museum will give you an introduction to the history of Wigtownshire.
The Rhins of Galloway is the name given to the lush, double-headed peninsula that is home to Stable Lodge. Those with green fingers will be spoilt for choice with the peninsula’s many gardens, including Castle Kennedy Gardens, Logan Botanic Gardens, Logan House Gardens, Dunskey gardens, and Glenwhan gardens. For natural landscapes, walk the trails of Galloway Forest Park, also the setting for International Dark Sky Park. More seasoned hikers may be interested in combining their stay at Stable Cottage with a trek across the 214-mile-long Southern Upland Way.
Visit the Mull of Galloway RSPB Reserve, occupying Scotland’s southernmost tip. The cliffs here host a diverse range of seabird species, including kittiwakes, razorbills and guillemots. Atop the cliff sits the impressive lighthouse, whose history is told in the Engine Room Exhibition. Climb the 115 steps to the top for glorious views across the sea to Ireland. Fancy stepping foot on the Emerald Isle? Stena Line and P&O both operate regular ferries from the nearby port of Cairnryan
The property is located within the grounds of the Lochnaw Castle Estate, guests with children should be aware that there is a fishing loch within walking distance of the property.
Facilities
Downstairs
Upstairs
Included in the rent
Other Facilities
Good Housekeeping Deposit
A Good Housekeeping Deposit of £75.00 is required at the property.
Guests with Children
The property is located within the grounds of the Lochnaw Castle Estate, guests with children should be aware that there is a fishing loch within walking distance of the property.
Pet Policy
One dog is allowed at the accommodation, a £15.00 weekly charge applies.
Best Features
STL Licence Application No: DG01473P EPC Rating: D
Guests rate Stable Cottage: Excellent from 19 reviews About Reviews
We as a family were very happy to make a return visit to Stable Cottage and the Lochnaw Estate, as we were very fortunate to have had the opportunity to stay at this lovely cottage and beautiful Scottish Estate and to have enjoyed a wonderful holiday there last year. We were once again very grateful for the very comfortable and spacious accommodation, which this property provides and especially appreciated the peace and tranquility of the location of the cottage within the Lochnaw Estate, which is a very serene and atmospheric place, with areas of wild woodlands and wonderful grounds to explore, with a wide variety of trees and natural habitats thriving there. At the centre of the estate is the magnificent and historic Lochnaw Castle, which is an amazing sixteenth century tower house surrounded by beautiful well-kept lawns, where deer can sometimes be seen at the edge of the lawns or roaming amongst the woodlands and forestry that surrounds the formal gardens and grounds of this wonderful castle. Lochnaw Castle is at the heart of the estate and has a sense of the centuries' old history of the Agnew family, who built it, etched into its glorious architecture and stonework, with a variety of family crests and shields built into the stonework near the rooftop of the castle, and around the castle and grounds there is a strong feeling of the Scottish clan history that was responsible for building and designing this marvellous building and its beautiful grounds.
Stable Cottage is a wonderful property for families wanting a more secluded and quiet and peaceful location for their holiday, and has a stunning natural forest and loch landscape on a traditional Scottish Estate to explore and the cottage itself is located in a very quiet and peaceful stable courtyard, which was built for the Agnew family in the 1850's and is at the centre of the estate and very near to Lochnaw Castle and its loch, so of an evening after a day on the beach or the coast, there is the opportunity to look around this wonderful tranquil natural environment and to visit this beautiful loch, that has areas of lily ponds and an old boathouse, which provide an amazing setting and backdrop for the very ancient and historic Lochnaw Castle. The Stable courtyard, where the cottage is located, has an old clock tower and weathervane and a tree at its centre and the owners of the cottage have provided outdoor seating there for when the weather is fine and so this is a lovely peaceful place to sit outdoors of an evening. Stable Cottage has plenty of space for families and has a large and spacious lounge, which is classically and simply styled, with three good-sized sofas in coastal blue seaside colours, which reflect the wonderful coastal landscape, which is not far from the cottage and that is also part of the estate and extends right up to the coast at Larbrax bay. The kitchen is large and spacious and is well cared for and very well- equipped and is appropriately styled in traditional Victorian style, cream-coloured country kitchen units, which reflect the traditional and rural character of the estate, with a large farmhouse table at the centre of the room, for gathering around for meals. All the bedrooms are comfortably furnished with good quality fittings and furniture, and the main bedroom has a lovely ensuite bathroom, so a very comfortable and excellent standard of accommodation is provided within this traditional character cottage, which has such an amazing natural environment and historic setting around it. This is really a very charming and comfortable older and classic country cottage property, which has been very nicely modernised in keeping with its rural character and it is ideal for those seeking the stillness and quietness and tranquility of nature. For families it is a delight to explore this traditional Scottish estate, with its wonderful historic setting, that inspires the imagination and is reminiscent of a fairy tale castle or a castle in a medieval or folk tale or a classic children's adventure story, as it still has preserved within the grounds, the beautiful old-fashioned, gated walled gardens that were designed in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, which are gradually being restored and nurtured back to life and have wonderful areas of topiary, rose gardens and orchards. Within the estate there are lovely sun-dappled woodland paths, and a variety of ancient and characterful trees. The feeling of an enchanted forest surrounding a castle in a children's story can be felt amongst the varied and quite vast wild woodland areas and shrubberies that there are to be explored and discovered around the estate, and there are beautiful wild rhododendrons growing amongst the foliage and shrubberies. The remains of a couple of older cottages from the past history of the estate are located within the atmospheric nearby woodland of the cottage, and so Stable Cottage has an absolutely unique location and is a really lovely peaceful place for a holiday, with an amazing historic castle and its wonderful grounds to discover virtually on the doorstep of cottage.
There is also a really magnificent coastal landscape to explore within the nearby vicinity of Stable Cottage. Not too far from the cottage and about a mile or two away, the quiet and peaceful Larbrax bay can be discovered along a path which journeys through rolling hills and past a couple of farms and arrives at a wonderful, secluded bay that has a superb long sandy beach, with the waves of the Irish sea lapping onto its shore and beautiful views towards the stunning cliff scenery at the Killantringan lighthouse. On a clear sunny day there are fine views towards the hills of the Irish coast and the outline of a lighthouse on the coast there can be seen in the far distance. About a fifteen-minute drive from Stable Cottage, the Killantringan lighthouse can be visited and from the cliff top where the lighthouse is situated, there are the most spectacular views of one of the finest stretches of coast and cliff scenery in the area and a length of beautiful long sandy beach, which has some interesting rock formations, a lovely waterfall and a fine stretch of golden sand beach, which extends up to Knock bay and also has a wonderful view of Knock Bay House, which has a unique and stunning location high up on the cliffs and above this amazing beach, and with its almost solitary setting, this imposing Scottish Baronial style house enhances this marvellous scenic view and adds a dramatic and romantic element to the magnificent cliff scenery of this area. On the other side of the cliff at the Killantringan lighthouse, the beautiful, rugged cliff scenery of the smaller Portamaggie cove can be found and there are some lovely quite high hills surrounding this beautiful spot and my husband discovered some good scenic walks along the peaceful coastal path there.
Portpatrick is another place of rugged cliff scenery, with a fine harbour, which is the base for the RNLI and there are a few shops and hotels there and a number of entertaining and sporting family activities available, such as bowling, tennis and putting and also a very fine golf course, which is situated overlooking this magnificent stretch of coast and beautiful cliff scenery. There are regular musical events and tribute groups and also market and craft stalls organised for each weekend, and a folk festival is based in Portpatrick on an annual basis, so there is plenty to do in this lively and friendly seaside harbour town for anyone with a family to keep occupied and to entertain. The beautiful Dunskey Castle is located near Portpatrick and has the most amazing, rugged cliff top setting and is a wonderful place to take photographs and to take in and absorb the beauty and atmosphere of this stunning, coastal landscape view, and with the ancient remains of this scenic, early sixteenth century castle located on wild rugged cliffs, this is another fantastic place, which is full of history, that can be discovered within the local area of Stable Cottage and the Lochnaw Estate. There are some more wonderful, beautiful sandy beaches with lovely cliff scenery such as the ones at Port Logan and Ardwell bay within the Rhins of Galloway area, and also the amazing and dramatic, rugged high cliffs of the Mull of Galloway, which is known as the Lands' End of Southern Scotland, and has a lighthouse that was built in the early nineteenth century by the engineer grandfather of the writer Robert Louis Stevenson. The magnificent high coastal cliff scenery of the Mull of Galloway is only about a half hour's drive from Stable cottage and the Lochnaw Estate, so is within easy reach of the property. Stable cottage therefore provides a very good standard of comfortably furnished and classically styled, well- presented accommodation, with an absolutely unique and tranquil natural environment to enjoy and is beautifully situated close to the fascinating historical setting of Lochnaw Castle, and it was wonderful for our family to have had the opportunity to have stayed there again and we thoroughly enjoyed our time there and would highly recommend it as a wonderful holiday cottage experience for those who enjoy beautiful historic buildings and value the peace and tranquility of nature. Stable Cottage also provides a really excellent and ideal base for visiting the whole of the Rhins of Galloway area within a relatively short drive. In addition to this, the cottage also offers the opportunity to have a contrasting experience of the local area and landscapes around the Wigtownshire and Dumfries and Galloway area and the chance to explore and visit some stunning rural and countryside locations further afield, while continuing to enjoy the coast and a seaside holiday on the Rhins of Galloway, and so this cottage also provides an ideal base and the opportunity to visit the wonderful lochs and lovely mountain and high moorland hills of the vast wooded and forested areas of the beautiful Galloway Forest.
We thoroughly enjoyed our holiday on the Lochnaw estate and especially appreciated the peace and tranquility of the estate and the location of Stable cottage, which is set amongst the very atmospheric woodlands of the Lochnaw estate, not far from Lochnaw Castle and a really beautiful loch, which has lovely areas of Monet-style lily ponds and is surrounded by woodlands and a mixture of shrubs and ancient trees, which give the castle and the grounds a very evocative and almost fairy tale-like quality. But this is a place of real and significant history and the grounds of Lochnaw Castle are very picturesque and the castle itself is very historic with several hundreds of years of history associated with it and the Agnew family who were resident there for hundreds of years. So, there is a feeling and sense of that history there and the estate is a really fascinating and interesting place to have the opportunity to rent a cottage and the cottage itself was a very good quality property and a unique place to have a holiday because of the lovely natural landscape around it and the history of the place. We all really appreciated the experience of being on the Lochnaw estate and being surrounded by nature, and especially enjoyed the opportunity to be close to nature and were delighted to sometimes see deer darting across our path and disappearing into the woodlands as we journeyed around the estate. Seeing the splendid historic architecture of Lochnaw Castle every day of the holiday and trying to find out more about its importance to the history of the area and its place within Scottish history was also an interesting and valuable part of our experience.
Stable Cottage is a really lovely property and is very quietly situated near to the castle and is located in an old stable yard that had been built for the Agnew family of Lochnaw Castle in the mid- nineteenth century. Stable cottage is in a very atmospheric place amongst the peaceful woodlands of the Lochnaw estate and is approached by a driveway that passes both the castle and the loch, so there is a very scenic approach to the cottage. The sudden view of this amazing sixteenth century tower house castle and its gardens and grounds was absolutely beautiful and the journey to and from the cottage each day was for all of us a memorable and unforgettable experience! We all really enjoyed discovering all the wonderful woodland and loch side trails that there are to explore within the Lochnaw estate and the magnificent views of Lochnaw Castle from across the loch and loved the serene and tranquil views of its beautiful classically designed grounds and old-world gardens, which make you feel as though you have stepped back in time! The walled gardens are really lovely and have a great sense of this feeling and atmosphere. Old- fashioned wrought iron gates are at the entrance to the gardens and small turreted buildings at the corner of each garden and there was an orchard, with lines of fruit trees and an archway of roses that leads to the ornamental centrepiece of the garden, which was covered with roses.
Seeing the historic architecture and experiencing the natural beauty of the Lochnaw estate is a wonderful part of the experience of staying at Stable Cottage and the cottage itself is a really lovely property with an excellent standard of accommodation and a beautiful and quite spacious kitchen and lounge. It is very clean and well-equipped and is a good-sized property, which has been tastefully furnished in keeping with its traditional surroundings. The lounge of the cottage has a French window, which opens onto the old stable yard and most evenings we enjoyed sitting outdoors at the patio table and chairs, which had been supplied for us. The roof of the stable yard has an old clock and a weathervane, and at the centre of the stable yard there is a lovely old tree, which adds to the atmosphere of the outdoor space around the cottage. Opposite the cottage there is another room in an old outbuilding within the stable yard, where there is a pool table and bar football for the family to enjoy. The interior of Stable cottage is comfortably and classically furnished, and the lounge has pale blue linen sofas, which fit in nicely with the coastal location of the cottage, which is not far from the lovely coast and beach at Larbrax bay, which is about a mile or two from the cottage. Larbrax bay is the most local beach to the cottage and has superb views of the Killantringan lighthouse in the distance and has a vast expanse of golden sand beach to explore and on a sunny day there are views towards the Irish coast.
The bedrooms of Stable cottage were all a good size and were comfortably furnished with excellent quality fixtures and furniture and the main bedroom has a nice ensuite in addition to the main bathroom. The kitchen was spacious and traditionally styled with cream coloured kitchen units and the focus of the room was a large farmhouse style table, which was at the centre of the room and was a nice place for us to all gather around for our family meals. All aspects of the accommodation within Stable Cottage were of a very good and excellent standard and we would strongly recommend this is very charming and comfortable cottage as an ideal base for a holiday in the Rhins of Galloway.
Apart from the property being a great place to stay, it also provides the opportunity to explore a number of very nice scenic beaches and coves in the area and also the wild windswept lighthouses at Corsewall Point, Killantringan bay and the Mull of Galloway, which is Scotland's most southerly point and a place of dramatic and magnificent cliff scenery. The lovely coastal village of Portpatrick is a twenty- minute drive from the cottage and has a beautiful, rugged coastal setting and has some hotels and a few shops and is a lively harbour village, with a golf course and putting green and the RNLI lifeboat is based there, and there were numerous organised activities going on to entertain the family, including a Sunday afternoon Zumba class! Dunskey castle is just along the coast from Portpatrick and is another amazing old castle with a history going back centuries and has a really magnificent, quite dramatic, and very rugged high clifftop setting, overlooking a steep rocky and shingle cove. The beautiful coves of Port Kale and Port Mora are also near Portpatrick and can be reached along the lovely, wooded valley of the Dunskey estate.
Other amazing places to visit within a short twenty-minute drive from Stable cottage include the really beautiful Killantringan bay, which has a stunning panoramic view over a vast golden sand beach backed by high rugged cliffs. There are interesting rock formations on the beach below and a beautiful waterfall and a lovely view of the House of Knock, which is situated high up on the cliffs above the bay and was built by the Agnew family, who were connected with the Lochnaw Estate. Portamaggies cove is on the other side of the Killantringan lighthouse and bay and is a smaller cove with a little cottage on the beach. It has beautiful, rugged cliffs and some rock formations on the beach and there is a view of the Killantringan lighthouse high up on the clifftop above the cove. The view from the clifftop above Portamaggies cove is really beautiful and is a wonderful place for photography and the colour of the sea there on a sunny day is a lovely deep turquoise. About fifteen to twenty minutes from the Lochnaw estate is the village of Kirkcolm and Loch Ryan, which has a very quiet and peaceful shore were ships can be seen travelling to and from Ireland every now and then. It has an important history associated with the second world war and the story of the flying boats which were based there. Further along the coast in the southern Rhins of Galloway is the beautiful harbour and beach at Port Logan, which has wonderful cliff scenery, a wide sweep of bay and a fine sandy beach and a characterful row of very quaint coastal cottages just above the harbour and the lovely white sand shore. The old harbour wall and lighthouse is a really beautiful place to sit and relax and take in the lovely view of the harbour beach and all the boating activities and the lovely cliff scenery. Ardwell bay is near Port Logan and is another stunning bay and has another fine sandy beach and a wonderful view of the magnificent coastal cliff scenery right along the coast up to Portpatrick.
Lovely cottage (large), well equipped and warm when needed. Wonderful woodlands and walks and well situated to explore the area. Could have done a good vacuum to defeat the spider webs and dust though. Most importantly do not attempt to drive to the beach unless you have a 4x4 as treacherous for low cars, walking is recommended as it's beautiful.
Stayed at stable cottage lochnaw Castle beginning of June for 4 nights. It has everything you could possible want for your comfort.The Owners of the castle gave permission for us to tour the grounds and Castle.They even even lent us the gardener to show us around .We are Discovering our Family tree and it was amazing to find out about our past.The stable cottage is in the Woods by the Castle and loch.It is so peaceful .We were blessed by wonderful weather and we would sit in the Courtyard with our drinks in the evening.We saw so many Birds I hadn't seen before Deer are common .The castle is situated 3 miles from Stranraer.Port patrick and the Mull of Galloway are near by.Perfect base for visiting West Coast. We are hoping to make this Beautiful place a yearly thing it was so lovely.
The cottage itself was lovely and very comfortable. It had everything we needed for our stay and the area was very tranquil. The only thing to let it down is that when we arrived the cottage was very cold as there was no heating on (I believe the last guests had been there 3 weeks previous) and had not been made ready for our arrival. Not what you need at the end of a 4 hour drive. I am not sure where the mistake happened and the caretakers, when I finally got old of them, were very nice and apologetic and came over to make the beds and replenish items.
We had a fantastic week here in January, snowed in one day. The cottage is warm and comfortable. There lots of excellent walks on the estate even down to Larbrax Bay but we cheated and took the car half way...Every walk we saw deer and herons.
The wifi is fast and we had all the facilities we needed in the cottage. It is not a luxury or modern cottage but this is not what we were looking for, it was very clean and had all we needed. We barely saw anyone on the estate other than a lively welcome from Venetia from the castle. Looking forward to our next visit...
