Scotland | Why you should try dog friendly glamping at Ecocamp Glenshee

For Gordon's birthday this year we decided to get away. We wanted somewhere not too far, with picturesque scenery and walks nearby, deciding eventually on a dog friendly glamping trip in Scotland. When I stumbled upon Ecocamp Glenshee, and read all about their llamas, we were sold!

*This article may contain affiliate links, meaning I will earn a small commission from any sales at no extra cost to you.

Llama, donkeys and dog - glamping in Scotland

Arriving at Ecocamp Glenshee


As an ecocamp, the site is kept purposely dark to reduce the amount of light pollution. This means it's super dark, especially at this time of year, so you need to bring a torch to get around! It's 100% worth it though - what's better than toasting marshmallows on the campfire looking up at the stars?

Breakfast on the porch - a dog friendly glamping pod

We followed our SatNav's directions along a dark, winding country road and parked up at Ecocamp Glenshee's sign posted car park. A short torch lit walk uphill leads to the reception/house. Ring the bell and you'll be greeted by the welcoming owners. We were given a wee tour of the site and shown to our home for the weekend. You can take your car up the driveway to unload your bags, then return it to the main car park. 

Inside a romantic pod at Ecocamp Glenshee

Dog friendly glamping options


Ecocamp Glenshee offer a range of dog friendly glamping options including shepherds huts, a goods wagon, The Howff which sleeps up to 10 people and wooden wigwam pods of various sizes. We stayed in a "Romantic Pod" for two and had just enough room for all our belongings and Harley's bowls and blanket.

Dog sleeping on the porch
Toasting marshmallows outside our glamping pod

Inside the pod was a King size bed, two wicker chairs (which we moved onto our little porch to sit out in the evenings), bedding and towels, an electric heater, lights and kettle. Plus a wee basket full of wine glasses, mugs and Fairtrade tea and coffee. Outside we had our own picnic bench and an upcycled firepit made from an old washing machine drum. For £10 they provided everything we needed to light the fire, along with marshmallows for toasting!

Deer shaped light on the Bothy
Black lab heating up in front of the stove

The Bothy


While it was nice to wrap up warm and sit by the fire, cooking meals outside in November would have been a nightmare. Fortunately we had access to The Bothy; an outhouse kitted out with a wood burning stove, two double burners for cooking, a fridge and sink complete with everything you need for washing up, plus pots and pans, plates and all sorts of utensils for cooking. Like the rest of the campsite, dogs are welcome inside too.

Me and Harley in the Ecocamp bothy - it's dog friendly too!
Playing Aberdeen Monopoly in the Bothy

It also houses a few books and board games so if the weather takes a turn for the worst at least you have something to keep you amused indoors. We'd brought our own Monopoly (the new Aberdeen edition!) and spent our evenings sipping red wine and beer over dinner and fighting over ownership of Marischal College, before returning to our pod to light the firepit.

Fresh eggs on toast in the Bothy at Ecocamp

On our first morning we simply boiled the kettle in our pod and enjoyed porridge pots on the porch for breakfast. However our second morning was fuelled by eggs, sunny side up, devoured in the bothy. You can help yourself to fresh eggs from the camp's hens, which are collected and left in the bothy - just pop your money in the honesty jar.

Chickens roaming around the campsite

Toilets and Shower Blocks


Glamping in November is all fun and games til you realise you have to go out into the cold every time you need to pee! Luckily the toilet and shower block at Ecocamp Glenshee is insulated and heated. There's a large space with multiple toilets and showers, a separate family shower room, and tucked around the side is an extra ladies room which was pretty much a normal bathroom. I opted to use this one mostly as it offered extra privacy and didn't seem to be occupied often.

The toilets are well stocked with loo roll, soap and towels, and never seemed to run out of hot water. They're not particularly modern or nice looking but are well looked after and always clean.

Llama at Ecocamp Glenshee

Llama trekking


While it's an excellent dog friendly glamping site near the Cairngorms, Ecocamp has another attraction... it provides a home to four llamas! Every morning we woke up to these guys peering over the fence and it made my day. If you want to get to know them a little better, you can actually book a llama trekking experience, where you get to feed them and lead them on a picturesque walk in the surrounding countryside.

If you've been paying attention to my photos you'll have noticed they're not the only resident animals on the site. We also met two inquisitive donkeys, a goat and lots of chickens of all shapes and sizes.

Donkey at Ecocamp Glenshee

Exploring the area


When you're done swooning over the animals, there's plenty to get out and see nearby. Less than an hour's drive away is Dunkeld with it's beautiful Aran bakery, or head West towards Pitlochry and enjoy lunch at the Moulan Inn and brewery. The Queen's View at Pitlochry is well worth a stop and even has a visitor's centre. However, I recommend a stop just up the road for a gentle stroll around Allean Forest.

Sculpture on Allean forest walk

A must visit is Glenshee Ski Centre - only 25 minutes away from Ecocamp. Hit the slopes in winter if the snow is plentiful, otherwise bag yourself a couple of munros. The Cairnwell munros are known as some of the easiest to bag due to the high starting point of the ski centre's car park, but always take care in the hills - be prepared for anything.

The drive to Glenshee Ski centre
Warming up with a hot drink at Glenshee ski centre

Alternatively, for one of the most beautiful views I've ever seen, you need to head to Glen Doll car park and follow the sign posted Corrie Fee trail. You won't regret it! In good conditions you could even extend this walk to bag Mayar and Driesh.

Tree pose at Corrie Fee

So if you're interested in some dog friendly glamping in Scotland, Ecocamp is ideal. It has everything you could hope for in a campsite and is set in one of the most stunning parts of the country, so you and your pup will love going out for walkies! We had the most perfect weekend there and hope to return in the summer to finally bag those munros.

We paid £96 for 2 nights in a romantic pod for two in November 2019. View the Ecocamp Glenshee website for pricing information.

You may also enjoy:

PIN THIS FOR LATER:

No comments:

Post a Comment