📌 Smailholm, Scottish Borders
★★★★
Still lived in by the Earl of Haddington, Mellerstain House is one of the grandest of all Scotland’s stately homes, even when compared to the scores of other magnificent mansions dotted around the Scottish Borders. This palatial masterpiece was designed in two separate stages in the 1700s by William Adam and later his even more famous son, Robert; unusually, the wings are about half a century older than the main house. We found the house tour to be extensive and impressive; the family only occupy the west wing, leaving most of the rest of the house to explore. The series of ground floor public rooms – with particularly fine ceilings – flowing seamlessly into each other via perfectly aligned doorways. Several upstairs bedrooms and the former servants’ quarters below complete the tour of the interior, but in good weather there’s far more to explore. The grounds are equally excellent, beginning with an Italianate terrace immediately below the rear of the house. Paths (muddy in places) lead across the ample lawns to an ornamental loch full of wildfowl, and to woodland trails through “The Glen” on the east side. To the north, the cute Thatched Tea Cottage is also worth a look, surrounded by its own rich garden.
🌍 Location
📌 Off minor road 2 mi north of Smailholm
🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NT 648391
🛰️ GPS coordinates: 55.644226,-2.561570
🚌 Infrequent bus stops on A6089 at house turnoff (1 mi)
🚗 Car park
📝 Key info
⌚ House open Friday to Monday, early April to September – by guided tour only, twice daily. Grounds: daily
🎫 £15 adult / £12.50 child
