24 Hours in St Andrews, a Hoose Lets Guide

So you're based at Tappit Hoose or Neuk Hoose in Crail and you would like to spend the day in the near by St Andrews,  let us help you with our locals guide to the home of golf.

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Where to park

Free parking can be found in a large car park at the Petheram Bridge roundabout, on the A91 as you come into St Andrews from the west by the university buildings. You can park here for free all day and you are a quick 5 minute walk into the centre of town.

Alternatively you can park at the famous West Sands Beach and relive your own Chariots of Fire moment.

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 On the beach aside from your sandcastle palace building and digging to Australia there is surfing, kite surfing and land yachting. Or a leisurly stroll with your four legged friend.

There is plenty of retail therepy on offer in St Andrews with a good mix of independent and luxury brands to choose from.

No visit to St Andrews would be complete without a visit to the British Golf Museum . 

The museum is a golf lovers paradise and has a stunning cafe with spectacular views back over the beach.

The Museum of the University of St Andrews (MUSA) is a modern, stylish and interactive museum celebrating the 600 year anniversary of the museum.

The Edenmill Distillery and Brewery, book yourself into a tour at Fife's famous gin distillery, need I say more! 

Where to eat in St Andrew's, Tappit's top three!

All this should have worked up quite an appetite so now all you have to do is decide what to eat! There are a wealth of dining options in St Andrews from fine dining to communal fodder!

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Here are some of our favourites:

-The Balgove Steak Barn, a fantastic quirky steak house serving locally reared steak all cooked on their open fire BBQ, a carnivore's paradise.

-Forgans, hidden away on the main drag on Market Street this releative newcomer marries industrial chic with good service, excellent local produce and an epic gin collection, what's not to like!

-The Seafood Restaurant, arguably the most stunning location for an eatery, pearched ontop of the rocks looking out across West Sands Beach and a mere 100 yards from the 18 green of St Andrews Golf Course, location doesn't get much better than this. Luckily the food more than lives up to the surroundings.

Now all that remains to do is enjoy!

 

Cambo Snowdrop Spectacular and Half Term fun

With half term fast approaching we are planning our activities while staying in our holiday house in Crail. The aim is to have lots of outdoor fun without breaking the bank and we are so lucky to have Cambo House and Kingsbarns beach on our doorstep.

Neuk Hoose and Tappit Hoose are self catering holiday accommodation properties in Crail, Fife and we are ideally located on the Fife Costal Path, 9 miles from St Andrews and 5 mins by car from Kingsbarns beach. Kingsbarns beach is one of our favourites, it's generally very quiet, great for the dogs and the kids and there is an added bonus of being able to eat one of the best cheese toasties around from The Cheesie Toast Shack.

Cambo House Snowdrop Festival

3 February to 12 March 2017
Snowdrop Festival
Our annual Snowdrop Spectacular!
Open daily 10am to 5pm

Thousands of snowdrops carpet the woodlands – National Collection of over 350 different Snowdrops – Feed the Piglets – Environmental Sculptures – Art / Craft Workshops and lot's more!
Entry - Adults £5.50 Children go FREE!

With over 350 varieties of snowdrop, winter gardens, walled garden, woodlands and wildlife, Cambo is the place for snowdrops and much more! Explore our creative family trails and herald the arrival of spring at our weekly craft activity drop in sessions. Go for a welly walk and play together at our brand-new nature playground. Our Wild Food Festival on 17 February will incorporate cosy campfire cooking and stories and active foraging around the Estate. Cambo Heritage Craft Festival on 26 February will showcase traditional skills and craft inspired by the natural environment in anticipation of the opening of Cambo Heritage Centre later in 2017. Finish with a visit to the snowdrop themed tea room and plant shop bursting with hellebores, snowdrops, aconites and more.

Friday 10 February 2pm
Stables Hard Hat Heritage Centre tour 
Enjoy a sneak preview of the restoration and development of the historic Cambo Stables complex – opening later in 2017.
Meet at the Cambo Stables

Saturday 11 February  10.30 –12.30
Playground launch - The Lost Elf Village
Parade and music making to herald the coming of spring and launch our new playground area.
Meet at the pPlayground.

Sunday 12 February 10.30 –12.30
Snow Drop Welly Walk
Meet at 10.30am for a walk in the woods stopping off for some crafty fun on the woodland journey.

Sunday 12 February 10am – 3pm
Designing the Modern Winter garden
One day course with Head Gardener Elliot Forsyth.

Friday 17 February 12noon – 4pm
Wild Food Festival 
Snowdrop storytelling sausage sizzle and foraging fun for half term.

Friday 17 February 2pm
Stables Hard Hat Heritage Centre Tour 
Enjoy a sneak preview of the restoration and development of the historic Cambo Stables complex – opening later in 2017.

Saturday 18 February 10.30 –12.30
Snow Drop in! 
Join us for imaginative arts & crafts in the woods inspired by a million snowdrops…

Sunday 19 February 10.30 –12.30
Snow Drop Welly Walk 
Meet at 10.30am for a walk in the woods stopping off for some crafty fun on the woodland journey.

Friday 24 February 2pm

Hard Hat Heritage Centre Tour
Enjoy a sneak preview of the restoration and development of the historic Cambo Stables complex – opening later in 2017.

Saturday 25 February 10.30 –12.30
Snow Drop in! 
Join us for imaginative arts & crafts in the woods inspired by a million snowdrops…

Sunday 26 February 10.30 –12.30
Drop Welly Walk
Meet at 10.30am for a walk in the woods stopping off for some crafty fun on the woodland journey.

Sunday 26 February 12noon – 4pm
Cambo Heritage Craft Festival
Trails, activities and displays celebrating traditional craft inspired by the natural environment in celebration of the development of our new Cambo Heritage Centre.

Things to do with the Kids in the Easter Holidays

Although it feel like we have just had the Christmas holidays, Easter isn't too far away and if you would like a week in a holiday house in Fife here is a list of things to keep the littles occupied. In no particular order and a good mix of indoor and outdoor activities all within an easy drive of our holiday cottage in Crail

St Andrews Aquarium  The aquarium has had a massive refurbishment and the new exhibit is due to open at the end of March, we can't wait!

British Golf Museum  Between the 25th and 28th March you can follow the children's trail around the museum find all the bunnies and you could win a prize!

Nibbles n Giggles This is a great new cafe with play area for children, dress up fun and lots of toys. We haven't been yet but it is next on our list.

Cambo Estate  The annual snowdrop spectacular is from the 3rd Feb - 12th March. Boring, the little people may cry but this is anything but, the lighting is indeed spectacular and if you go by day the children can follow the fairy map to run around the woods, rummer has it there are also some new baby piglets. This is honestly one of our favourite days out.

Craigtoun Country Park is another firm favourite, with the miniture train, pedal car area, awesome play area, paddle boats this is a great place for the kids to let off some steam. There is an easter event happening on Sat 15th and Sun 16th April.

Scotlands Secret Necular Bunker Hidden 100 feet underground, are you brave enough to descend the 450 ft tunnel and through the blast doors to reveal the secret bunker the size of 2 football pitches. Fascinating and well worth a visit.

Scottish Deer Centre  There's more than just deer! You can have a guided tour, trailer ride, Indoor play, adventure play, Kart track, Treetop and woodland walk.

Muddy Boots If all of the above still haven't tired them out yet head to just outside Cuper, its a winner! Jumping Pillow, soft play barn, pig racing, grass sledging, pottery painting, zorbing and adventure play. A really great shop and delicious cafe with an open fire, need I say more.....

Sat 8th April Dinosaur Detectives at the Carnegie Hall in Dunfermline
Sat 22nd April Justin's Party at the Alhambra Theatre Dunfermline

Hopefully there are lots of ideas here to keep your little darlings amused while you are staying at our self catering holiday accommodation in Fife.

Digital Detox

So we all know how important it is to be connected, with more of us than ever working remotely and expecting to be able to log in wherever we are. We have had a wifi connected holiday house for a while as we recognised how important it was for people to be able to keep in touch with work, perhaps that could even buy them a couple of extra days "working from home" or just to keep the teenagers happy, but at what cost?

Maybe it's time to schedule some swithched off time? To be honest Crail doesn't have the best mobile phone signal in the world but with wifi you can use wifi calls and there is no problem. What we are going to offer, (only to those who want it!!) is a digital detox holiday . Come and enjoy the fresh air, read a book, watch nature, take a step back from it all to properly recharge and unplug.
Picure yourself in front of the wood burning stove at Neuk Hoose, relaxing after a walk along a stunning beach, cup of coffee or dram of whisky, at peace.

If it all gets too much I can always tell you where I've hidden the router!

Crail Food Festival 2017

The dates have been announced for the 2017 Crail Food Festival this year it is on Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th June.
The full programme will be released in April so keep an eye out for what's going on, its a really great weekend and well worth a visit.
If you would like to stay locally for the festival, Neuk Hoose is already booked but  our new wee holiday house in Crail is availiable.

A Romantic Getaway

Earn some serious brownie points by booking a holiday cottage in Crail, Fife for Valantines Day.
Our holiday house in Crail is the perfect place to stay for your romantic costal getaway.
With a luxurious kingsized double bed in the spacious and tranquil bedroom and an open plan kitchen and living room Tappit Hoose really is a special place to get away to and show someone how much you care.
There are beaches to have romantic walks on, a plethora of fantastic restaurants for intimate meals, or  just enjoy soaking up the vibes of St Andrews together.

Ahh it all sounds like bliss to me, my darling beloved would probably be feeling rather pleased with himself for booking a Valantines break away and somehow sneak off to have a romantic walk along the golf course with his clubs. Oh well, a girl can dream.........
If this sounds more like your reality it is worth mentioning that Kingsbarns golf course is only a few miles away as is the totally amazing spa at the Fairmont hotel, everyones a winner!

How would you like a hamper?

Here at Neuk Hoose and Tappit Hoose we are thrilled to be teaming up with Ardross Farm Shop with the idea of supplying locally sourced and grown on the farm, meat, veg and fruit.

"Arrive to a mouth watering display of freshly picked vegetables straight from our farm. Our cabbages are so fresh they squeak, our broccoli sparkles with the morning dew and our freshly dug carrots perfume the air with a sweet earthy smell" There is freshly baked bread, local cheeses, biscuits, chutneys and much more besides. Please do get in touch if this is of interest to you and we can design your bespoke hamper ready for your arrival.

Just another thing we do to try to be Fife's best holiday cottage, so if it is a foodie holiday you are after, Neuk and Tappit Hooses are the ideal place to base yourself at.