Stirling Highland Hotel

We mostly had our coats on because the hotel was so cold. The bar had poor heating, our room was cold too, and at one point I had to buy a hot water bottle for my disabled and blind wife. Some plaster and old paint were coming off the ceiling. We did speak to the duty manager, who was empathetic and said he’d pass things on. Someone was perhaps going to call us back, but that never happened. We don’t think this is a four star hotel and won’t be back. The spa treatment was a bright spot. The ladies were very good and professional, though the afternoon tea afterwards was poor. We stayed another day but got up early, unwilling to risk breakfast or another meal, and couldn’t wait to get home. Breakfast was cold and the food quality was poor. After we complained, the waitress said she’d speak to the chef and took the food away, but nobody came back with a solution. The bacon was refreshed in the service hotplate some time later, but the other food remained cold, so we filled up on toast. For dinner, we chose sandwiches, chips and onion rings instead of risking another bad meal. It took 50 minutes to arrive, and the chips and rings were cold. The sandwich was the worst we’ve ever been served anywhere. My wife ordered a latte but got a disgusting, undrinkable black coffee with some milk, and nobody was around to replace it.

The building looks lovely and the location is fantastic, with great staff and reasonable food. Inside, though, it’s very tired and needs money spent on it. The rooms are bordering on two star. We got this stay as a Christmas gift, but it was a real disappointment. The receptionist checked us in quickly and efficiently, then we were given a ground floor room two minutes from reception. An old radiator rattled badly in the corridor outside. The room smelled stale and musty. It was a disabled room, with red cords above the bed and in the bathroom, plus grab rails. The old windows didn’t shut properly and let in a strong draught that blew the curtains around. The bathroom grout had gone black, and sticky notes on broken plugs said they’d be repaired soon, though the notes were dated a year earlier. The TV had just one channel. The wardrobe door nearly fell off when I tried to put clothes away, so we asked to change rooms. The receptionist was very apologetic and seemed used to these problems. He said he’d keep us close and gave us the room next door. It only differed in having no red cords or bathroom grab rails. It was just as tired and smelled just as bad. We looked at the spa before dinner. The gym was a fairly small room with old equipment dotted around without much thought. There was a free weights area, but the bench looked flimsy, and although there were lifting bars, none resembled a standard 20 kg Olympic bar. We didn’t bother. We brought dinner forward because we’d already decided to leave after eating. The restaurant was tired, stained carpets and chilly, but the waitress was lovely and very honest, thank you for that. We avoided certain dishes and followed her recommendations. The food was quite nice and the service was great. At checkout, a different receptionist asked if everything was OK. She wasn’t surprised when I explained why we were leaving, apologised and offered to pass it to the manager. I said I thought he already knew.

The hotel and room were good value, and all the staff were attentive. I slept really poorly because the bed was so soft. Also, the breakfast manager started clearing plates while we were still eating. A bit of advice: wait until guests have finished before clearing the table.

The room was very good, the location was great and the staff were friendly. The only small issue was the inside door lock didn’t work. I told them, and they said they’d let maintenance know, but it still wasn’t fixed during our stay.