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GRESHORNISH HOUSE
This month we travel to the beautiful Isle of Skye and speak with owners Neil & Rosemary Colquhoun about life as B&B owners in this remote part of Scotland.
What was the main factor for your choice of location?
The location was important to us.
We were both very familiar with this part of the West Coast of Scotland and all that it could offer. Quite apart from the power of the environment, the distance of the Isle of Skye from the South of England would ensure a level of commitment that would be crucial. Furthermore, the population of Skye (c. 12,000) included a significant number of highly professional individuals who could provide a useful basis of contacts to guide and inspire.
In short, run us through your average day?
A combination of factors has T
his historic country house offers
luxury, licensed
4-star Bed and Breakfast Guest Accommodation in a
comfortable family-home environment. The cosy informal atmosphere has been described as “Uniquely different - Excellent” and “one of Skye’s jewels”. The traditional white manor house sits in a secluded magical loch side setting at the end of a single track road, surrounded by its gardens and a belt of beautiful trees and is ideal for the enjoyment of a restorative break and yet central enough to enjoy all that the Isle of Skye has to offer.
Tell us a little bit about your background...
Neil’s background is in education;
he was a senior school housemaster before moving into the world of prep schools. Brought up on a West Coast sheep farm, Rosemary made a career in music and the arts. She ran a successful
interior design and soft furnishings business for many years and has also been involved in all the domestic aspects of running school boarding. Wherever they worked, family
holidays with their four sons were always spent at their home on Ardnamurchan, from where they moved to Skye in 2004.
What made you decide to run a B&B? We came into the hotel/B&B
business in 2004 with the idea of helping teenage boys who had a troubled history in boarding schools; the intention was to refocus them and provide them with a way out of a downward spiral. An important part of the project was that they should be in a working environment where they might acquire useful skills in a variety of fields. The professionalism of the hotel backdrop was therefore an important factor.
meant that we no longer operate the educational aspects of the initial project. However, we have become increasingly involved in the local tourism sector. As volunteers we are both directors of Destination Skye and Lochalsh and Neil is Chair of the Skye and Lochalsh Hospitality Association. The very personal nature of our
business means that our day starts when the first of our guests get up and
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