A picturesque eco-friendly holiday home has been constructed using 500 bales of straw in the Scottish Highlands.

Appropriately called Jill Strawbale House, the property is located in Strontian near Fort William featuring views of Loch Sunart and the Morvern Hills, while it boasts sliding glass doors and a lower deck hot tub.

The aim of the holiday home is to promote and encourage a holiday that is less harmful to the environment. The straw bales provide insulation to guests as the home sources most of its power from two micro hydro generators and exports five times more power than it imports.

Owners Robert and Justine Dunne, whom both have backgrounds in tropical forest management, built this straw house as a means of generating income for their retirement.

Speaking about Jill Strawbale House, Robert said:

“Despite having no experience of the building industry, Justine and I were keen to create the holiday home ourselves. By picking a cruck frame design that was easy to erect, we have been able to do most of the work with help from friends and the rest of the family too.

“In the past, we have worked in the tropics and when we came back to the west coast of Scotland we decided to put down roots in the village of Strontian so that our four children could go to the recently-built high school. We have always been passionate about the environment and knew the holiday home had to be eco-friendly and energy efficient.

“Many people do not realise that straw is one the cheapest and most sustainable forms of insulation. Covered inside and out with lime it also makes the house breathable, allowing moisture in the air to move from the inside of the house to the outside. This helps to cut energy bills, boost home comfort and promote healthy indoor air.”

The Jill Strawbale House is available to rent from £813 in the low season, for a seven nights self-catering stay.