Press release -
High five for Ballogie House
A luxurious self-catering house set in the beautiful and tranquil surroundings of Royal Deeside has achieved VisitScotland’s highest Quality Assurance (QA) grading.
Ballogie House, on the Ballogie Estate in Aberdeenshire, is one of only four self-catering properties in Royal Deeside to have been awarded 5 Stars from the national tourism organisation. The Estate already boasts another 5 Star award for Potarch Lodge, which was achieved in 2016.
Situated between Aboyne and Banchory, Ballogie House can accommodate up to 14 people and is suitable for larger groups or family gatherings. It boasts its own natural water supply from a spring, a stunning elevated orangery with views across the garden and open parkland beyond and a hot tub in the grounds.
A popular location as a wedding venue, Ballogie House effortlessly combines the traditional Scottish country house with a luxurious contemporary interior and is a perfect canvas for any wedding theme.
The property has a long, private drive that meanders through mature woodland and has several beautiful locations for ceremonies and wedding photographs. In spring, the garden boasts a colourful display of daffodils and bluebells and a wildflower bank edges the lawn in the summer.
Malcolm Nicol, Managing Partner of Ballogie Estate, said: “Achieving the VisitScotland 5 Star award underlines the recognition of Ballogie House as a luxury holiday let and exclusive use wedding and event venue.
“It recognises the high standards of our growing recreational business and is deserved reward for the enthusiasm, skill and commitment shown by our hospitality team.”
Jo Robinson, VisitScotland Regional Director, said: “I am delighted to present Ballogie House with its 5 Star Self-catering Quality Assurance award, which makes it the second 5 Star property on the Estate.
“It is fantastic to see Aberdeenshire’s tourism offering enhanced by Ballogie House’s well-deserved achievement. High-quality self-catering accommodation is significant to our visitors, which is why VisitScotland’s QA gradings are so important to the tourism industry as a whole.
“Quality Assurance is about much more than just the ‘stars’ on your door – it’s about the entire visitor experience, investing in your business and making it as economically sustainable, and profitable, as it can possibly be.”
Ballogie is a place of stunning natural beauty lying on the south side of the River Dee in Royal Deeside. It attracts visitors for its field sports, fishing and wildlife, walks and local attractions.
Developed over the last four decades in partnership with the tourism industry and informed by visitor research, VisitScotland’s Quality Assurance schemes are world-leading. QA stars alongside online reviews give visitors a balance of objective and subjective views to assist in their decision making and expectations.
For more information, visit www.ballogie-estate.co.uk
For more information on Quality Assurance, visit www.visitscotland.org
ENDS
Topics
- Tourism
Categories
- corporate communications
- quality assurance
Regions
- Scotland
Notes to Editors
- Follow us on twitter: @visitscotnews
- VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland.
- The organisation’s core objective is to contribute to the Tourism 2020 Strategy ambition of growing tourism revenues by £1 billion by 2020.
- This will be supported by five overarching strategies: Marketing, Events, Quality and Sustainability, Inclusive Tourism, International Engagement.
- The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.
- Spending by tourists in Scotland generates around £12 billion of economic activity in the wider Scottish supply chain and contributes around £6 billion to Scottish GDP (in basic prices). This represents about 5% of total Scottish GDP
- For VisitScotland’s press releases go to http://www.visitscotland.org/media_centre.aspx, tourism statistics and frequently asked questions go to http://www.visitscotland.org/
- Where possible, a Gaelic speaker will be made available for broadcast interviews on request (Far an tèid iarraidh, agus far am bheil sin nar comas, bruidhinnidh neach le Gàidhlig aig agallamh)
- For holiday information on Scotland go to www.visitscotland.com
- For information about business tourism in Scotland go to www.conventionscotland.com
2018 Year of Young People
- The Year of Young People (YoYP 2018) will inspire Scotland through its young people aged 8 to 26, celebrating their achievements, valuing their contributions to communities and creating new opportunities for them to shine locally, nationally and globally
- Central to YoYP 2018 will be a celebratory events programme that puts young people at the heart of its development and delivery, creating new and valuable experiences for young Scots and the wider public, with links to the inaugural 2018 European Championships.
- Over 200 young people throughout Scotland are currently being recruited to become YoYP 2018 Ambassadors. Ambassadors will ensure that people and organisations in their communities know about what’s happening and will lead on projects and activities to create events and opportunities to celebrate young people.
- The Year of Young People will have six themes which were developed in co-production with young people themselves:
- Participation – looking at how young people can influence public services and decisions which affect their lives
- Education – creating a stronger role for young people in shaping their learning
- Health and Wellbeing – supporting young people to lead healthier, active lives and have opportunities to learn about and improve their mental health and resilience
- Equality and Discrimination – broadcasting the value of young Scots, challenging negative perceptions of young people, and supporting young people to take leading roles in challenging discrimination in all its forms.
- Enterprise and regeneration – celebrating young people’s role in innovation, entrepreneurship and the Scottish economy as well as making Scotland a greener and more pleasant place to live
- Culture – celebrating young people’s talent and contribution to Scottish culture and arts.
- Further information on what’s happening and how people can get involved can be found on the new website www.yoyp2018.scot or @YOYP2018 on Twitter.
