Dunalastair Hotel
2nd January 2008

After our telephone conversation I would like to confirm the points and issues which I raised at the hotel. I regret that some aspects of our stay did not live up to our expectations, in particular the hogmanay celebration and some items in our room.

I can confirm that your staff were excellent at all times. The food was very good and we enjoyed Crooked Jack and the whisky tasting.

All your promotional material promised a ceilidgh till the “wee small hours”. Unfortunately there was only a single accordion player who was unable to call the dancing. Your guests were very keen to get involved but there was no lead for the full range of dances and it turned into a bit of a shambles. This should have been the highlight of the stay at Dunalastair.

It was also disappointing that the guests had to take the initiative and arrange the new year celebration in the square and countdown to midnight.

I would not raise any issue with the room if all else had been up to expectation. However there are a number of points you need to be aware of. They are general repair and maintenance items and I appreciate the constant need for reinvestment. Room 26 is a Malt King Spa and you have made an excellent investment in the bathroom. It is a pity that you did not follow through with minor repairs in the bedroom. The central heating is inadequate but topped up with an electric heater. The curtains are badly fitting, one of the chairs is threadbare and there are holes in the bed top cover. The light fitting on the left of the bed is loose and may be dangerous. The general paint and décor was poor and the door had been broken in at some time and badly repaired.

We were disappointed that there was no view from this room – it overlooks the kitchen. We did book in April. Do the other Malt King Spas have views?

There have been a number of other comments made by guests who have taken new year breaks in Scotland in the past. Probably the most poignant is the lack of a suitable greeting pack on arrival. Indeed there were no glasses in our room.

I regret that we have not had value for money from this break. I even have the suspicion that there may be some exceptional profiteering as drink prices may have been manipulated to a higher level than normal. I do follow wine prices and quality quite keenly.
Your quoted rate for the Malt King Spa room is £195 and you have loaded this by £75 per night for the duration of the break.

This should have been a mutually satisfactory event at Dunalastair and I really do regret the outcome. We were happy to pay a premium for a superior highland experience. As it is I now feel that even the £1100 we have paid is still too much and I would welcome your comments. Probably the most serious point is that you were not there to deal with the situation.

We booked this hotel last minute to get a bit of a break before going back to work for the New Year.

We arrived in around 10cm of snow and felt immediately at home with the roaring log fire in the reception.

Our room was a Monarch 4 Poster suite and it was as good as it sounds! A large and very comfy, 4 poster bed and a separate bathroom with large double ended bath. Fantastic...

All of the staff, from the owner to the barman, hotel were extremely friendly and helpful.

We opted to eat dinner in the Schiehallion Restaurant within the hotel and I am very happy that we did. This was one of the best meals either of us had eaten in the past 6 months and was completely flawless, again with great service. This was consistent across both nights of our stay. The menu was varied and the only problem was making a choice!

Problems? Some minor ones-
Buffet breakfast was cold on the first morning, probably due to the fact we had a long lie but it would not have taken much to make sure it was in better condition. Breakfast made to order would have been a much better touch. No hot chocolate or biscuits in the tea/coffee selection in the room. Bathroom supplies i.e. shampoo bottles etc not refreshed on second day.

In summary we had a great stay with excellent service, food and accommodation and I would thoroughly recommend you tray and stay here if you are looking for a relaxing hotel in a great location.

Just had a wonderfully relaxing weekend break at the Dunalastair -
Rooms and lounge really comfortable, food very good, and excellent low-key but attentive and welcoming service. Some may find the decor and artefacts a bit highland pastiche, but in the main it presents itself as an authentic country house hotel. Likewise, in keeping with its age, the finishes and fittings in parts of our room were slightly rickety, but a modern finish would have destroyed the character of the place. We went on a seasonal DBB package and felt it was excellent value; but I wouldn't have felt short-changed if we'd paid the rack rate.

Stayed at the Dunalastair Hotel for two nights (B&B only)as a last minute deal via and external website. The location and hotel itself was excellent. Great base for walking, fishing, etc. I was very very disappointed with the service. The attitude of the male on reception was terrible. First, he was very demanding that's we'd have dinner on the first night stating that this was the only place in town (it wasn't). Secondly, there was a case of looking down on us, he brought everyone else's drink from the lounge to the dining area when dinner was served but when it was our turn we had to carry our own. Was it because we got a reduced rate? From that moment on our stay was spoilt !! I could go on but think you've got the message!! I'd recommend staying 5 minutes round the corner at the McDonald's hotel - both the food and service was 100 times better!