Guests say
Eagles Gate Lodge is a well-received cottage in Banff, praised for its beautiful garden, wildlife, and thoughtful welcome touches. Guests appreciate the comfortable accommodation, enclosed garden for pets, and the lodge's proximity to local attractions. Some minor issues with facilities and comfort are noted, but overall, the lodge offers a pleasant stay.
The cottage is generally described as clean and well-maintained, with no significant complaints about cleanliness, suggesting a high standard.
The location is highly praised for its seclusion, proximity to Banff, and easy access to local sites and beaches, indicating a very desirable setting.
Comfort is mostly positive, with mentions of a comfortable cottage and well-equipped kitchen. However, some guests noted issues with bathroom size, accessibility, and a damp feeling in a bedroom, slightly lowering the score.
Facilities are generally good, with a well-stocked kitchen and enclosed garden. However, there are comments about the need for more electrical sockets, better lighting, and updates to some kitchen equipment, indicating room for improvement.
Guests frequently mention welcome baskets, flowers, and dog treats, reflecting a high level of thoughtfulness. It should be noted that while these gifts are appreciated, they are not guaranteed for every stay.
About this property
Just 2 miles from the beautiful beach at Banff and with plenty of castles and historic monuments to explore.. All on the
Ground Floor:
Living room: 32" Smart TV, Woodburner
Dining room.
Kitchen: Breakfast Area, Electric Oven, Electric Hob, Fridge, Freezer, Dishwasher, Coffee Machine, Washing Machine
Bedroom 1: Double (4ft 6in) Bed
Bedroom 2: Double (4ft 6in) Bed
Bedroom 3: 2 x Single (3ft) Beds
Bathroom: Bath With Shower Over, Heated Towel Rail, Toilet.
Oil central heating, electricity, bed linen, towels and broadband internet included. Initial logs for wood burner included. Travel cot and highchair available on request.. Large, enclosed garden with sitting-out area and garden furniture. Private parking for 4 cars. No smoking.. Eagles Gate Lodge is located just 2 miles away from the busy seaside town of Banff with its beautiful beach and good selection of shops and restaurants. This picture-postcard cottage was refurbished in late 2020 without losing its original character; with a new kitchen, bathroom, carpets and paintwork throughout. Superbly set in enclosed front and back gardens, its enjoys the sun for most of the day so you can sit outside to enjoy breakfast, lunch or dinner. The back garden looks out on the woodland and fields of Deerpark Farm, where it is common to see the deer strolling by in the early morning, and the rose-filled front garden is perfect for relaxing on a sunny afternoon with plenty of space for the kids to run around. The property sleeps up to six in three bedrooms, all with garden views. It has a bright, airy kitchen, dining room and living room with wood burner, and is ideal for dog owners with some amazing walks nearby.
Not only does Eagles Gate Lodge enjoy its own sunny microclimate, it is also set within the stunning grounds of the former Duff House estate, once owned by the Duke of Fife. Indeed, this surprisingly spacious Grade A listed cottage was once one of the lodge houses for the estate and enjoys an enviable location in the countryside, yet only a mile from Duff House itself and all the amenities of Banff and its quiet, sandy beaches.
The towns of Banff and Macduff, only a couple of miles away, sit on either side of Banff Bay where you can regularly see dolphins and even the occasional Orca whale during the summer months. Banff has a marina and Macduff a fishing harbour, and both towns have a number of pubs and excellent places to eat offering a variety of cuisines including vegan and seafood. Additionally, the nearby Deveron is a salmon river where day tickets can be purchased. It is a great base to explore the wider Aberdeenshire area, from the numerous castles and historic monuments, to fantastic outdoor activities along the beautiful noth-east coastline. Explore the Whisky Trail further inland which wends its way through dramatic scenery, or visit the city of Aberdeen, approximately 1 hour away, for retail therapy, cinemas and theatre. Beach 2 miles. Shop, pub and restaurant 2 miles.
Suitable for up to 2 pets
Reviews (20)
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Natalie
We had an amazing time at eagle gate cottage, it felt like home. Good amount of space for 4 adults and two teenagers and two dogs and an assistant dog. My mum had limited mobility, my parents stayed in the front double bedroom, it had a small hallway where the front door was, this accessed the front enclosed garden space and was a very good space for the dogs to run around. The hallway then went through to the lounge area and then through to the second hallway where we could access the kitchen, the bathroom and the dining room, off the dining room were the other two bedrooms, a double bedroom and the twin room (this was small but it was sufficient for sleeping and chilling with their laptops/ipads). The kitchen was very long and spacious, the kitchen has a fridge freezer, a washing machine and a dishwasher. The owners supplied dishwasher tablets and fairy pods, we had our own though) The cottage has most things you would need to live there, we found everything was there that we needed for the 9 days we stayed. The owners provided a hamper of things to get you started (tea, coffee, sugar, sweetener, snacks, jam, butter and milk, plus wine) the dogs even got a little hamper (there was towels for drying them with, dog poo bags, a toy and a jar of little treats) they provided a dog food bowl and water bowl. All the plates and glasses are in the dining room cupboard, as we did have a good look in the kitchen and thought surely they provided those. We did have to buy some sponges, for washing up and cleaning when leaving, but the cleaning products were provided. Banff is 5 minutes down the road, there is a Tesco express which has most things, it says superstore but it’s not our version of a superstore. We enjoyed the light house fish and chips which do deliver (£7 though) or you can collect, they just need help with finding it as it is really dark at the end of the driveway and they can’t always seem to see the sign. Potentially by the gate it could do with a better spotlight as it was quite dark. The bungalow has a back garden off the kitchen, again a good size, enclosed if you close the driveway gate but we did have medium size dogs who couldn’t get through the gate bars. Again perhaps chicken wire across the bottom could be added to really enclose the whole area for small dogs. The lounge has lots of channels and we found the internet quite good considering we had two teenagers playing games such as Roblox, the tv which you can login into Netflix etc and then phones attached, it could stall a little when everyone was using it, but not that much. The lounge had a log burner and the owners provided all the wood etc. It did smell like Smokey bacon on the last occasion we used it so we wonder if perhaps it needs cleaning out or their might have been something stuck in there cooking. Areas needing attention:The kitchen oven door needs the hinges tightening as the door doesn’t close fully, making the buttons/metal area scolding hot, also makes cooking time longer. The owners book says click once to the left for the oven but we found this turned the grill on and we did end up with crispy pizza. We found that 4 clicks left turned the oven on and the dial markings have either gone or barely readable, straight down is 160 and slightly up from that is 180, you can just about see it. The bathroom needs resealing (didn’t effect us at all, lovely shower and temperature) make sure people haven’t turned off the water heating switch trying to find the kitchen light, it’s the first switch in the hallway. The bath seal has gone and this allows water to go down the side, so will cause damage to the walls/floor. Bits of mould need addressing in the paintwork on the ceiling, needs sorting and painting properly to avoid damage to ceiling. The side seemed to be nowhere near the seal that had been put down. The shower handle was easy to turn on when it went on, but really difficult to turn off. Also the bath plug we had to use a knife to just lift the edge as the turning knob as it wasn’t lifting it. The two double bedrooms, one had a slight damp smell and the corner seemed to produce a lot of condensation on the drawers, don’t put your phone etc on it. The second double bedroom window latch was broken and this meant it didn’t close fully and was drafty. We put towels along the gap. Our stay was from 20th-29th Dec so cold and frosty weather. The heating worked well, but it definitely couldn’t be on the on and off time limit, the cottage does not retain heat very long, also the extra hour didn’t provide enough heat either, it was better managing it through the thermostat ensuring the cottage stayed warm when needed otherwise we would have frozen. The light out the front garden by the door is not working. We would definitely stay again, probably in the warmer weather if the window problem isn’t addressed but it didn’t ruin our stay, we just had to make adjustments. And we had the most relaxing and enjoyable stay together. It is so quiet, the cottage is set back a little from the a97 and you do hear the odd vehicle go past, but from inside you don’t really hear it to disturb you or your sleep, unless you were trying to hear it. I thoroughly loved my stay, I felt like I was at home and wasn’t bothered by any other people, which is what we wanted.
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Nicola
This is our third visit to Eagles Gate Lodge. Great location and comfortable accommodation. Owner extremely helpful and there’s always a good stocked welcome pack and flowers. There was a slight issue with the oil tank however the owner responded promptly and resolved the issue. Lots of wildlife around the lodge and the garden is just beautiful even in autumn.
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Shirley
Lovely cottage set in beautiful countryside. Cottage is lovely and on the whole has been well appointed. There was only three of us and if we had slept to capacity we would have struggled with the small bathroom as did one of our party in terms of accessibility. Somewhere to sit for the ladies to get ready would have been great as would a few more electrical sockets/extension leads un the bedrooms. The garden was perfect for our dog as it was totally enclosed. Nice touches like a welcome basket, dog basket and outdoor seats.