Maryculter House has appointed a new managing director, Peter Walker has joined the award-winning hotel from Meldrum House Country Hotel and Golf Club where he was general manager for nine years. During this time, he helped reposition Meldrum House to a quality multi-award winning luxury hotel with exceptional food and service. There were two multi-million pound developments during his time there, the most recent of which created an additional 28 bedrooms and a ballroom with capacity for 200 guests.
Peter, who studied hospitality in Aberdeen, has also previously worked at The Marcliffe at Pitfodels, Ardoe House and the Craigendarroch in Ballater. He was inducted into the Worshipful Company of Innholders earlier in 2018 as a Master Innholder.
Maryculter House is situated on the banks of the river Dee on the outskirts of Aberdeen. The oldest part of the building – now the residents’ lounge – dates back to the Knights Templar in 1460, and previous owners include one of the few male passengers to survive the Titanic disaster. Maryculter has 40 bedrooms, many with river views, and a function suite which holds up to 160 guests.
The hotel is owned by The Gilbert family and Martin Gilbert says of the appointment, “Peter is an extremely well-respected hotel professional who is recognised as one of Scotland’s finest hotel general managers by his peers across the UK. We’re delighted to welcome him to the role of managing director at Maryculter House to help drive our future business development and growth.”
Peter says of his new role, “I am delighted to be taking on a new challenge at Maryculter House. The hotel has an excellent reputation for hosting events and its riverside position and courtyard mean it’s perfectly situated for weddings and functions. As well as growing the weddings and events business, we’ll be developing further leisure business as Aberdeen City and Shire continues to flourish as a tourist destination. The hotel is in the fortunate position of having two of its own beats on one of the world’s most famous salmon fishing rivers, the Tillbouries and Culter beats, as well as our own inhouse ghillie. In addition to this, as well as overlooking Peterculter golf course, there are many world-class golf courses within very easy reach. I look forward to developing all facets of such a vibrant hotel which is full of opportunities.”