A Girls’ Winter Weekend in Innerleithen: Walks, Warmth & Zero Rushing
- Fiona
- Jan 12
- 4 min read
Winter weekends away sound like a great idea… until you start trying to plan one. You want fresh air, but not icy misery. A spa, but one that doesn’t cost more than the weekend itself. Outdoor activities that feel fun and achievable — not like punishment. And accommodation that works just as well for four friends as it does for eight.
Innerleithen quietly solves all of that. Set in the Tweed Valley, it’s the kind of place where everything feels close, calm and manageable — ideal for a girls’ winter break that’s about reconnecting, not recovering.
Friday Night: Arrive, Exhale, Repeat
Arrivals tend to happen just as the light fades. Bags down, boots off, coats hung up with a collective sigh of relief.
One of the immediate joys of staying in Room in the Borders, Innerleithen, is that everyone has their own en-suite room. With seven beautifully designed rooms, it’s easy to accommodate anything from a small, intimate group to a larger gathering — without anyone having to draw the short straw on bathrooms.
The rooms are thoughtful and stylish, warm without being fussy, and designed to feel like somewhere you actually want to spend time. Each room also has its own micro-kitchen, which turns out to be a quiet hero of winter weekends:
Late-night cups of tea
Early risers making coffee without waking the group
Snacks safely stashed for post-walk hunger
Small details, big difference.
Friday night doesn’t need a plan. This is about switching off, opening something nice to drink, and settling into the weekend at your own pace.
Saturday Morning: Walk First, Talk Lots
One of the biggest advantages of Innerleithen is that you can walk straight into the hills — no driving, no faff, no debating who’s navigating.
After breakfast and layers, you’ve got options that feel satisfying rather than exhausting.
If you like your effort-to-reward ratio firmly in your favour, Lee Pen is a winner. It’s a manageable climb, but the views are unapologetically dramatic. Perfect for frosty mornings when you want to feel smug without being exhausted.
For something gentler, the Traquair circular offers riverside paths, woodland and open stretches — ideal for walking side by side and talking properly.
Back at base, muddy boots and damp layers are no issue — there’s dedicated storage for bikes and outdoor gear, which means wet kit stays out of bedrooms.
Late Morning: Coffee, Cake & a Gentle Browse
After walking, Innerleithen naturally shifts into a slower gear.
Coffee and cake taste better when you’ve earned them, and this is the moment to lean into warmth and sugar without apology.
A visit to Haus & Co is perfect for this part of the day — excellent coffee and beautifully curated Scandi-style homewares that invite a relaxed browse.
FINDRA is also well worth a stop. Their clothing strikes that rare balance between practical and stylish — ideal inspiration for future adventures (or just upgrading your winter layers).
This part of the day is deliberately unstructured. Lingering is encouraged.
Saturday Afternoon: Choose Your Reset
Winter weekends often force an awkward choice: outdoors or indulgence. Innerleithen lets you choose what kind of reset you need — without overcommitting.
Option 1: Half-Day Spa at Macdonald Cardrona
Warmth, pools, sauna, steam room. The full thaw-out experience. Affordable enough to feel like a treat rather than a splurge, and perfect if your body is quietly requesting horizontal time.
Option 2: A Mindful Bike Ride
For those who reset best through movement, Mindful Routes offers guided bike rides that focus on presence, scenery and enjoyment — not speed or Lycra levels.
Option 3: Gin Distillery Tour & Tasting
If relaxation looks more like learning and sipping, the 1881 Distillery offers sociable, low-key tours and tastings — just enough structure, plenty of flavour.
The key rule: pick one. This weekend isn’t about cramming everything in. You can come back again!
Saturday Evening: Cocktails, Pizza & No Logistics
As evenings go, this is blissfully simple.
Start with cocktails at Out Out, directly beneath the accommodation — stylish, relaxed, and wonderfully convenient.
From there, stay put for pizza or wander out to one of Innerleithen’s welcoming local restaurants. Either way, the luxury is knowing that at the end of the night, your bed is just upstairs.
No taxis. No debates. No drama.
Sunday Morning: Brunch Before Reality Returns
Sunday mornings are slow by design.
Breakfast at Out Out offers the choice between hearty comfort or something a bit lighter, alongside excellent coffee and one last long sit together.
Back upstairs, packing is unhurried. There’s time for a final chat, one more coffee in your weekend home from home, and that quiet feeling of having genuinely switched off.
Why Innerleithen Works So Well for a Winter Girls’ Weekend
Winter breaks are surprisingly hard to get right. Innerleithen makes it easy.
You get:
Walks that are beautiful but achievable, even in frosty conditions
Spa and wellbeing options that don’t blow the budget
Accommodation that works for small and larger groups, with privacy built in
Thoughtful design, practical storage, and space to actually relax
It’s warm, walkable, welcoming — and refreshingly low-effort.
Make it happen. We know winter getaways can feel like a lot of effort — so we’ve made this one easy. Book direct and take advantage of our special winter pricing, designed for short breaks and longer stays alike.
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