It’s a transcendent white jewel, nestled in the lush emerald, ochre and umber hills which roll throughout Sleat at the southernmost tip of the Isle of Skye.
And it is in this picturesque setting at Kinloch Lodge that generations of Macdonalds have toiled assiduously for the last 50 years to transform and maintain the building, which was first used as a farmhouse in the 17th Century, into one of the UK’s most spectacular hotels and restaurants and a mecca for guests from across the globe.
Ever since it was created in 1972 by Lord Godfrey and Lady Claire Macdonald, this cherished place on the banks of Loch Na Dal, with resplendent views across to the Knoydart Mountains, has provided sanctuary, respite and lashings of Highland hospitality, yet none of it has happened by accident, but as a consequence of the family’s enduring philosophy that genius is an infinite capacity for taking pains.
There were challenges in early days
That trait is obviously in their DNA because the couple’s daughter, Isabella, now runs the lodge and she and her family have published a new book celebrating its 50th anniversary and recounting how dramatically life has changed since it opened its doors.
At the outset, nobody could check in or out on a Sunday and the sale of liquor was prohibited unless it was ordered with a meal. There was no television and only four telephone lines served the whole of Sleat. Travelling to the island was an arduous process and the journey from Edinburgh by car or train could take up to 12 hours.
There was no bridge to the mainland – that didn’t arrive until 1995 – and the island was only accessible by ferry from the Kyle of Lochalsh. In which circumstances, if you missed the last boat of the day or bad weather forced the cancellation of the service, tourists faced being stuck in the car park until 5.30am the next morning.
However, despite the obstacles and Godfrey and Claire’s admission they were “reluctant and terrifyingly inexperienced hoteliers in the early 1970s”, Kinloch survived and thrived and Isabella, who returned to Skye from London in 2002, is clearly delighted that she and her family have been able to make such a success of their big adventure.
The family feel is very important
She told me: “Ever since my parents opened Kinloch’s doors, it has been a family affair. My siblings and I were brought up in the hotel, and now it has gone full circle.
“I brought my own boys up here at Kinloch and now they both earn their holiday money by working in the hotel. Our family have been here for the entire 50 years, so although so much has changed over those years, there has always been a ‘family feel’.
“When I moved back from London 20 years ago, I knew that I was coming home. And when I think back to our childhood here, I laugh. Although it was totally normal to us, it was not really a conventional family life.
We loved making the tea for guests
“In the early days, we would have guests come and stay for two or three weeks at a time. We would ‘help’ look after them and, over time, we would get close to them – even lying on their beds and chatting to them.
“It seems impossible to imagine now, but it worked in those days. Our house had a door that opened into the ‘Little Drawing Room’, it was always open and we would just mix with the guests and we used to LOVE making them tea.
“I have such happy childhood memories of playing on the hill behind Kinloch, making dens in the woods and swimming in the sea. My parents worked pretty much all the time, so on a nice day we would take ourselves off for hours of fun. Whenever I walk up the hill these days, it evokes such lovely childhood memories.”
Half a century on, the Macdonalds have moved offsite, so they have no fears of any disorientated guests interrupting a bath or a nap. And although the roaring fires are still in evidence – such a precious commodity in often frosty Scottish winters – central heating from a biomass boiler is on tap to provide additional warmth for those both in the main building and the South Lodge, which was constructed in 1998.
At that stage, it seemed the guests would keep arriving in large numbers indefinitely. But then, of course, everything ground to a halt with the Covid pandemic in 2020.
The pandemic was a curve ball
Isabella said: “It has been a bruising couple of years, that’s for sure. Covid was incredibly tough as we lost most of a year’s worth of guests and reopening with so many restrictions made the warmth and hospitality that we are known for difficult.
“This year, we have seen the return of our precious visitors from the United States who took a long time to regain their overseas travel confidence.
“The hit has been hardest felt in terms of employment, especially when combined with the pressures that Brexit has put on the industry as well. This summer has been perhaps the toughest yet in employment, because so many people have left the industry and finding replacements has proved all but impossible.
“It makes the team that I have here on Skye even more precious. There is nothing more important to our business and future than our employees, each of whom I value more than anything. When I refer to them as the ‘Kinloch family’ I really mean it – they are very, very precious.”
How does the future look?
Claire Macdonald once remarked: “It was often impossible to buy a tomato in a tin, never mind a fresh one.” But mercifully, the situation has improved so much that Kinloch Lodge and its chef Jordan Webb are blessed with a veritable cornucopia of fresh ingredients within walking distance and myriad suppliers of delicious produce.
Isabella realises she is fortunate to live in such a beautiful setting – and that phone call she made to her parents 20 years ago was pivotal to everything – but she and her colleagues have worked incredibly hard to build something special which will last.
As for the identity of some of her more illustrious guests, she remains the soul of discretion. “I have SO many stories, but cannot possibly share them. Perhaps our next book could be an anonymous diary of ‘a hotelier’…”
It’s a far-sighted saga with plenty more chapters to come. In a period of often grim forecasts for the hospitality sector, here’s one family affair which has prospered.
Five questions for Isabella Macdonald
- What book are you reading? “A brilliant book: Sins of Fathers by Michael Emmett and Harriet Compston.”
- Who’s your hero/heroine? “I think it’s probably my grandmother. The older I get, the more I wish I could ask her questions. We spent a lot of time with my grandparents during childhood and she would take us fishing, build bonfires, have picnics – pretty much anything I know about nature and wildlife I learnt from her.”
- Do you speak a foreign language? “Sadly not. But both my children are fluent in Gaelic and I’m very proud of that”.
- What’s your favourite music/band? “Quite literally anything from the 80s or any country music – but my children do NOT love my playlist!”
- Most treasured possession? “My grandmother’s wedding ring which I wear”.
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