Choosing Where to Stay Near Kylesku and Scourie
Eddrachilles: A small hotel overlooking Badcall Bay
There is a turning point in Sutherland around the middle of August. Schools begin to return, family holidays thin out and the roads and paths settle into a slightly different rhythm.
The cuckoos left us weeks ago heading back to Africa. Puffins are leaving their coastal burrows for winter on the open sea, while swallows and house martins begin to gather before their own journeys south. Soon, other birds will arrive from further north, some to winter in Britain and others merely pausing on their way to the European Continent.
There is a subtle shift, too, in the reasons why people come. Those arriving now in Assynt and the north-west corner of Sutherland are often here quite deliberately: not simply passing through on a tour as so many do in July and August, but choosing to spend time in this wild and wonderful corner of the north-west Highlands.
If you are looking for somewhere to stay near Kylesku or Scourie while planning a journey through Assynt and north-west Sutherland, you have probably already found Kylesku. It is hard to miss: the sweep of the bridge, an icon of the North Coast 500 route, the meeting of sea lochs and mountains, and the possibility of seals in the water below.
Kylesku Bridge, part of the NC 500 route
What is less obvious, when faced with a map and a dozen open browser tabs, is how close Kylesku, Scourie and Badcall Bay are to one another. The places to stay are scattered in and around the two settlements: established hotels and B&Bs, together with a small number of self-catering cottages, pods and cabins. Each offers a rather different way of experiencing this sparsely inhabited coast.
We hear a version of the same story surprisingly often. Guests drive over from Kylesku or Scourie for dinner and, somewhere between the first course and coffee, tell us that they wish they had discovered Eddrachilles before deciding where to stay. Some subsequently return to stay with us; a few have even booked their next visit before leaving the dining room.
Eddrachilles Hotel, overlooking Badcall Bay. The Noerh Coast 500 route is the road sweeping through on the left overland to Kylesku. Assynt is the peninsula emerging in the distant.
It is a generous compliment. It also suggests that a little introduction may be useful for anyone currently comparing the possibilities.
Eddrachilles Hotel is a ten-bedroom former manse standing in its own grounds on Badcall Bay. For travellers following the North Coast 500, our driveway is directly off the A894, around two and a half miles south of Scourie and a short drive north of Kylesku. Eddrachilles is owned and operated by Fiona and Richard Trevor, it is not part of a chain of hotels.
Our rooms, lounges, bar and restaurant are all under one roof. Guests can spend time beside the bay before dinner, come downstairs to eat at The Glebe Kitchen and return to the lounges for coffee afterwards. For those choosing dinner, bed and breakfast, the evening requires no further planning and nobody needs to drive.
We hold three AA Silver Stars, while The Glebe Kitchen holds one AA Rosette. Our scale is deliberately small and personal, with a style of hospitality intended to suit the landscape: unhurried, generous and attentive without being intrusive.
The established hotels in Kylesku and Scourie are longstanding neighbours, each with its own character, setting and loyal following. There are B&Bs and Guesthouses too from the boutique to more traditional, homely sytles Alongside these are self-catering cottages and homes, pods and cabins/wooden lodges for those who prefer a more independent stay. Choosing among these possibilities is not a matter of finding one answer that suits everybody. It is about deciding what kind of stay—and what kind of evening—you would most enjoy.
Bedroom, ground floor, step free access. Overlooking Badcall Bay, Eddrachilles Hote
Eddrachilles may be right for you if you are looking for a small country-house atmosphere, cosy rooms, dog friendly, grounds running down towards the shore, and a stay shaped as much around dinner and time to settle as around the miles travelled during the day.
Thinking ahead?
For some, the prospect of autumn in the Highlands is beginning to appeal: quieter roads, changing colours and properly dark nights returning after the long northern summer.
Others, perhaps feeling the first hint of the post-holiday blues, are already looking towards next year and the long light of another Highland summer.
We are taking bookings for the remainder of autumn 2026 and throughout our 2027 season. September now has very limited availability, as does May 2027 on the sea view rooms, , but it is still worth speaking to us if your dates are flexible. Please note that our sea view rooms and our best value rates including Dinner Bed and Breakfast, step free access, Single Occupancy rate, and discounts for longer stays, are not available through OTA such as Booking.com. Those can only be booked directly with the hotel. Start with an enquiry if you prefer.
Explore our rooms and rates or get in touch with us directly. We are always happy to help you decide whether Eddrachilles is the right place for your time in the north-west Highlands.
Tonight, 17 August, true night darkness returns briefly to the skies over Badcall Bay for the first time since April. We wrote about its return in When Night Falls Again.
