Craggan Outdoors News

It’s a good time for the Scouts! The August prize draw winner was a member of a Scout group, & the name out of the hat at the end of September, Stuart Hamilton, was also part of a Scout group from Fife that stayed in the bunkhouse & went gorge walking in mid-September. So congratulations go to Stuart. He wins a £25 activity voucher to use on the activity of his choice on his next visit.

The monthly prize draw takes place from all the customer feedback forms that are received from people that spend time at Craggan Outdoors. All that complete the forms are asked to rate their various experiences with us on a scale of 1-to-10, 1 being terrible & 10 being fantastic. These scores are aggregated at the end of the month & an average rating is achieved, which for September worked out at a very strong 8.9 out of a 10.

With the season now almost at an end there will be one last monthyl draw at the end of October, & we will then move to quarterly draws over the quieter winter period.

In April Craggan Outdoors began asking customers to rate the quality of their experiences with us. Our customer feedback forms now enable a mark out of 10 to be given for each outdoor activity session undertaken, each stay in our bunkhouse & bothy, & each experience of our Clubhouse Cafe.

Having now analysed the results of April’s feedback, we are delighted to be able to publish the fact that the average score given was 9.3 out of 10, equating to a 93% rating.

We are aware that our fantastic team do a great job, but have to say that we very pleasantly surprised to score quite so highly. Quite a standard to uphold going forward. We will certainly be endeavouring to do so. Why not come along & experience the Craggan Outdoors customer service for yourself?!

Take a look at our TripAdvisor page if you’d like to see the kind of things that people are saying about Craggan Outdoors.

With the 2009 season fast approaching, it is getting round to time to start thinking about arranging accommodation if you plan to attend any of the wide range of events that take place across Strathspey from spring through to late summer & autumn. So whether you’re looking at the Aviemore & Cairngorms Walking Festival or Spirit of Speyside in May, the Outsider Festival at Rothiemurchus in June, Abernethy Highland Games or Thunder in the Glens in August, Motor Mania in September, or any of a host of further events across the Cairngorms & the wider Highlands, Craggan Bunkhouse & Bothy could be just the place that you’re seeking. Click on the ‘Accommodation’ menu above to see what we offer, & then get in touch! We look forward to hearing from you.

Four months after taking over Craggan Outdoors, owners Keith & Jill Ballam are pleased to announce that the renovation & redecoration of the 27-bed bunkhouse & 6-bed bothy accommodation is now complete.

The bunkhouse, originally converted from its former life as a farmhouse in 2007, has benefited from a top-to-bottom paint job, along with an upgrade of lighting, & the addition of storage units in the bedrooms, a drying area, & finishing touches such as curtains & blinds & an increased range of appliances & utensils in the kitchen. A growing library of magazines, books & games is also available.

The bothy, previously a typical bare stone walled building throughout, has quite literally been transformed inside. Now dry-lined & fully insulated throughout, a luxury bathroom fitted, lighting upgraded, & a finished off with light, bright paint-job like the bunkhouse, the bothy is now a fantastic little bolt-hole for small groups, or an extension of the bunkhouse for larger groups. Take a look at the accommodation pages of the website to check out the photo galleries of both properties.

Commenting on the achievement Keith said: “We are really pleased to be able to add what is effectively a new bunkhouse & a superb little bothy to the choice of accommodation in the Aviemore-Grantown area of the National Park.” He continued: “We’ve already been pleasantly surprised at the levels of enquiries & bookings that we’ve had since New Year, so now that we’ve officially ‘launched’ the accommodation as open, we are looking forward to an ever increasing quantity of enquiries. Sitting atop the Glenbeg Estate, yet only 5 minutes outside Grantown, & with golf, fishing & outdoor activities ‘on tap’, there really can’t be many better places to stay in Speyside, or indeed the whole Highlands!”

Following the recent addition of indoor climbing, massage and yoga - all available now! - Craggan Outdoors is pleased to announce that pony trekking will be a new activity for summer 2009. The pony trekking season begins at the start of May and runs through to October. Bookings are now being taken for a choice of 1 and 2-hour treks. For more details, click on the pony trekking page under the ‘Activities’ drop-down menu.

Why not make a day of it, and combine pony trekking with one or more other activities, along with a nice freshly prepared lunch in our Clubhouse Cafe?! Or even a ’stay and play’ break - overnight, for the weekend, or longer - that combines a stay in our recently renovated bunkhouse and bothy accommodation with your choice of activities. Tell us what you fancy and we’ll tailor a break specifically to meet your requirements.

Watch this space for further additions to Craggan Outdoors’ already wide range of exciting activities, with mini-quads (for 6-11 year olds) and grass sledging expected to follow in the spring.

Preparations for the 2009 season continue apace! As part of those preparations Craggan Outdoors is pleased to announce the addition of three new activities - indoor climbing, yoga and massage - that are all now available to book.

Indoor climbing now complements the outdoor rock climbing that the centre has long offered. The wall offers a great opportunity for those that are new to climbing to learn the basic techniques whilst away from the vagaries of the Scottish weather, and with the comfort of being just a few feet off the ground, with a padded floor for extra reassurance. Prices start at £25 per person for a 1 hour instructor-led session.

Yoga is renowned for promoting health & well-being, so we think that it’s a great fit (excuse the pun) with our more energetic activities.  Great for improving energy levels, muscle tone, joint mobility, suppleness and core body strength, yoga can be a perfect start or finish to a day, weekend or week of activities. Over the course of an hour, morning or afternoon, our qualified instructor will guide you through elements of a range of yoga styles, including Ashtanga, Iyengar and Shadow. Prices start at £20 for a 1-hour instructor-led session.

There can’t be a better way to recover from a day or weekend of outdoor exertion than with a massage. Our qualified masseuse can offer either a remedial and sports massage to aid recovery from the aches, pains and strains of activity, or a relaxing Swedish Ling massage to end your day in style. Indian head massage is also available. Prices start at £29 for a half-hour session.

Commenting on the new activities, owner and Managing Director Keith Ballam said: “We are really excited to have added these three new options to our already wide range of activities. We feel that they are an extremely complementary fit with what the centre already had on offer, and give enhanced quality and choice for new customers, whilst offering something new to try for repeat clients.” He concluded: “We expect to add another two or three activities by the start of the season at Easter, so watch this space for further announcements!”