Crieff vs Auchterarder

[NikkiBM]

Hello,
Looking for some advice. My husband and I currently live in central Scotland and are looking to relocate. It needs to be the right move as we plan on this being our 'forever home'. We have narrowed it down to a few areas with Crieff and Auchterarder currently at the top of our list and would be great to get some opinions on where would be best (we are open to other suggestions too).

Here are things we are taking into consideration for our move (in no particular order):

1. We are big foodies. Food is a big part of our life. We love going out to nice restaurants, cooking, trying new food/restaurants etc. We also enjoy a good takeaway every now and then (although takeaway scene is not as important as having a good selection of proper nice restaurants nearby).
2. We want to live somewhere very dog friendly (lots of dog friendly establishments, nice dog walks, plenty greenspace, good vet, decent out of hours emergency vets just in case).
3. Good, friendly community and low crime rate. Somewhere welcoming of 'outsiders' (mentioning this as I know some small towns/villages can be a bit funny with new people).
4. Good healthcare (GP, Dentist etc) close by and not 'too much' of a travel time to hospital (just in case of an emergency).
5. Must have good Internet/phone signal in area (very important as we both work from home).
6. Good independent shops as well as a supermarket nearby (preferably an Aldi).
7. Decent salon and also massage available nearby.
8. Good wild swimming spots nearby (this is not something we currently do but we would like to take up).
9. Beautiful scenery, wildlife, semi-rural (not interested in living in a polluted, crowded concrete jungle but also do not want to be so remote that it rules out lots of other things on our list).

10. Don't want to be too far away from Stirling (within a hours drive) - family live there. 11. Car mechanics nearby. 12. Transport links (we have a car so this is not mega important... but just don't want to feel 'cut off' if our car was ever out of use for a period). 13. Worth mentioning we like older style houses (rather than new builds) with decent sized garden etc - we have this where we are at the moment so wouldn't want to have to give that up for an area with completely astronomical house prices. 14. Community events (ie Highland Games etc), Community groups/activities that we can get involved in.

Based on above, would be great to hear your thoughts/suggestions! Thanks!

Honestly with that list of requirements it doesn't sound like either place is for you. How about Dundee?

If you already live in CS and have family in Stirling, why wouldn’t you know about these places already? It isn’t a big area. Bizarre

Surprised you haven’t put down

• need the shortest drive to Gleneagles so can attend my weekly yoga class.

@LibertyDuck Thanks for the response.Dundee is not somewhere we have looked at yet at all. Reason being is that we want to ideally avoid staying in a city. FYI list above are things we are taking into consideration (although we are well aware that compromises will likely need to be made). We were actually looking at Fife before, however, we ruled that out as 1) East Neuk is nice but a bit far out and house prices very high - also lack of services etc, and 2) Mid/West Fife - House prices affordable and also great to have beaches nearby... but (when we looked at it) there's not much else there for us. Regarding Crieff area, I like the fact that Scotland's only two '2 star' michelin restaurants are within half hour of each other (I feel that really sets the bar for establishments in the area) - we also like the greenspace and occasionally take our dog to McRosty Park (he loves it there). I believe there are also multiple cookery classes etc available around the area and some great scenery. What makes you suggest Dundee?

Move to West end of Glasgow instead.

Stay in Crieff and see what you think.
Killiekrankie house is worth a visit, anyway - the food is amazing. Your nearest aldi would be perth, I think. Things like that you could research yourself online.

I feel you aren’t from Scotland and have this completely unrealistic view of what to expect from it.

@Plumpribbon dont really see what is bizarre... of course I 'know' about the areas and visit them every now and again when we get a chance... but visiting somewhere and living somewhere are very different things.... hence why I have posted. I understand my list is extensive (and aware compromises will need to be made) but just wanted to put as much detail as possible of the kind of things we are looking at... FYI - I don't do yoga. Thanks for your input.

North Berwick ticks all your boxes except it's 1.5 hrs from Stirling.

@SuperLoudPoppingAction yeah I have heard of Killiecrankie House. Not been there yet but it's certainly somewhere I plan to visit. I have done extensive research online but just wanted to get other peoples thoughts - someone might suggest an area we haven't looked at yet which might be worth a look. Thanks.

I have also considered both these places for a move and I think Crieff meets more of your requirements than Auchterarder but the town centre is so run down and depressing it does put me off.

@Plumpribbon well your assumption is wrong. I am from Scotland and love living here. Enjoy your weekend.

@Eastcoastie North Berwick is lovely - as it is quite far away, it's not somewhere I have been to very often but from the handful of times I have visited, I also remember it being very dog friendly (which is great). I also know a few people who relocated there. I'll take a look at that and weigh it up. Thank you.

Auchterarder has Gleneagles train station.

Crieff and Auchterarder both have a few restaurants but they are wee towns.

Auchterarder is closer to the A9 for transport links.

Auchterarder is more 'welcoming' to 'outsiders'.

Crieff has an Aldi. Auchterarder only has a small Co-op. Waitrose deliver to both. George St in Perth has a good deli.

Crieff has more groups than Auchterarder. Strathearn library and Live Active are bigger than Auchterarder. Would you join the club at Gleneagles?

Both have easy access to countryside and wild swimming.

Both have stone built Victorian villas as well as plenty of new build.

Crieff has a full garage for mechanics. Auchterarder doesn't. But, why wouldn't you go to Perth for this?

Crieff has a cottage hospital as well as a large multi GP practice.

Both are wee towns with Perth as the major settlement in the area. You could easily pop into Perth by rail or bus from Auchterarder. It's like 10-15 minutes on the A9 with no traffic from Auchterarder to Perth.

Sounds like you're describing St Andrews .....
lovely places all within 10miles if you didn't want to live in town. Good food, very dog friendly , wild swimming on your doorstep, just about to get a sauna by the East Sands ..

Just move to Bridge of Allan?

I think there is one vet in Crieff. None in Auchterarder. Plenty of vets in Perth.

Wouldn't Dunblane or Bridge of Allan be in the running?

Crieff has a Highland Gathering. Perth Highland Games are on in August too.

@tothesea we were in Crieff not long ago and the high street looked buzzing which I was surprised at as a lot of high streets are struggling right now (although might have been due to it being a really nice day weather wise and everyone was out and about - so perhaps it just seemed that way). There seems to be a lot of nice restaurants round about too. If you don't mind me asking, what area did you decide on for your move?

tothesea · Today 12:09
I have also considered both these places for a move and I think Crieff meets more of your requirements than Auchterarder but the town centre is so run down and depressing it does put me off”

What?! Crieff is lovely! Lots of excellent independent shops, fabulous butcher, fishmonger, greengrocer and food hall. Dogs everywhere 😁

Perth is great too. Loads of good restaurants, coffee shops etc.

@stargirl1701 Thanks for your posts (a lot of it I knew already from research but there were also some things I wasn't aware of so thank you for that). Dunblane is actually quite close to the top of our choices. However, the last couple times we have been through Bridge if Allan, it has seemed a bit more run down lately.

Bridge of Allan run down? I’ve heard it all now

Helensburgh ticks all your boxes. Outstanding place to live.

No she’s right, it is a bit more run down than it used to be. A few places on Henderson St have closed down, though it’s better since Nairn’s reopened again after the fire.

It’s not objectively “run down” like Fallin or Alloa or somewhere though! The views of the Monument are hard to beat, and lots of lovely trails up in the hills between BofA and Dunblane.

Sadly, Stirling town centre is terrible now.

I agree Crieff is lovely otherwise I wouldn’t be consider moving there. We know it quite well. However the derelict hotel and shut down shops in the town centre puts me off.

@NikkiBM we haven’t decided yet. I’m also considering Kinross and Cupar although my list of requirements is different from OP’s so perhaps not helpful to them.