Cairngorms mountain biking short break, Scotland

Planet

Our business reflects our personal commitment to sustainability. We run this holiday from our home at Fraoch Lodge which we manage as resourcefully as we are able. A local recycling company picks up all our recycling including plastics.

The back garden supplies almost all our herbs and salad throughout the summer; we also dry our own herbs to keep us going all year round. We produce a large quantity of summer fruits and have converted as much of the garden to edible products as we can. We also supply all our own kindling supplies from the prunings in the garden and from donations by our neighbours. Our garden is managed organically with the help of volunteers on the WWOOF scheme.

The house is heated with a biomass boiler, plus 2 log burning stoves. All wood is supplied either from our garden or locally.

We encourage squirrels and local birds to visit our garden and have sighted Scottish Crossbills and Crested Tits.

We have designed this holiday to be car free to make this trip sustainable and stimulating.

We are committed to Leave No Trace and the Scottish Code of Outdoor Access.

Our accommodation on this trip (Fraoch Lodge) and the main tour operator who run the trip have both been shortlisted for the Goldstar Green Tourism Award 2013.

People

Our staff all live locally; in fact, most of your team live in house. We have extensive knowledge of the surrounding area and work with the best of all the local suppliers to put together your trip and organise any extensions which may be of interest.

We are members of the local Cairngorms Business Partnership which is a loose association of local businsesses who work together to promote the area.

We have worked extensively with local guides to expand our holidays and offer photography, geology and wildlife specialities.

We are also sponsors of the Cairngorm Snow White project.

We put 1% of our tour turnover towards the reforestation of the Abernethy Nature Reserve. This project is managed by our local RSPB team. Guests can see the results of our investment when they stay with us and explore the area.

We work in partnership with Walking with the Wounded to raise funds to support injured servicemen and women in their efforts to return to the workforce. Some of our trips are available as charity fundraisers.

Fraoch Lodge is decorated with pictures from our travels and augmented with the work of local artisans including the local pottery and our wood craftsman. Guests are encouraged to purchase any of the works in the Lodge or to visit the artisan themselves.