Bayview Cottage Portmahomack

Bayview Cottage is in Portmahomack in the Highlands. It sleeps six. There are three bedrooms and one bathroom, all on the ground floor. The living room and kitchen are upstairs. That's because it's built into a hill, so the back door is on the lower level and the front door is on the upper level. The stairs inside are a standard staircase.

It's got a 4 Star rating. It's comfortable and well looked after. You can bring one dog.

The main thing is the view. The living area upstairs has big windows looking straight out over the Dornoch Firth. There's a deck outside those windows with seating. You get the sunset over the water from there. Sometimes you can see the Northern Lights, but that's luck of the draw.

Downstairs, the bedrooms look out over the back garden, which is enclosed. There's parking for two cars on the drive.

Portmahomack is a small fishing village. The beach and the harbour are about a two minute walk from the cottage. You'll often see seals. The Tarbat Discovery Centre in the village is good if you're interested in the Pictish history. You can walk out to the Tarbat Ness lighthouse in about an hour. It's a good, flat coastal path.

Within a half hour drive, you've got Tain which has supermarkets and a few shops. The Glenmorangie distillery is there. Dornoch is about twenty minutes away over the bridge. It has a famous golf course, a big beach, and more places to eat. In the other direction, you can get the small ferry from Nigg over to Cromarty, which is a nice historic village.

For bigger day trips, Inverness is about 45 minutes south. The north coast around Wick and John o' Groats is about an hour and a half. Orkney is a bit further, you'd need to take the ferry from Scrabster.

The facilities are all there: wifi, TV, a wood burner, dishwasher, washing machine. Bedding and towels are included. There's an enclosed garden. The local golf club has a 9-hole course.

Useful links for planning: National Trust for Scotland and North Coast 500.