Westhill

Westhill is a town in Aberdeenshire, seven miles west of Aberdeen. It was built as a "greenfield" commuter town and industrial park from 1968, and by 2020 had grown to a population of 12,110. So it's a bland modern place, yet it's set in a landscape of ancient stone circles and castles. It's also close to Aberdeen Airport and might make for a more interesting stop-over than the airport hotels.

Understand

Cullerlie Stone Circle

Scotland's postwar population increased rapidly and its existing housing stock was in poor condition, or in the wrong place as new industries replaced the old. The mid-to-late 20th century was an era of ambitious but not entirely successful house building, best known being the "New Towns" of Livingston, Glenrothes, Cumbernauld, East Kilbride and Irvine. There were also substantial developments expanding existing cities, and a few greenfield settlements that didn't follow the pattern of the New Towns - and Westhill is one of these.

The name "Westhill" was conjured up in 1859 when a landowner combined the farms and names of Wester Kinmundy and Blackhills. It remained farmland until 1968 when a local entrepreneur developed it, nicely timed to catch the Aberdeen oil boom. It grew rapidly as a commuter town and as a light-industrial park for any business that didn't care to pay Aberdeen's spiralling land prices and taxes. In the 1980s the city council eyed this upstart town and tried to incorporate it within Aberdeen, but was rebuffed sharply enough that it hasn't tried again. The local oil and gas industries are in their sunset years as North Sea reserves become harder to reach and carbon-based fuels are seen as harmful. Nevertheless it's still a major player in Westhill, for instance in sub-sea ROV and robot technology to replace human divers. And any commuter or business looking for a cheap alternative to the city is ten years too late, as prices within Westhill rocketed even before the re-aligned A90 improved its transport.

Get in

1 Aberdeen Airport (ABZ ^IATA) is 6 miles north of Westhill. By public transport you need to go into city centre and out again, but a taxi will scoot along the A90 in ten minutes.

Aberdeen is the nearest railway station, with hourly services from Dundee which variously start from Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds or London. The city also has trains every couple of hours from Inverness, ferries from Orkney and Shetland, and inter-city buses.

Road access to Westhill was greatly improved in 2019 by the A90 Aberdeen bypass, officially the Western Peripheral Route. This makes a great loop west of the city to pass within a mile of Westhill, so coming from south, north or wherever, follow A90, which is mostly fast dual-carriageway. The last mile is on A944, which runs from Aberdeen to Westhill then away out cross-country to Rhynie, which is almost a byword for "nowhere in particular".

By bus the operator is Stagecoach Bluebird. All buses start from Aberdeen Union Square, next to the railway station and ferry port.

- Bus 4 / 5 / 6 / 6a to Kingswells P&R and Westhill (45 min), M-Sa every 10 min and Sunday every 30 min. Bus 14 also runs as far as the P&R.

- Bus 218 to Kingswells P&R, Westhill and Alford M-Sa every 3 hours.

There isn't a bus station, buses loop around Westhill Drive, Old Skene Rd, Wellgrove Rd and Straik Rd.

Get around

The town is small enough to walk, and the bus (above) gets you into Aberdeen, but you need your own wheels for Castle Fraser and the prehistoric sites scattered round the shire.

Taxi firms are Westhill Taxis (☏ +44 1224 444 444) and PGM (+44 7849 582319).

See

• 1 Loch of Skene is man-made: the valley outflow was dammed in the 19th century to create a reservoir to power tweed mills, and after 1905 for electricity generation. It's shallow and a roosting spot for many waterfowl. The Tower House and gateway on A944 on its north shore is a fine piece of Edwardian money-no-object whimsy. It's part of the estate of Dunecht House, a couple of miles further west and privately owned.
• 2 Cullerlie Stone Circle is a compact Bronze Age circle two miles south of the loch. A survey of 1820 noted nine satellite circles, which now can't be found.
• 3 Castle Fraser, Sauchen AB51 7LD, ☏ +44 1333 883463. May-Oct: F-M 10:30AM-4PM. Grand Z-plan castle built gradually from 1575 around a 15th-century turret. So it looks defensive, but was embellished into from the 18th century onwards; it passed to the NTS in 1976. The extensive gardens are open year round. Adult £14.50, child / conc £11, NTS/NT free. (updated Oct 2021)
• 4 Barmekin of Echt is a ring-fort atop Barmekin Hill off B977, with five concentric defences.
• 5 Sunhoney is a recumbent stone circle: the chief stone hasn't been knocked over but was lain flat, presumably aligned with something that's been lost. It's along B9119, use the car park south across the road.
• Midmar Castle is a well-preserved 16th-century tower house half a mile west of Sunhoney. It's a private residence, no tours.
• Midmar Stone Circle is another half mile west up B9119. It's within the grounds of Christchurch.
• 6 Drum Castle : see Ballater for this castle managed by NTS.

Do

Castle Fraser

• Westhill Swimming Pool is on Hays Way and open daily 9AM-6PM.
• Golf: Westhill Golf Club is north side of town. White tees 5813 yards, par 70, visitor round £28.

Others nearby are Craibstone, Auchmill and Hazlehead Pines. Aberdeen is ringed by golf courses.

Buy

• Westhill Shopping Centre is off Old Skene Rd a block west of the Holiday Inn. Aldi is just north, open M-Sa 8AM-10PM, Su 9AM-10PM.
• The Farmers Market is held here first Saturday of the month 9AM-1PM at Ashdale Hall.

Eat

• Key West, Unit 17, Westhill Shopping Centre, Old Skene Road. Daily 10AM-midnight. Cafe/bar serving typical bar fare. (updated Oct 2021)
• Yan Oriental, Ashdale Drive AB32 6LP, ☏ +44 1224 746746. M-Th noon-2PM, F Sa noon-11PM, Su 5-10PM. Friendly tasty Chinese restaurant. (updated Oct 2021)
• Lasan, Unit 2, Westhill Shopping Centre, ☏ +44 1224 745295. Daily 4-10:30PM. Good reliable Indian restaurant. (updated Oct 2021)
• Szechuan Chinese Takeaway, Westhill Shopping Centre, ☏ +44 1224 742110. W-Su 4-9:30PM. Average quality Chinese takeaway. (updated Oct 2021)

Drink

Loch of Skene

• Broadstraik Inn, Straik Rd, Elrick AB32 6TL (200 yards west of Hampton Hotel), ☏ +44 1224 743217. Su-Th noon-11PM, F Sa noon-midnight. Good roadside inn with restaurant, cosy lounge, bar with TV sports and beer garden. (updated Oct 2021)
• Shepherds Rest, 10 Straik Rd AB32 6HF (by Premier Inn), ☏ +44 1224 740208. M-F 6:30AM-10:30PM, Sa Su 8AM-10:30PM. Efficient, friendly Greene King pub with good selection of food and drink. (updated Oct 2021)

Sleep

• 1 Premier Inn, 10 Straik Rd AB32 6HF, ☏ +44 333 777 3653. Reliable budget chain hotel. B&B double £70. (updated Oct 2021)
• 2 Holiday Inn, Westhill Drive AB32 6TT, ☏ +44 1224 270300. Decent mid-price chain hotel, handy for airport and city. With restaurant, bars and fitness centre, dogs welcome. B&B double £90. (updated Oct 2021)
• 3 Hampton by Hilton, Gordon Park, Elrick AB32 6BP, ☏ +44 1224 984044. Free hot breakfast, and WiFi. 24-hour convenience shop, and 24-hour fitness centre. (updated Jan 2024)
• 4 Village Hotel, Prime Four, Kingswells AB15 8PJ (behind Kingswells P&R), ☏ +44 1224 470025. Smart business hotel with restaurants and fitness centre. B&B double £100. (updated Oct 2021)
• Aberdeen Airport has half a dozen hotels, convenient for Westhill with your own car.

Connect

The town has 4G from all UK carriers, covering the road into Aberdeen and the A90 bypass, but soon fading to the west. As of Oct 2021, 5G has reached Aberdeen city centre but has not extended out to Westhill.

The Golden Post Boxes on Westhill Drive commemorate Tim Baillie's victory in the C2 canoe slalom at the 2012 London Olympics. They'd fobbed him off with a dinky one but then added a proper pillarbox. Neither box conveys mail any faster than usual.

Go next

• Aberdeen is more than just the transport hub, it's a fine old city that deserves a couple of days to explore.
• Banchory brings you into the scenic Dee valley. Crathes Castle is the top sight, continue up the valley for Balmoral, Royal Deeside and the Cairngorms.
• Craigevar Castle is 20 miles west of Westhill on B9119, but see Banchory for description.