My husband booked this through a travel agent for a suprise 50th birthday for me. We were in a family suite with my 2 children, 9 and 12.

You can see this hotel from the A9 and it looks like a fairytale palace. After reading some remarks about it I was worried as it stated it was'nt very suitable for the disabled. Wrong.

We parked in the disabled bay, one of 2, outside the front door. Although the rest of the car park was just as suitable. The ramp was at the side like most hotels. We were welcomed with a whisky liquer as we checked in. The staff were very friendly and although we were'nt offered help with the baggage, I'm certain if we'd asked there would have been no problem. The lift is small but big enough for the 4 of us, my electric scooter and 2 suitcases. We had a family suite which was on the 3rd floor and had fantastic views over Pitlocherie and the extensive gardens. The childrens beds were in the living area with a wardrobe, dresser, table and chairs and tv. You went through their room to get to ours and the bathroom. All in all the suite was a good size, larger than most hotels we'd stayed in.

There was plenty of tea, coffee, milk and sugar, with the usual biscuits and some complimentary chocolates.

The evening meal was excellent. There were childrens menus but they could also have half portions from the main menu. The meals, including starters, were extremely large, and the half portions were exactly the same size as ours.

Breakfasts were buffet although you could ask for porridge, kippers etc. if you wanted. There was a good selection of cooked produce and cereals as well as cold meats, fruit etc.

The staff throughout the hotel were very helpful and everyone said hello.

I found everywhere was accessible apart from the spa treatment area, which had 2 steps, although you could enter from outside if you went through the garden.

The bedrooms were very clean and the beds extremely comfortable. The furniture is a little dated but this all adds to the character of the hotel. It is'nt your usual run of the mill hotel, and even has its own museum in the basement showing how and when it was built and the history of it - worth a visit.

Booked for my partners birthday.......Hotel looked and sounded really good........Extremely disappointed by our experience......The main lounge with fires was very welcoming.....and quite nice......However the rooms are too small.....and are overfurnished.....we had to move the TV to get access to the wardrobe.......The tea maker etc.....were almost falling off the minute piece of wood they were placed on......The radiators had not been cleaned since last '' party'' .... there was dust on window etc.....extremely poor housekeeping job.......The food was just average.......and service not too good......The . 'white' t.owels were a pale grey colour......At breakfast ....the waiting time was unaceptable.....and the waiters had to fight their way through guests to serve other customers.....poor situation from kitchen area......The grounds were ok....and might have looked nice in summer..Overall the hotel is greatly overpriced for the service it offers.......I t may have been refurbished in past few years.....but only if you wish to visit spa or swimming pool.....Not a hotel I will be singing praises of.....The outside of hotel looks really good....unfortunately...the inside does not live up to it.....extreme lack of maintenance......only superficilal decor done to hotel......c'est la vie !!!!!!!

Great hotel in a great location. Easy parking, fabulous bedrooms and the whole hotel is lovely. Food was great, staff helpful. The spa was great - lots of "treatment" rooms and a nice pool, although a little on the small side. Defintely value for money.

We went to Atholl Palace in Jan ’08 for a wedding. It was a wonderful wedding and we had a great time - the hotel served really well for this purpose.
--- Good points ---
It has a good indoor pool, jacuzzi and sauna. Facilities very much enjoyed by our friends. It also has a snooker table and hair and beauty bit! Many of my friends used this and were very happy with that too. The location is very beautiful as you will see from my photographs. It is large enough to easily facilitate everyone for a wedding with great facilities and large grand lovely open areas downstairs for guests. The town is close by and there are beautiful walks and drives.
--- Not so good points ---
Service:
Although I found some of the staff really helpful and lovely this was not at all consistent. It was impossible to get the most basic of service at the breakfast buffet. One of the evening reception staff would not give my friends the balls for the snooker table as they had apparently not been returned, this person made no attempt at looking for them even though it was obvious they were around somewhere. Eventually my friends managed to speak to another member of staff who immediately found them where they were supposed to be. Very frustrating.
I came up to the room while it was being cleaned to pick something up. They asked me if I wanted the bed made and said that if I did I would have to leave nothing on it (we had left a couple of cloths there in our haste). My friends also left some cloths on their bed and it was not made! I think that this is just plain weird but perhaps I’m not as clued up on hotel room etiquette as I should be!
The room however was clean enough. The bathroom was dusty on unused surfaces and the cheep shower curtain was filthy. See photo. The shower itself although nice and powerful ran hot and cold.
The food (from the very over priced evening menu to the breakfast) was coated in tones of grease that I could clearly taste had not been changed for ages and was consequently dirty and horrible. The steaks were great however. The food at the wedding reception was also very nice.
Oh, and finally for my favourite: The one key policy. Every room, including family suits containing 4 guests were given only one key between them. This did cause inconvenience for everyone I knew staying there (quite a lot of people). -10 for this, pointless and endlessly irritating when you are there.
Value for money:
As a guest attending a wedding we paid about 125 per night for 2 sharing. Considering the lovely location and the facilities I think that this was just about a fair enough price but was happy to pay as we did have a wonderful time.
However at the regular rate, and bearing in mind you would be travelling by yourself and could go literally anywhere – very bad value indeed.