The Tomich Hotel

The shower may have been the hottest I’ve had in Scotland, and I loved it. Peter was friendly and knew a lot about the area and local history. Thanks for letting me stay in your historic building. I’d happily come back.

At £160 for one night, this was simply not acceptable. Room 7 had a slightly sour smell despite diffuser sticks trying to cover it. There was mould in several places, the bathroom floor was coming loose, and showering without flooding the floor was difficult. The whole place felt filthy. We slept terribly on a mattress that seemed to be mostly springs. The building where our room was also smelled like a barn, and there were all kinds of bugs. I couldn’t get out of there fast enough.

The young woman working behind the bar was kind and clearly doing her best in a stressful situation. The Asian woman was also working incredibly hard, juggling everything, and agreed to refund us straight away when we asked. The elderly owner was grumpy and seemed unhappy about the situation. He didn’t know how to reply to booking.com’s email, which delayed our departure and finding another hotel by two hours. We’d booked a night here as a gift from my partner, hoping it would help me recuperate after being seriously ill and take my mind off things in beautiful surroundings. Instead, after a flight and a drive, we arrived at 6pm to dead bugs and mould. I was devastated. The website is incredibly misleading. We were put in the annex, which looked nothing like the pictures. It wasn’t just outdated, it was dilapidated, with mould on the walls. The place was filthy too: used contact lenses on the floor, dead bugs, and mould in the jet tub we’d paid extra for. We asked to move to the main hotel, but were told there were no rooms available, so we asked for a refund. They agreed. If you only need somewhere to crash for a night or two while hiking, you might be happy to slum it. Otherwise, don’t stay here. The location isn’t worth it. It’s fine for things to be dated or for prices to be high in an exclusive location, but it’s not okay for the place to be dirty or falsely advertised. The property and all of Glen Affric deserve better. Knowing this is the only hotel accommodation option, I’ll never come back. We did see a man with a box of Chihuahuas in the restaurant, so there was that, at least.

My girlfriend and I had an amazing time travelling around Tomich, and Peter and Gib’s hotel felt like a home base for us. They’re the kindest, friendliest, most family-like hosts you could wish for. Having them and the hotel there was more than terrific.