Scotland's breathtaking beauty

But could it really be true? I know from bitter experience that despite recently introduced tougher legislation, holiday brochures can - and do - still tell giant porkies.

Perhaps there is an unsightly electricity pylon just out of camera shot? Or, then again, a busy motorway lurking at the end of the garden?

So I hastily packed my travel bag and journeyed north to see if the picture was a mirage.

And I'm glad to report that, certainly in this case, the picture really did tell the story. In fact, in reality, the cottage's location turned out to be even better than that!

Port Elgol Cottage is one of the delightful self-catering properties featured by specialist operator, Discover Scotland, which, sur-prisingly, actually started its life as a tour operator based in a cottage in Perthshire some years ago.

The white-painted holiday cottage itself stands on a wild, pebbled shoreline of Cullin Sound on the Isle of Skye. It sleeps four comfortably and every room has panoramic views of stunning sea and mountain vistas.

The Victorian single-storey building was completely rebuilt in 1997 and there is an impressive natural stone fireplace and multi-fuel stove to complete a cosy picture of rural tranquillity.

In truth, the views alone have a truly hypnotic effect: you could quite happily spend your days gazing across Loch Scavaig to the range of the mighty Black Cullins, which almost permanently seem shrouded in a pale blue mist.

But your eyes will be constantly drawn to further adventure on the horizon itself with the magical outlines of the islands of Rum, Sanday, Canna and Soay tempting you to explore even further.

And no wonder, because the Highlands and Skye hold Scotland's highest mountains and the deepest lochs an area brimming over with superlatives as well as dramatic contrasts.

Inverness, for example, has all the trappings of a Highlands capital with excellent shopping, dining and theatre. But for me, it's the area's diversity that marks it out from the rest of Scotland.

There are legions of historical and spiritual sites. Lochs and canals and the newly-opened Great Glen Way, officially linking the country's east and west coasts, all demand to be explored.

Yet the most stunning features are the vast, almost unbroken, tracts of heather, spread out like giant, multi-coloured carpets fusing mountains to the rugged sky and shorelines. As if to underline its uniqueness, a stay at the Riverside Morar, at Mallaig, Invernesshire, offers the most extraordinary beach of pure, white silver sand just 50 yards from its front door.

The cottage sleeps six and, on reflection, it may have actually been designed to be the perfect holiday house. The rooms are all of a good size, sensibly laid out and have first class furniture.

The nearest pub and hotel is just a short walk away and the pretty town of Mallaig, two miles distant, offers a ferry link that will genuinely take you over the sea to Skye.

I was particularly impressed with Discover Scotland's no-nonsense description of each property in its brochure too. Locations are all clearly marked with details of the nearest hotels, shops, restaurants - if bed linen is included - and if pets are welcome.

So what do you get for your money? A week-long break, Friday to Friday, at Port Elgol Cottage, sleeping four, costs from £280 rising to £620 high season. Central heating and electricity costs are included.

And a week's stay at Riverside, with bed linen charged at an extra £7 per person, costs from £360 low season rising to £800.

But when you think you'll have the chance to see, first-hand, seals, sea eagles, ravens and at least 25 different species of birds that have been spotted from the cottages tiny windows, its cheap at the price!

However, for something really different, you could stay at Scotscalder Station by Halkirk, Caithness in the northern Highlands.

The property - once a combined station and stationmaster's house - won an award when it was sympathetically converted more than ten years ago.

It offers accommodation for five and you can relax on the platform and enjoy a passing wave and a whistle from friendly train drivers who pass regularly.

And here's something really novel: If you put your hand out, the train will stop and give you a lift to the private station at Dunrobin Castle, home of the Duke and Earls of Sutherland.

You can also have a nodding acquaintance with royalty as the late Queen Mother's home at Castle of Mey is just a few miles away.

If you are a fisherman, then you'll love the numerous trout lochs dotting the rolling countryside. Walkers can test their skills along paths bordering high dramatic cliffs with long, sandy beaches less than half an hour's drive away.

A break costs from £230 to £450 for a week, depending on the time of year, with heating and electricity charged by the meter.

There is an interesting range of properties on the Moray coast of Speyside and Grampian with endless beaches, quaint fishing villages and more whisky distilleries than you can count.

Moray Firth itself has a resident population of dolphins who regularly swoop and play along the coast from Findhorn to Cullen in Banffshire. Deep forests, roaring rivers and glorious glens make it an idea place if you are into walking or exploring - with a fancy for the odd dram or two!

Cottages booked for three nights or less are charged at 60 per cent of the weekly rate with additional nights at ten per cent of the weekly rates.

by Ken Bennett