Gairloch Highland Lodge — Hotel in Great Britain

Well, that was different...||We booked this as we had left our travel planning too late and other options weren't available. Having read some other reviews, we went with an open mind and felt it would be OK just as a place to crash for the night. If you want a luxury experience, you're going to be disappointed. If you think of this as more of a self-service hostel with minimal staffing and basic amenities, then it's tolerable. Others have complained about expecting a double bed - the booking system we used made it clear that the 'double' would be two singles pushed together (ours weren't upon arrival, but it was no big deal for us). We checked in later than the hotel system requested (check in between 4pm and 6pm) but we'd called ahead and were told this would be fine. Upon arrival, we found our check-in details at reception and were told our key was already in the room. We found our own way up and it was fine. Breakfast is pre-ordered, but this is not so it will be delivered to your table, it is so the (admittedly minimal) staff have an idea of how much to prepare for the self-service buffet. The lovely guy overseeing breakfast who we spoke to said people always come and take more than they ordered, so they do their best to meet the somewhat elastic demand anyway. ||Be aware that the front door is left unlocked all night and there is nobody on reception, so theoretically anybody could stroll into the hotel at any time. It's a little way out of town and it's off the main road, so I suspect the chances of this are minimal, but if you're nervous about such things, this is not the place for you. The honesty bar is a new one on me, but consistent with the style of the place - it's clearly run on a shoestring and staffing is kept to an absolutely minimum - like, nobody around after 6pm I'm guessing? As somebody else pointed out, the fire doors were wedged open, I suspect to stop them banging when opened and closed. I closed a couple, as I'm funny about such things, only to find them wedged open again in the morning. ||Overalll this feels like a business in survival mode - the place is clearly lacking investment and feels tired, and some of the public spaces have not been cleaned and have stuff lying around. However, we needed a place for the night, for a family of 4 we had a family room when others weren't available. The room was clean, dry, warm and functional, so we were fine with it - we paid £190 for 4 for the night, including breakfast, which we felt was pretty good value for money. Expectations were low and it was fine. When we were there, it was fully booked and the nice breakfast guy told us it was like that until the end of September (I think), we saw people at breakfast who all seemed fine with it - so perhaps it's about expectations. For a budget overnight stop on the NC500, it's functional and you'll survive. If you aspire to higher quality and service, you may find this not what you're...

What to say,||||Somewhat reminiscent of a Back Packers Hostel with just a hint of The Bates Motel.||||The Gairloch Highland Lodge has all the facilities of a hostel but with some added unexpected and unwanted amenities||||Who could resist the obvious charms of a tin bucket outside your bedroom door half full of wet cigarette buts. Who could gaze with less than rapture at the broken roof tile adorning the outside stairway or ignore the rusting but resplendent patio furniture.||||The surface wiring in the bedroom and the over use of stick-on Vinyl (1960's Fablon?) might help you overlook the worst aspects of the bedroom furniture, the very suspect bed-linen, the poor-quality towels or the confining dimensions of the tiny shower cubicle.||||Breakfast must be experienced to be believed. The breakfast room has the all the warmth, welcome and austerity you might have expected in a nineteenth century workhouse. However; if for one moment you expect the food to be even slightly better than that served to the paupers in 1886, await yet another cruel disappointment!||||There are, that notwithstanding a few good points.||||The geographic area is magnificent, the local people welcome visitors old and young and with the exception of the nearby Gairloch Inn the local restaurants are excellent and very good value for money.||||Regarding my intentionally jocular reference to ‘The Bates Motel’.||In the film ‘Psycho’ visitors to the Bates Motel were happy if not lucky to leave alive.||||With the Gairloch Highland Lodge, We were happy to leave and so lucky that we need not stay one...

Hotel in nice place woods short walk to harbour small car park so hard to park when full at hotel decor needs to be done as so old tied checked in given sheet for what you want for breakfast then noticed a note on stairs NO food allowed in rooms went up to room some wallpaper missing from walls but does need full decor update in room tidy but only heating is electric heater and only heat in shower room is towel rail if you want a China mug for tea/coffee you have to go downstairs and pick them up as paper cup in room. First breakfast was ok but second one different story wife wanted cornflakes so put 4 spoonful into bowl for her milk on sat down at table wife noticed some stuff in cornflakes put then on paper towel then found more so went to desk and he said looks like mouse droppings he went then picked up cornflakes bowl we got them from and went into kitchen we waited long time so went out for walk came back he was at desk and said did look like mouse droppings but could find no more and looked at us as though we put them in with the flakes you could see he did no seem to be bothered about it as he was thinking we wanted something we was leaving that morning and when we put keys in in a half...