Piersland House

The Hogmanay and New Year meals were delicious, and the food was cooked perfectly even with a very busy restaurant. Presentation was lovely, drinks arrived quickly, and breakfast was fresh, piping hot and served after ordering at the table. I prefer that to a buffet, which I don’t really like. It felt as if quality local ingredients were used throughout. We hadn’t planned to be there: our train to Brussels was cancelled because of the EuroTunnel closure, so we gave up on our New Year trip to Brugge and headed home disappointed. On the train, I contacted Piersland House and some other hotels, hoping to find something for Hogmanay the next day. Piersland House got back to us first with a great set of options. We’d stayed before, so booked straight away. Our room was lovely, spacious, well equipped and spotless. The service throughout was warm, welcoming and very professional. The General Manager and the whole team should take a bow. We stay away a lot, and this was easily one of our best experiences. Thank you for a perfect New Year, even if it wasn’t planned. We hope to see you again soon.

The welcome was really warm when we arrived after booking late in the evening, and the place felt homely. It was nice to have real open fires. Room 4 had a couple of problems that made for a poor night’s sleep. A fan or air-conditioning unit outside the window made a groaning noise all night, though we couldn’t identify which it was. The shower water pressure was so poor it kept pulsing between a dribble and a slightly stronger dribble. We mentioned it at checkout, and reception already knew about it. The room and en-suite felt well used, and there was quite a bit of dust in the bathroom. Breakfast was just okay. The smoked salmon tasted watery, and the scrambled eggs were definitely microwaved. My partner liked his full Scottish breakfast with a poached egg, though it was a shame there was no haggis. The woman seating guests and taking orders was really lovely, friendly and good to chat with.

We had an excellent meal in the beautiful old dining room and bar, served by efficient, friendly staff. The custom-cooked breakfast in the Garden Room was excellent too. Our room was a good size, as was the bathroom, and everything was pristine. The shower had a strange pulsing effect. A lovely hotel on the outskirts of Troon.

The room smelled freshly decorated, and the bed and pillows were comfortable. It was lovely, but cold overnight because the heating wasn’t on, so we needed the furry throws to stay warm. One bedside light didn’t work, and neither did the LED lights on the bathroom floor.