We have some very historic houses and buildings here in Moray
Some are regularly open to the public such as Brodie Castle https://www.nts.org.uk/visit/places/brodie-castle and some during the tourist season such as Ballindalloch Castle https://www.ballindallochcastle.co.uk but many are not open to the public at all.
Each year, the Scottish Civic Trust working with Moray Council, persuade a few of the owners and managers of these buildings to allow the public to see the architectural treasures within for one day, Doors Open Day and this year that day in Moray is Saturday 21st September. Whoop!
On this Saturday you can sneak a peek into Elgin Sheriff Court house, Nelson’s Tower, Covesea Lighthouse and a number of historic houses as well as a few modern buildings such as AJ Engineering’s premises in Forres, all for free http://www.doorsopendays.org.uk/places/moray/.
If the building like Nelson’s Tower, the Sheriff Court house and both Elgin and Forres Museums, is already open to the public then in the spirit of Doors Open Day they go a stage further and let you see behind the scenes such as the Forres Museum store to see their renovation work or the Court house police cells.
Whilst a few venues are in Elgin and Forres, towns well served by public transport, the majority of the places are well off the beaten track and at locations across the whole of Moray. Some are not suitable for disabled access and some have age restrictions such as the lighthouse and the distillery, one 4 one 18, I will let you work out which is which for yourself. Also many of these venues haven’t the room for large numbers of visitors at once so advance booking is necessary to manage numbers and they are popular so booking early is advisable to avoid disappointment. Ace Taxis can take you there and Ace Tours can help you with booking and provide an itinerary to get from venue to venue in the most direct route and in the comfort of our cars.
One of the top picks for Moray this year is Darnaway Castle, the historic seat of the Earl’s of Moray since the 14th century. To support Doors Open Day the estate is giving a guided tour of the magnificent entrance hall and Randolph’s Hall which has the largest and oldest open timber roof in Scotland. Prior booking is essential for this.
Close to Darnaway is Dalvey House www.dalveyhouse.com. Dalvey has been the Georgian home of the MacLeod family since 1798 and although available to rent for weddings, holidays and events it is not generally open to the public.
Near to Lossiemouth, is Duffus House, which was built around 1700 with a large extension in the 1800s. Duffus House has long been associated with Gordonstoun School. If its historic interest isn’t enough to attract you – there are drinks and cakes available!
And on the east of Elgin, Innes House, again which is a venue for weddings and functions but not generally open to the public. Built between 1640 and 1653 for Robert Innes and now owned by the fifth generation of the Tennant Family, Innes House is a beautiful setting bursting with history. www.inneshouse.com
It’s not just Moray’s grand houses throwing their doors open. Painted by thousands of artists, and appearing in millions of holidaymakers’ photographs, Covesea Lighthouse, rising 118 feet into the sky 3 miles west of Lossiemouth, is one of the tallest landmarks on the Moray coastline. It has stood in its commanding position, come storm and high water, for 160 years and until it was decommissioned in 2012 sending a light miles out over the Moray Firth to guide, protect and warn shipping of the treacherous coastline around it. Tours of the lighthouse are available on Doors Open Day but book early as it is very popular.
Moray has more distilleries than any other region in the UK and whilst most are open to the public a few are not. Benriach distillery www.benriachdistillery.com is one which will open for this day to allow a visit to Warehouse 13, their oldest dunnage warehouse, home to their experimental casks. Over 18s only.
There’s not enough space here to list all the venues but if you let me know your interests and amount of time available Ace Tours can put together a great itinerary to take in some of Moray’s historic buildings and we can add in great places for lunch. We can pick up from your hotel, b&b, airport or railway station in the north of Scotland. And if you aren’t around on Saturday 21st September, Moray has many historic houses and places of interest including a large number of distilleries which are open to the public throughout the year so we can set up an interesting tour whatever the day of the year!
