AN historic estate in Musselburgh has become part of a luxury hotel collection following its acquisition by business group Clarenco.
Carberry Tower dates back to the 15th century and is the historic seat of the Elphinstone family. In the 1950s it played host to Queen Elizabeth when she was visiting Scotland, and in 1960 was gifted to the Church of Scotland, which ran it as an educational and conference retreat. More recently it has been run by a number of different charities for the same purpose.
The former owner, a charity called Gartmore House, extensively refurbished the property and since then Carberry Tower has established itself as a popular wedding venue.
Carberry Tower, originally the seat of the Elphinstone family, has joined Amazing Retreats.
The house itself contains 59 bedrooms as well as a chapel and recreation hall, and is set in 32 acres of ground. It was purchased by the Clarenco Group for an undisclosed sum and will now join the company’s Amazing Retreats portfolio, which also includes Ackergill Tower in Caithness as well as a number of properties in England.
The deal was negotiated by the Edinburgh office of property agents Colliers International. Alistair Letham, a director of the company, described Carberry Tower as “an exceptional and imposing property”. He added: “The property has been upgraded and refurbished to a high quality making it ideal to cater to [a] discerning clientele in the 21st century.
“This latest addition to the Amazing Retreats portfolio fills a gap in the distribution of the company’s properties throughout the UK and has the added appeal of being on the doorstep of Scotland’s capital.”
Other than Carberry Tower, the office’s recent sales have included Kirkmichael Hotel in Perthshire. Located in the village of Kirkmichael, the hotel has been refurbished extensively over the last two years by former owners Jo Morby and Peter Bonfield.
Morby and Bonfield are planning to stay in the trade following the sale of the hotel, and are currently looking for larger premises to acquire.
The Kirkmichael Hotel has five letting bedrooms, a bar/restaurant, separate restaurant/breakfast room and a residents’ lounge. New owners Danny and Christina Jones purchased the hotel after deciding to settle in Scotland.
A Colliers International spokesperson said that they purchased the hotel for close to the original asking price of £325,000.
