Christian Holiday Coach House, Perthshire — Near Rumbling Bridge
This wonderful Christian Retreat Centre, near Rumbling Bridge, Perthshire, is a beautifully converted coach house and stables set around a central courtyard with two self-catering apartments sleeping up to nine between them.
Swallows’ Nest sleeps four across two bedrooms, while the larger apartment can be taken whole as Pheasants’ Nest to accommodate up to five people, or split into Robins’ Nest and Ptarmigans’ Nest for smaller parties — one with its own disabled-access wet room. Amenities run to fast Wi-Fi, a wood-burning fireplace, and books, puzzles and games for slower evenings in. Outside, a well-kept garden brings deer, red squirrels and tame pheasants right up to the fire pit and pond, and there’s a summerhouse set aside as a quiet chapel space.
The Rumbling Bridge Gorge (almost on the doorstep) is more than just a pleasant walk. The famous double bridge that gives the village its name was built in 1713 by a local mason, spanning the River Devon gorge some 86 feet above the water — and a little further upstream, the river tumbles through a narrow channel, one of the more dramatic short walks in this part of Scotland. A well-maintained path, originally built by the armed forces, follows the upper gorge on both sides, making it an easy outing whatever the weather. Of course, historically Rumbling Bridge was one of the top tourist destinations from the time of Robbie Burns until motoring holidays led tourists to more exciting places of interest.
Nearby, the Japanese Garden at Cowden has its own remarkable story. It was created in 1908 by the Scottish traveller Ella Christie, who fell in love with Japanese garden design on her travels and brought over Taki Handa, one of the first women to design a garden of this kind, to lay out the seven-acre site. Vandalised and left to ruin in the 1960s, the garden was painstakingly restored over the past decade and reopened to the public in 2017 — now once again considered one of the finest authentic Japanese gardens outside Japan itself.
For real history, Loch Leven Castle is well worth the short drive to Kinross. Mary, Queen of Scots was imprisoned on its small island for almost a year in 1567–68, before she was forced to abdicate in favour of her infant son James VI, before famously escaping by boat during May Day festivities with the help of a teenage page. The castle ruins still stand on their own island in the loch, reachable today by a short motor-boat crossing.
Loch Leven itself is worth lingering over even without the history. It’s one of the most important stretches of water in Europe for wildfowl, hosting one of the largest concentrations of breeding ducks anywhere inland on the continent, and every autumn up to a tenth of the world’s entire population of pink-footed geese arrives to spend the winter on its shores — a genuinely spectacular sight if you happen to be nearby at dawn or dusk when the flocks take to the air. Visit the RSPB centre bird watching hides or walk or cycle the thirteen miles(or part thereof!) around the loch with stops to enjoy good food and appreciate the spectacular scenery is a day well spent.
This Christian holiday coach house, Perthshire, is perfect for:
Church groups or small retreats, with two apartments sleeping up to nine between them
Clergy wanting a genuinely quiet space to pray, with the garden chapel on hand
Families or friends wanting separate but neighbouring accommodation
Anyone happy exploring gorges, gardens, castles and wildlife close by
For more Christian-friendly places to stay across Scotland, browse Scotland properties. And if Loch Leven Castle has caught your interest, Historic Environment Scotland has more on its history.
Location
Nesthaven Retreat, Near Kinross, Scotland
How to get there:
By road: Nesthaven is best accessed by car. It is near to Scripture Union’s Lendrick Muir outdoor centre in the village of Rumbling Bridge. A car is recommended, as although a bus service is available, it is not regular and the closest bus stop is just over one mile away.
By Bus: The nearest bus depot is in the town of Kinross, 7 miles to the east of Nesthaven. Within reason, guests can be collected and returned to the depot but a local taxi service is available.
By Rail: The nearest stations are in the city of Dunfermline, 13 miles to the south of Nesthaven. Within reason, guests can be collected and returned to the stations but a local taxi service is available.
By air: The nearest airport is Ingliston, Edinburgh.
Information on local taxis is available upon request.
Local Area
The nearest main supermarket is in Kinross. Groceries can be delivered to the property by most of the supermarket chains.
Kinross, and the closer villages of Dollar and Muckhart, have smaller shops, coffee shops, restaurants and pubs and there are various takeaways who will deliver to Nesthaven.
Nearby restaurants include Mona’s Coffee Shope, Powmill Milkbar, the Ochil Arms in Dollar, and for Indian food, there is the award-winning Raj Mahal in Kinross.
If you are looking for something more luxurious, Gleneagles is superlative, and there are some fancy places in Perth. North and South Queensferry have good restaurants with excellent views of the Forth Bridges and are about 30 minutes drive away.
The area abounds with walking routes, especially the Rumbling Bridge Gorge.
The peaceful Cowden Japanese gardens are close by.
History and battlefields are plentiful.
The area has been a location for many TV series, including ‘Outlander’.
Nearby Muckhart Golf Course has 27 holes, Gleneagles is only 20 minutes north and St Andrews one hour east.
The Fife coast has extraordinary history, beauty and beaches.
Main cities are all within an hour’s drive including Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, Falkirk, Perth, St Andrews and Stirling.
Facilities
A large, immaculately converted coach house and stables in a serene rural location surrounded by trees and hills. The apartments surround a large central, beautified courtyard, and the accommodation comprises of two separate apartments, being a two bedroomed apartment sleeping 4, and a three roomed apartment sleeping 5 (the latter can be divided into two separated units, one sleeping 3 and the other 2).
All are self-catering.
All have their own dedicated free parking and private entrances.
One unit has disability access and a disabled access wet room.
Amenities include: fast Wi-Fi; TV; fridge/freezer, dishwasher, washing machine, tumble drier and all usual kitchen appliances; linen, pillows, blankets and towels provided; carbon monoxide, fire and safety alarms; fire blankets and extinguishers; First Aid equipment; books, puzzles and games; soaps, shampoos and sanitary products; highchairs and travel cots; wood burning fireplace.
There is a large, well-maintained garden with fire pit, pond and stream; outdoor furniture; BBQ; and summerhouse/chapel.
For more information and photographs please visit our website: https://nesthaven.co.uk
Additional Photos
Click to enlarge
Costs
Prices per night are dependent upon the ‘Nest’ that is hired, and this is as follows:
- Swallows’ Nest (sleeps up to 4) £100
- Robins’ Nest (sleeps up to 3) £90
- Ptarmigans’ Nest (sleeps up to 2) £75
- Pheasants’ Nest (made up of Robins’ and Ptarmigans’ combined – sleeps up to 5) £125
The minimum stay is two nights.
Discounts of 10% available for short clergy retreats
Energy Provision:
All accommodation costs are free of energy charges.
There is an EV charging point that is available for use by guests with electric vehicles at the cost of current market rates.
Pets:
This is a wildlife friendly garden with tame pheasants that come for feeding, deer, red squirrels, hedgehogs, stoats, rabbits and numerous birds. We therefore do not permit pets on the property.
Availability
Not available for the months of December and January each year.
Arrival and Departure times:
16:00 hrs on the day of check in. Departure at 10:00 hrs on the day of checking out.
Contact the Owner
Name: Tracy
Website: nesthaven.co.uk
If you would like to make a booking or ask a question, please use the form below. Your enquiry will be emailed to the owner, who will reply to you directly.