January 2007 - Royal Visit

TRH The Duke and Duchess of Rothesay made a private visit to have a look around the cottages and courtyard. They were met by staff and directors and showed a keen interest in the project.

Both were amazed by the standard of facilities on offer and very impressed with our commitment to green tourism.

August 2006 - Corner Cupboard Charity Book Exchange

The Corner Cupboard at Balmoral generously donated the proceeds from its giving library. Customers can drop off their books when they are finished with them at the Charity Book Exchange and collect some more, donating a small amount for each book they take.

Maggie is pictured receiving a cheque for £50.00 from Denise Jones the proprietor of The Corner Cupboard.

May 2006 - Balmoral Road Race

Eight year old Beth Richardson from Crathie ran the 1,500m at the Balmoral Road races and raised enough money to buy a height adjustable basketball set and a swingball set.

Beth said “I’m really happy that the money I raised has been used for the children who come on holiday here ”

March 2006 - Green Tourism Award

We were delighted to receive a Gold Award for our “Green” practices.

We are committed to providing holidays in the most sustainable manner possible. Please look at our new Green Tourism web page.

September 2005 - Sponsored Walk  

On a very dreich and windy day eleven hardy folk and one dog set out to walk the 22 mile long Lairig Ghru, a mountain pass through the Cairngorms from Coylumbridge to the Linn of Dee near Braemar.

After eight long and weary hours we arrived in Braemar and were welcomed to the Gathering Place Bistro for much needed refreshments before staggering off for a long hot bath. We were delighted to raise enough money through our endeavours to be able to purchase two rise / recline armchairs.

August 2005 - Scotland’s First Minister Visits

We were delighted to welcome Rt Hon Jack McConnell, First Minister of Scotland, Ed and Maggie showed him around the cottages and courtyard.

He was very impressed with all the facilities and described Crathie Opportunity Holidays as “a guiding light to Scottish Tourism”

April 2005 - Service Achievement Award Gold Standard

We were one of a number of tourism businesses in the North-East to be presented with a Service Achievement Award for excellent customer service.

All of the companies involved have “United in Service” to offer visitors to this area a special experience - whether you are looking for your historic roots on the Castle Trail, fishing on the River Dee, eating out or playing a round of golf – in Aberdeenshire we can send you to places where Service is paramount and the Customer is valued.

Visit www.unitedinservice.co.uk to find other businesses committed to excellent customer service.

March 2005 - Bright Ideas in Service Awards 2005

We were once again rewarded for our commitment to excellent customer service at the Service in the City Conference in Glasgow. Maggie received an award as a finalist in the Bright Ideas in Service Awards 2005; the Visitor Attractions Book which she created helps to ensure that guests are provided with information about the accessibility of local visitor attractions.

The book is updated regularly using comments from guests who have experienced the attraction themselves and new attractions are added when recommended by guests or staff.

Maggie said “It’s always a pleasure to have our commitment to good service recognised, but what’s most important is that our guests enjoy their holiday in this beautiful area and are able to experience all that Royal Deeside and Aberdeenshire have to offer.”

October 2004 - Customer Care Self Catering Operator of the Year

We are delighted to have won this prestigious award from Visit Scotland. It is a fitting tribute to so many people who have supported and believed in our project over the last eight years. We would like to thank everyone who has helped us achieve our ims and contributed to our success.

Special thanks go to our brilliant Staff who work tirelessly to ensure that our guests are surprised and delighted by the Customer Care they receive at The Manse Courtyard.

Our dedicated staff team are Maggie MacAlpine, Helga Leader, Beth Chamberlain and Elizabeth Graham (from left to right).

September 2004 - Fundraising Silent Auction

Our fundraising group held a Silent Auction in Ballater to raise funds for two new height adjustable electric beds. Many of our guests have told us how beneficial these beds are for both the disabled person and their carer. We have ordered another two and by the beginning of next year we will have one of these in each cottage. The Silent Auction was such a success that we have also been able to purchase a sea-horse shower chair, which is an excellent addition to our range of special equipment and will be particularly useful for our younger guests.

Thanks to numerous donations throughout the year from a variety of people we have also been able to purchase a pressure relief mattress, which can be reserved at the time of booking. Each cottage has also been equipped with an over bed / chair table, which will be of great assistance to our guests.

April 2004 - Donation of Unique Weather Vane

This exceptional and unique feature has been gifted to us by Mrs Mary Cairncross of Perth who commissioned it especially for The Manse Courtyard from the artist blacksmith Morag Cumming who is based at The Smiddy, Keltneyburn, Near Kenmore in Perthshire.

The figure is St Giles, a 7th Century French Monk who made his home in a rough cave with only a hind for a companion. Legend relates that while the King was out hunting in the forest, he chased the hind into a thicket into which he fired and arrow. When the King went to retrieve the deer he found Giles, wounded by the arrow while trying to protect the hind. If you look at the figure you will see the arrow piercing St Giles.

As a result of his injuries St Giles endured the remainder of his life crippled and so became the Patron Saint of the Disabled.

February 2004 - Adventure Playground Opened

Thanks to a very generous donations from The Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland, to mark the Golden Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, we have been able to provide a wonderful adventure playground for our young (and not so young) guests.

It has a wheelchair accessible sandpit with lots of toys, swings, chute, bouncy animals, basketball hoop, swingball and a wheelchair accessible raised pathway through the trees. Situated right next to the patio and set within the grounds of the Manse Courtyard it provides a safe, relaxing place for children and adults.

November 2003 - Northern Lights Tourism Award

The winners of the inaugural Northern Lights Tourism Awards were announced at the AGM of Aberdeen and Grampian Tourist Board in November.

Crathie Opportunity Holidays is the winner of the Innovation category and received the award of a rose bowl sponsored by Scottish Enterprise Grampian for the most innovative product or business process that has not previously been delivered in a tourism category.

Christine Sloan is pictured with the award along with the winners from the other categories.

October 2003 - Holiday Fund Established

We have established a Holiday Fund which enables us to offer a complimentary holiday to people recommended to us by various charities, help groups, social work departments or health professionals.  So far we have enabled 6 families to enjoy the benefits of a holiday here in Royal Deeside. 

We would like to thank the following people and companies who have so generously supported the Holiday Fund: 

Glen Lui Hotel, Invercauld Road, Ballater, AB35 5PP

Total Hygiene, Bank House, 182 – 186 Washway Road, Sale, Cheshire, M33 6RN

CNR International UK Ltd, St Magnus House, Guild Street, Aberdeen, AB11 6NJ 

Many others have supported the Holiday Fund anonymously and we would also like to express our appreciation to those people and companies.

Gareth Brandon and his parents, Julie and David spent a week in Girnock cottage in March courtesy of our new Holiday Fund.

Gareth suffers from a very rare brain tumour Desmoplastic Infantile Ganglioglioma.To find out more about this condition please access Gareth's own website at:-

www.geocities.com/davb2141

August 2002 - The Official Royal Opening

On Tuesday 27th August 2002 HRH The Princess Royal declared The Manse Courtyard officially open and unveiled a plaque to celebrate the occasion.

June 2002

Dr Christine Barton, her partner Conrad and support dog Meg stayed in Gelder cottage for one week.

Their very welcome articles on the facilities and locality are informative and interesting, click here for their story.

May 2002 - Our First Guests

The Scottish Disabled Ramblers were the first guests to try out the new facilities in the cottages.

They had a wonderful week, combining their stay with walks and exploration of the local tracks and forests. It was a pleasure to have them and they provided us with useful feedback for future guests.

Quotes from the ramblers…….

" A bathroom to die for! "

" wonderful peaceful location and no worries about accessibility"

" a pity there isn't this quality of accommodation everywhere"

"The best feature of COH is the tranquility and the vision someone had to make it reality."

October 2001 - 'impromptu inspection from a distinguished guest without gumboots'

At the age of 101 years the Queen Mother visited the project during the development stage, expressing great interest in the proposed design and accommodation.

"Having this here will be good for people, it really is going to be beautiful. I think if you have room I could perhaps come and stay myself" she said.