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Voykit pocket guide · United Kingdom
Blairgowrie & Rattray
Blairgowrie
Give it one night as a soft Highland edge: riverside mill walk, golf, raspberries in July, Glenshee or a distillery in the afternoon.
Blairgowrie and Rattray sit either side of the River Ericht, 16 miles north of Perth on the A93, and are the last town of any size before the road climbs to Glenshee and Braemar. The draw is soft rather than spectacular: a riverside walk past old flax and jute mills, three golf courses, berry farms in early summer, and easy access to Glen Isla, Alyth and the southern Cairngorms. Most visitors use it as a single overnight stop between Perth and the Highlands, or as a base for walking and fishing rather than a destination in itself.
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Local name
- Blairgowrie
- Best months
- May–Sep
- Avoid
- Nov–Feb (short days, ice on the glen roads)
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- GBP
- Money
- Currency is the pound sterling (GBP, £). Cards and contactless work almost everywhere; some places are card-only.
- Daily spend
- Budget £45–70 excl. bed · Mid £70–120 excl. bed · High £120+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- EE, Vodafone (merged with Three in 2025) and O2 run the networks; prepaid SIMs sell in supermarkets, phone shops and airport vending machines, no registration needed.
- Emergency
- Police, fire, ambulance 999 or 112 · NHS non-urgent 111 · Police non-urgent 101
- Plugs
- Types G · 230 V · 50 Hz · Three-pin Type G only; European, US and Australian plugs need an adapter. Bathrooms have two-pin shaver sockets only.
- Tipping
- Restaurant with table service: 10–12.5% if no service charge is on the bill; check before adding more.; Pub or bar: Not expected; 'and one for yourself' offers the bartender a drink.; Taxi: Round up or 10%.; Hotel porter: £1–2 per bag.; Tour guide: £5–10 per person for a day tour; free walking tours expect £10–15.
- Water
- Tap water is safe everywhere. Free refills are common; restaurants will bring tap water if you ask.
- Toilets
- Public toilets are scarce and some charge 50p–£1 or are card-only. Stations, museums, department stores and pubs (if you buy a drink) are the fallback.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | £3–4.50 |
| Pub main course | £12–20 |
| Pint of beer | £4.50–6 |
| Fish and chips | £10–15 |
| Taxi within town | £6–10 |
| Caravan park hook-up pitch, per night | £32 |
| eSIM or data SIM, about a week | £8–20 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- EDI · Edinburgh
- Train to Perth then Stagecoach bus 57; about 2 h 30 min door to door
- GLA · Glasgow
- Train to Perth then bus 57; about 3 h door to door
Typical fares
- Bus 57 Blairgowrie → Perth
- about 50 min, every 30 min (check the fare)
- Bus 59 Blairgowrie → Dundee
- about 55 min, hourly (check)
- Taxi within Blairgowrie
- £6–10 (check)
Get around
The town itself is walkable in 15 minutes end to end. Bus 63 orbits Blairgowrie and Rattray every 30–60 min. For Glen Isla, Glenshee, Meigle or the distilleries you need your own car or a taxi: Coysie, WH Taxi, Blairgowrie Taxis and Faisal all run locally (numbers via the town's taxi firms, check current).
See and do
Known for
- River Ericht mill walk
- Raspberries and strawberries in early summer
- Blairgowrie Golf Club
- Gateway to Glenshee and Glen Isla
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Perth | Stagecoach bus 57 from Blairgowrie, every 30 min | About 50 min |
| Dunkeld and Birnam | Car on the A923, or train from Perth | About 30 min by car |
| Pitlochry | Car via the A9, or bus to Perth then train | About 1 h by car |
| Glenshee and Braemar | Car on the A93 over the Cairnwell | About 1 h to the ski centre |
| Alyth | Car or taxi, 5 miles north-east | About 15 min |
| Aberfeldy | Car via the A9 and A827 | About 1 h |
Sleep
- Blairgowrie town centre
- Wellmeadow and Allan Street: hotels, pubs and the bus stops within a 5-minute walk.
- Rattray
- Across the river: B&Bs, the caravan park and Hatton Road, quieter but still walkable to town.
- Countryside and Alyth
- Kinloch House, Meikleour and Alyth guesthouses; you need a car or a taxi for evenings out.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Thank you | Thank you |
| Please | Please |
| Could I have the bill, please? | Could I have the bill, please? |
| Is there a bus to Perth? | Is there a bus to Perth? |
| Where is the river walk? | Where is the river walk? |
| Can I pay by card? | Can I pay by card? |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake at first meeting; 'hi' and first names quickly; avoid: Cheek kisses with strangers
- Conversation: Weather is a safe opener; understatement and self-deprecating humour; avoid: Asking about salary or class
- Queues: Join at the back; avoid: Pushing onto buses or trains before others get off
- Apologies: 'Sorry' is said constantly, even when not at fault; avoid: Taking it as an admission of blame
- Pubs: Buy rounds in a group; wait at the bar without waving money; avoid: Clicking fingers at staff
- Nations: Call Scots Scottish and Welsh Welsh; avoid: Calling the whole UK 'England'
Scams and watch-outs
- Bus 60 from Dunkeld is a school service only, twice a day Monday–Friday: do not plan around it.
- Bus 71 up Strathardle runs three times Monday–Saturday and does not reach the Glenshee ski area.
- Mobile signal is basic EE with 4G from O2, Three and Vodafone; 5G has not reached the area.
- Glen roads ice over in winter; check conditions before driving the A93 over the Cairnwell.
A quiet, low-crime small town. The real risks are the fast A93 through town, ice on the glen roads in winter and long, dark evenings with no street lighting on the riverside paths.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Blairgowrie & Rattray yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- River Ericht mill walk
- Raspberries and strawberries in early summer
- Blairgowrie Golf Club
- Gateway to Glenshee and Glen Isla
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- VisitScotland — Perthshire: www.visitscotland.com/places-to-go/perthshire
- Stagecoach East Scotland — timetables: www.stagecoachbus.com/
- Blairgowrie Golf Club: www.theblairgowriegolfclub.co.uk
- Wikivoyage: Blairgowrie & Rattray, revision 5215679 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5215679
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Blairgowrie & RattrayBlairgowrie
To this address, please
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police, fire, ambulance999 or 112
- NHS non-urgent111
- Police non-urgent101
No embassies here; the nearest US consulate-general is in Edinburgh, and most other countries have consulates in Edinburgh or embassies in London.
English is the everyday language; a few Gaelic place names appear on signs.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/blairgowrie-and-rattray). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.