St. Ronan's Wells Visitor Centre

Currently closed 

St Ronan’s Wells Historic Spa site, garden and a well with literary connections to Sir Walter Scott and James Hogg.

St Ronan’s Wells is currently undergoing a service development review.

No decision has been made to not open St Ronan’s Wells this season (June to October).  Consultation with community and stakeholders will be key in agreeing short term proposals, and longer term service provision.

The beautiful gardens are open all year round. Garden volunteers are usually on site on Thursdays and plants are available to purchase.
Picnic tables and chairs are located beside the pavilion area.

St Ronan’s Wells is a 10-minute uphill walk from town centre. There is free parking, disabled parking, a bike rack and dogs on leads are welcome in the grounds.

Donations to support St Ronan’s Wells, museum collections and programmes can be made all year round, via the outdoor donations box located in the pavilion.

History of the site: St. Ronan’s Wells was a popular spa where people came to drink the water from the sulphurous spring which helped with their ailments. At one time rivalling the town of Harrogate, the current pavilion was built by the first bottled water company in Scotland. It is set in a lovely community garden and has a new access programme of monthly workshops, talks on the collections, tours and events.

The centre’s name comes from the founding legend of an itinerant pilgrim monk called St Ronan, who came upon Innerleithen on his journey up the River Tweed. The local story claims that “St. Ronan cleik’t (caught) the Deil by the hind leg and banished him”, referring to the monks bringing Christianity to this part of the world.

St. Ronan’s Border Games were founded by James Hogg ‘the Ettrick Shepherd’ in 1827 to give the locals an enjoyable pursuit and to entertain the many visitors thronging the village to “take the waters”. The annual Games and Cleikum Ceremonies are still celebrated mid-July.

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