When Rob Beaton and partner Tracey Horton got engaged earlier this year, there was only one place the Perthshire couple wanted to have their wedding.
Culdees Castle, near Crieff, will be the venue for their big day next summer.
And why not? Tracey and Rob have spent more than £1.6 million on buying and renovating the castle, which they bought in 2019.
“What’s the point in having a castle if you can’t get married in it,” Tracey said.
The project to renovate the castle is a massive undertaking that will take the couple several years to complete.
They first completed extensive work on the grounds and the courtyard before restoring the dilapidated kitchen.
Now their attention has turned to the chapel.
She added: “Our focus has shifted a little bit because we’re now restoring the chapel above the kitchen.
“We want to be the first ones to be married in it.
“We had agreed we wouldn’t put any deadlines on the projects we’ve been working on.
“Now we definitely have a pretty big deadline.”
£250,000 spent so far this year
The couple, who will tie the knot on August 18 next year, were engaged at their ‘doer-upper’ project castle.
Tracey said much work is still to be done at the castle before then.
Tracey said: “We had a wedding on April 14 and that was the first time anyone had cooked in the kitchen for a long time. That was pretty cool.”
A whisky snug has also been opened on the grounds. Tracey wants to organise tastings with local distilleries from this summer.
She also hopes to have afternoon teas available from the summer.
The project has so far cost the couple almost £500,000 on the renovation work.
That is in addition to £360,000 on the installation of four glamping huts and £740,000 on the purchase of the castle.
Plans for weddings, glamping and staff?
Longer-term, they have taken bookings for four weddings next year – not including their own – and will host eight in 2024.
Tracey said the glamping pods on the estate are fully booked for the summer season.
She is still considering hiring staff to help run those.
“We have planning permission for another pod,” she said.
“One of the only reasons we haven’t done anything with that is it would be too much for mum and I to manage.
“We would need to employ someone, and then we’re in a bit of a vicious cycle.
“We need the glamping for us to put money into the renovations, but we’d then be losing money to an employee.”
Tracey and Rob plan to organise private dining events to offset the cost of the renovations.
“Every room we renovate has got to earn its keep,” she said.
Culdees Castle: A history
The castle was designed and built in 1810 for Charles Drummond, whose clan was rewarded for fighting with Robert the Bruce.
But abandoned and unloved for more than half a century, it fell into serious disrepair.
A third of the roof was missing and there was extensive damage inside the 18-bedroom four-storey property.
Conversation