The Manse Courtyard: We all deserve to live like royalty

In a lodge near Balmoral, Conrad Hodgkinson and his partner enjoyed a level of luxury that often eludes wheelchair users

'All seemed to breathe freedom and peace, and to make one forget the world and its sad turmoils." So wrote Queen Victoria in 1847 following her first visit to what is now Royal Deeside in Aberdeenshire. My partner Christine and I have travelled north hoping to find the same sense of tranquillity – and an adapted bathroom.

Christine, a member of the General Social Care Council, is a wheelchair user. She has a severe form of multiple sclerosis and no longer has any independent movement. This inevitably makes our accommodation requirements just a tad complex, and 99.9 per cent of hotels and self-catering accommodation will fail to meet criteria for independence.

The daft thing is that what Christine needs to place her on an equal footing with other people is relatively straightforward and would benefit thousands of others by improving access and choice. And we don't want to be restricted to places that cater solely for disabled people, thank you very much.

This summer we have come to stay at the Manse Courtyard on the banks of the River Dee at Crathie, which has an award for its suitability for independent wheelchair users, and it's only a few hundred yards from Balmoral Castle. Christine Sloan, wife of Crathie minister Bob Sloan, is the driving force behind the charity Crathie Opportunity Holidays.

"I feel very privileged to be living here," Christine Sloan says. "I do work in the church but I like to have my own project. Two of our friends have cerebral palsy. They are married and used to living independently, but the only place they could holiday was more like a nursing home. When I saw this place I thought, why don't we make it into a place where people who can't get a holiday elsewhere can come? People who use a wheelchair, or have had a hip replacement or angina or who have a child with cystic fibrosis. We aim to cater for everybody."

Four pristine cottages surround a paved courtyard. Built of local granite, they are designed to provide the ultimate in accessible accommodation. It is hard to believe that, as recently as two years ago, these were derelict stables surrounded by bricks and nettles. The cottages are named after local glens, and ours, Glen Gelder, has sliding patio doors looking directly on to the River Dee and Crathie golf course beyond. It is something special to be able to hear and see from your own living room salmon leaping as they make their way upstream.

There's an open-plan living area with a vaulted ceiling giving an impression of space and light. The main bedroom has an adjustable bed and a ceiling hoist, making transfer from wheelchair to bed particularly easy. The level-access shower room is a model of good design: spacious, well equipped and with some nice touches such as a wash basin and surround that can be raised and lowered electronically. Everywhere there is attention to detail and the standard of equipment is very high. There's also Sky television, a big bonus in an area where reception is difficult.

There are a few small disadvantages: limited working surfaces in the kitchen, and our cottage has a galleried second bedroom open to the living area. Fine if you're taking the children, but less comfortable with adult friends.

Royal Deeside is castles and whisky country. South of Balmoral, the massif of Lochnagar is the domain of the serious walker and climber. But there are gentler walks beside the Dee, miles of cycle trails, pony trekking, more golf courses than you can shake a seven iron at, and salmon fishing. And, if you don't trust the weather, there's always those castles and distilleries.

This is an area with many wheelchair-friendly features. We spend time walking in the impressive grounds of Balmoral Castle – level, good surfaces and a commendable lack of "keep off the grass" signs. Meg, our lovable but rather brainless labrador, discovers the royal lily pond, plunging in and disturbing sediments and smells that would have left Queen Victoria distinctly unamused. The grounds are open from April until the end of July, when the Royal Family moves in.

We both fall in love with Ballater, which is less famous than neighbouring Braemar, but with better facilities. We drink a lot of coffee in the old Royal Station (closed in 1966) and admire the immaculately restored waiting room and loo used by Queen Victoria whenever she travelled to and from Balmoral. Ballater is also the home of HM Sheridan, one of the best butchers in Scotland, if not the UK. The Auld Kirk Restaurant is accessible (just) and the food makes it worth the effort – wild salmon from the Dee, local beef, excellent service and the added novelty of eating in church.

Our best day comes courtesy of the local cycle network. A seven-mile drive from Ballater brings you to Glen Muick (pronounced "Mick") where cycle tracks and paths lead via Loch Muick to Lochnagar and the high Cairngorms.

The weather is good and this is a rare chance for us both to get away into genuinely wild country, to feel the sun and wind without sight of habitation, or even, for much of the time, other humans. A herd of red deer grazes beside the loch, showing no interest in either Meg or ourselves as we cautiously navigate the uneven track. This, I remember, was one of Queen Victoria's favourite spots.

"Freedom and peace", she wrote in her diary. In this landscape, you understand exactly what she meant.

"I love travelling," my partner Christine says. "I always set out with hope, but frequently end up frustrated and disappointed by facilities that don't meet my needs. Crathie is different: an excellent holiday in lovely surroundings."

The Manse Courtyard, Crathie, Aberdeenshire, is open all year. Prices from £290 to £495 per week. Book through Crathie Opportunity Holidays (013397 42100; www.crathieholidays.org.uk).