Spey Bay Pods

Six pods on a links course at the mouth of the Spey

Spey Bay Pods sits inside the grounds of Spey Bay Golf Club, on the shingle where the Spey runs into the Moray Firth. There are only six pods, so it never feels like a park, and each one has its own decking looking across the fairways towards the water.

The choice is between two kinds of pod rather than six. The Premium pods, named Macallan, Glenlivet and Aberlour, are self-contained: private en-suite shower room, a kitchenette with an induction hob, oven, microwave and fridge, and a breakfast bar. The Classic pods, Strathisla, Glenfiddich and Glenfarclas, have no bathroom of their own and use the clubhouse washrooms and laundry, which are open around the clock a short walk away. The Classic pods are the ones that take dogs, and they can be made up as a double or as twins.

What makes the setting is what is around it. The WDC Scottish Dolphin Centre is next door, admission free, and bottlenose dolphins do come into the bay to feed at the river mouth, along with seals and ospreys along the shore. The links course was laid out by Ben Sayers in 1907 and plays differently every day depending on the wind off the firth.

Good to know

Features

Location

Premium or Classic

Both come with bedding, towels, heating, wifi, a smart TV and private decking.

The Golf Course

The first tee is effectively at the end of the decking. Spey Bay is a proper traditional links, quieter and cheaper than the courses people fly in for, and the wind off the firth does most of the defending.

Where it puts you

Spey Bay sits in one of the most interesting parts of the Moray Coast because you can combine wildlife, coastal walking, golf and Speyside without travelling particularly far.
The nearby mouth of the River Spey is one of the best-known wildlife areas on the Moray Firth. The Scottish Dolphin Centre provides information about the resident bottlenose dolphins and the wider marine environment, and dolphins are often spotted from the coast around Spey Bay - although, as always with wildlife, sightings can never be guaranteed.

Fochabers is around 10 minutes away for shops and food, while Elgin gives you a larger town base and landmarks such as Elgin Cathedral. Travel east and you can explore Buckie, Findochty, Portknockie, Bow Fiddle Rock and Cullen.

Spey Bay also sits on the edge of Speyside whisky country, making distilleries including Glenfiddich, The Macallan, Aberlour, Glen Grant and Cardhu realistic day trips. Speyside is one of the world's most famous whisky-producing regions, with a remarkable concentration of distilleries around the River Spey.

If you want to explore the Moray Coast, Portgordon is known for seals around its harbour, while further along you reach Findochty and Portknockie. Just offshore from Portknockie is Bow Fiddle Rock, one of the most recognisable natural landmarks on the Moray Coast. Continue a little farther and you reach Cullen, with its beach, Seatown cottages and coastal paths. In the opposite direction, Lossiemouth offers sandy beaches, harbour walks and another excellent stretch of the Moray Firth coastline.