Royal Dunkeld

I wasn’t staying at the hotel, so can’t comment on the rooms, but the restaurant food was brilliant. The curry had incredible flavour, the naan was fresh, and the service was great. I can’t praise the taste and quality enough. I’d recommend eating here if you’re in the area or visiting.

We had a fantastic meal here in March, when a lovely wee Scottish guy served us, so yesterday’s bar lunch was a real letdown. We waited 10 minutes at the bar just to get a soft drink, then another 50 minutes for food. Nobody warned us about the wait, and they had already taken payment. The woman serving at the bar was very rude. I’d paid extra for onion rings, but they arrived cold. When she offered 10% off the bill, I said I’d already paid, and she just laughed. The toilets and courtyard were disgusting too. The staff now are appalling, what have you done? Avoid at all costs.

The menu was just an A4 sheet with two starters and two mains, and the food that came out was bland. The person serving couldn’t answer our questions. Our room’s TV remote didn’t work, and when I asked reception for batteries, nothing had happened two hours later. Getting someone’s attention felt like a huge inconvenience. Service was poor from the moment we arrived, and we left at half past nine that evening to head home. I was stunned by how bad it was, especially given the hotel’s great location and the other accommodation nearby. I’ve been around the area a lot and used to think this would be a great place to stay, but I wouldn’t now. Avoid it, there are plenty of better places nearby.

The location was convenient, parking was easy, and the staff we spoke with were friendly and welcoming. Even so, after one night we skipped breakfast and checked out early. We wouldn’t stay again or recommend the hotel because of its poor cleanliness and condition. Our bedroom was very small, with a bed that creaked loudly whenever we moved and extremely noisy floorboards. The soundproofing was so poor it felt as if people in the corridor were in the room with us. There were greasy fingerprints on the glasses, dirty marks on the walls, and mould on the bedroom window. We didn’t feel comfortable drinking the water provided and bought bottled water instead. The bathroom also looked unclean, with dust, hair in the shower, and mould on the windowpanes. There was cleaning product in the toilet, so housekeeping had clearly been in, but it didn’t seem to have been properly cleaned. A strong, unpleasant air freshener smell in the lobby lingered throughout the hotel. The building felt run-down, with broken panels and torn hallway carpet. The place needs a deep clean and more attention to basic upkeep.