Another Place – the collection of active oriented lifestyle hotels that creates new guest experiences from stargazing swims to treehouse baths – is set to grow in 2024. Today it announces its first hotel in Scotland.
Terms have been agreed to add The Machrie to the Another Place collection. The hotel is located on the Isle of Islay, “the Queen of the Hebrides” and consists of 47 bedrooms and lodges, along with a world-renowned championship links golf course built along the beach at Laggan Bay, with rolling dunes and abundant wildlife.
The planned acquisition follows the success of a month-long pop-up in August 2023. This collaboration crystallised the opportunity of The Machrie’s incredible location and property for the Another Place brand, which focuses on introducing guests to memorable experiences in wild and elemental settings, before coming inside to good food, drink and company.
Says Ben Harper, Another Place CEO: “At our first hotel, Another Place, The Lake, on the shore of Ullswater in Cumbria, this includes everything from full moon and waterfall swims to sunset kayaks, dawn red deer hikes, lakeside yoga and firepit cocktails. With a permanent home on Islay, we look forward to showing guests links golf, fatbiking along empty beaches, and walking 200ft sea cliffs while looking out for golden eagles, dolphins and minke whales.”
The Machrie’s famous links course has an impressive history of being played and shaped by many golfing greats, while also opening up the sport and welcoming new players. The Another Place team looks forward to taking this heritage into an exciting new era, enabling experienced golfers and total novices alike to make the most of The Machrie’s course, while inviting a broad new mix of guests to reimagine their perceptions of what golf can be.
Continues Harper: “The Machrie is the perfect fit for Another Place, providing a stunning island setting for active yet relaxing breaks, from wildlife boat trips to whisky tasting, sea loch oyster shacks to surf spots. The island really struck a chord the moment we stepped ashore for the first time. We’re excited to share that feeling with our growing Another Place community, while also bringing lifestyle hospitality to the golf market and expanding The Machrie’s offer to include a range of other outdoor experiences.”
Ullswater growth: new country pub
Following the success of Outside – which extended the Another Place, The Lake guest experience into its gardens and lake shore with a treehouse, shepherd huts and Glasshouse in 2021 – the hotel has also acquired a pub on the hill just behind it, the Brackenrigg Inn.
With a bar, rooms, meadows and expansive views across Ullswater, this traditional country pub will be refurbished to reopen in February 2024. The Brackenrigg will build on the property’s local heritage to create a warm and welcoming gathering place, where guests, locals and walkers can enjoy the best of the region’s food and drink and, in time, beer from its own microbrewery along with produce from its kitchen gardens and orchards (planned for the stage two development).
Adds Harper: “The Brackenrigg gives us the opportunity to evolve what we have created on Ullswater, adding another dimension to the experience at Another Place and creating deeper connections with the community we’re part of. We’re also creating new team accommodation, helping to future-proof the business and further building on the culture we’ve developed during our B Corp journey.”
Expansion and consolidation
David Vaughan, General Manager at Another Place, The Lake since August 2020, has been promoted to hotels director, with responsibility for all operational and brand delivery across the two hotels. The Another Place team is also pleased to welcome Ian Ferguson – previously general manager at Dundonald Links and hospitality director at the exclusive Loch Lomond golf course – as the new general manager at The Machrie from August 2023.
These significant developments for the Another Place group also mean that it has decided not to pursue growth in Hampshire, and will be selling its property at Amport House.
Explains Harper: “During the delayed planning process over the last 30 months, we have doubled down on what the Another Place brand stands for, and have decided to focus on other opportunities. It has been a privilege to work on this unique property and we’re very grateful for the support from the local community. We hope to find a buyer who can deliver the exciting plans we’d developed for this unique location.”
