Historic Ballroom to provide a festive setting for seasonal dining and Highland hospitality
Blair Castle will welcome guests to its historic Ballroom this December for a series of Christmas lunches, offering the opportunity to enjoy seasonal dining in one of Scotland’s most distinctive historic settings.
With its rich architectural character and long history, Blair Castle provides a memorable setting for a festive gathering. For the occasion, the grand Ballroom will be dressed for Christmas, with sparkling trees, open log fires and the sound of a pianist accompanying lunch. Guests will be welcomed to the castle by a traditional piper, followed by Prosecco and canapés before taking their seats for a three-course lunch prepared by the Castle Kitchen.
The lunches bring together the atmosphere of the castle at Christmas with a menu celebrating seasonal ingredients and the produce of Perthshire and the wider estate.
Kirsty McConnell, Marketing Manager for Blair Castle & Atholl Estates, said: “Blair Castle is a particularly special place to celebrate Christmas. The Ballroom has a wonderful sense of history and occasion, and seeing it decorated for the festive season, with the fires lit and guests gathering together, makes it a very special setting for lunch. We want people to enjoy not only the food, but the whole experience of spending time in the castle, from the traditional piper’s welcome to the music and the atmosphere of the Ballroom.
“We have also worked with our kitchen team to create a menu that reflects the season and makes the most of the produce available to us. It is lovely to be able to bring ingredients from our own Hercules Garden into the dishes, alongside local produce, and to incorporate our Blair Castle 12-year-old whisky into several elements of the menu. These details give the lunch a connection to the place itself, as well as making it an opportunity to enjoy good food and Highland hospitality in a setting that is quite unlike an ordinary Christmas lunch.”
The menu includes a number of traditional festive favourites alongside seasonal alternatives. Roast turkey crown, basted under the skin with Drambuie, sage, onion and mace butter and served with all the trimmings, sits alongside beef sirloin with Yorkshire pudding, pan-roasted hake with a cranberry, chestnut and herb crumb, and a wild mushroom, cranberry and chestnut Wellington.
Produce from the castle’s Hercules Garden features in several dishes. Apples are used in the winter-spiced red cabbage served with the main courses, while garden-grown plums feature in the traditional plum pudding. Blair Castle’s own-label 12-year-old whisky also brings a distinctive note to the menu, appearing in the Marie Rose sauce served with the prawn cocktail, the peppercorn sauce accompanying the beef sirloin and the Cranachan trifle.
Dessert choices include plum pudding, Cranachan trifle and chocolate orange yule log, while guests can also choose a selection of Scottish cheeses, served with oatcakes, homemade fruit bread, quince paste and grapes. Tea and Glen Lyon coffee complete the meal.
The lunches offer an opportunity for family and friends to come together in the warmth and character of the castle, enjoying the traditions of the festive season in a historic setting.
Blair Castle’s Christmas lunches will take place on Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 December, and Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 December 2026. Two sittings will be available on each date, with guests arriving at 12 noon for a 12.30pm lunch, or at 1pm for a 1.30pm lunch.
Tickets cost £65 per adult and £30 per child aged 12 and under. Advance booking is required, and all bookings must be made by 30 November 2026. Guests must also submit their menu choices and advise of any allergies by this date.
For further information and to book, visit: https://atholl-estates.co.uk/
