In reply to LakeDistrictMountaineer:
Your best bets in Braemar are probably the Youth Hostel or Rucksacks Braemar, although you can often get a good deal at the Invercauld Hotel too. The other option, up the Dee and with good access to hills, is the Cairngorm Club's Muir Cottage at Inverey. This does require membership, however, of the club or other affiliated organisation.