Private sauna sessions overlooking a small loch, a woodland treatment room and a glass-fronted restaurant facing the main lawn are now part of a stay at Andy and Kim Murray’s Cromlix. The five-star country-house hotel near Dunblane closed in January for a redevelopment that expanded its wellness facilities and dining options across the 34-acre estate.
Amelia Neath’s review for The Independent, published on 28 October, describes using the new Woodland Retreat, sauna and cold plunge, alongside meals in the Garden Room. Her account gives a first-hand look at the additions, which the hotel now brings together in a two-night wellness and dining break.
The Murrays bought Cromlix in 2013 and took it back into self-management in 2023, when it underwent a substantial refurbishment. This year’s work builds on that redesign, retaining the Victorian mansion’s country-house setting near the town where Andy grew up.
Woodland treatments and a private loch-view sauna
The Woodland Retreat has just one treatment room, set within the estate’s forest. Cromlix says the space is housed in a former storehouse that has been converted, with architecture by Fergus Purdie and interiors by Suzanne Garuda, and was introduced as a treatment space exclusively for overnight guests.
Bamford and MODM provide the treatments, with the latter already supplying amenities in Cromlix’s bedrooms and public spaces since 2023. The announced Cromlix Bamford Signature Treatment starts with an Epsom salts foot ritual and draws on Japanese shiatsu, Swedish massage methods, therapy using heated chakra stones and yogic breathing. Bamford facials use a tailored selection of skincare products, while MODM’s Signature Holistic Experience is an 80-minute, top-to-toe massage, alongside bespoke massages and facials.
“It felt particularly tranquil during my 80-minute full-body massage,” Neath wrote of the retreat.
The nearby sauna and cold plunge overlook a small loch and can be reserved in private slots. Crocs and Dryrobes are supplied, a useful detail for moving between the facilities on a Scottish country-house break. The setting brings the water and woodland into the wellness experience, with privacy secured through the booking rather than a shared spa timetable.
Wellness appointments are worth arranging before arrival, as Neath advises. With only one treatment room, guests travelling together should agree their treatment times with the hotel when making their reservation.
The Garden Room opens onto the estate
The Garden Room occupies a new glass-fronted building, with floor-to-ceiling windows looking across the main lawn. Cromlix describes it as an informal restaurant for breakfast, lunch and dinner, seating up to 65 guests, with outdoor dining encouraged when conditions allow.
The menu features estate-grown vegetables, fruit and herbs, alongside ingredients from local producers and Scottish suppliers. The hotel gives dry-aged Scottish porterhouse sharing plates, Scottish wild turbot and grills as examples of the cooking, with smaller plates and reimagined classics broadening the choice.
During her stay, Neath ate soufflé made with goat’s cheese, crab crumpets, local poultry, cheese plates and pavlovas served with Scottish strawberries. The kitchen’s produce-led approach means the selection follows the ingredients available.
Local diners joined overnight guests in the restaurant, bar and terrace, which Neath found lively in the evening. Breakfast was also served in the Garden Room, with a small continental selection and hot dishes ordered à la carte, including a full Scottish breakfast with haggis.
Cradle keeps dinner intimate
Cradle is Cromlix’s separate 16-seat fine-dining restaurant, serving a tasting menu centred on Scottish produce. Executive head chef James Mearing and his team draw on the estate and Scottish producers, with the hotel’s approach encompassing seasonal kitchen-garden ingredients, estate foraging and local artisan suppliers.
Guests can choose a sharing plate or grill in the Garden Room on one evening, then reserve the smaller dining room for a tasting-menu dinner on another. Cradle opens Thursday to Sunday, a schedule worth checking against travel dates if dinner there is central to the trip.
The Glasshouse, formerly the hotel’s main restaurant, now serves afternoon tea. Together, the three spaces allow lunch, a longer dinner and afternoon tea to take place in different settings, rather than returning to the same room for every meal.
Floral interiors and country-house rooms
Kim Murray played a central role in Cromlix’s interior-design decisions. Floral wallpapers, horticultural artwork, pastel upholstery and vintage furniture sit alongside high ceilings and original bay windows, continuing the garden theme inside the house.
The estate has 20 rooms, with accommodation spanning Estate and Cottage Rooms, Junior, Deluxe and Turret Suites, and a separate one-bedroom stay at Laurel Gate Lodge. Rooms are individually designed, using nature-inspired colours and patterns. The ground-floor Garden Suite has its own sitting room and a fully fitted wet room, while connected suites offer another option for guests travelling together.
A green-and-purple tennis court sits beside a pickleball court, and the grounds provide space for walks between meals and treatments. Neath also describes wax jackets and wellies available to borrow from the porch, practical additions for exploring the estate without packing every piece of outdoor clothing.
Guests requiring step-free access should discuss their room and the woodland route with the hotel. The listed main building has no lifts, and Neath found access to the retreat potentially difficult while pathways were still being laid.
Booking a wellness or dining break
Cromlix’s Rest, Reset & Restore break includes two nights for two guests sharing, full Scottish breakfast, an 80-minute signature treatment each, use of the lochan-side sauna and cold plunge, and dinner for two at Cradle. A signature Cromlix diffuser and midday checkout are also included.
The package is available Thursday to Sunday, subject to availability, reflecting Cradle’s opening schedule, and must be booked directly with the hotel team. A 50% deposit is required; cancellations within 72 hours of arrival incur the full balance.
The Art of Indulgence break places more emphasis on dining. It includes two nights for two sharing, full Scottish breakfast, dinner for two in each restaurant, afternoon tea in the Glasshouse, MODM products and midday checkout, subject to availability.
Children of all ages are welcome. Under-fives sharing with an adult stay free, while children aged five to 15 are charged £65 per day for bed and breakfast. Dogs receive a bed and bowl and may join guests in the Drawing Room and Bar, though not in the restaurants.
Dunblane can be reached by train from Edinburgh Waverley, Glasgow Queen Street and Stirling, with reception able to arrange station transfers. Glasgow and Edinburgh airports are each less than an hour away by taxi, according to Neath’s review, and parking is available at the hotel. Cromlix is in Kinbuck, near Dunblane, Stirling, FK15 9JT; direct reservations can be made on 01786 820310.
