Aultbea Hotel

The location is superb, at the foot of the loch, and the room gave multiple views which were delightful. Our room had been very tastefully redecorated, and was the most attractive room of our entire trip.

As the hotel is in redecoration, the offerings for dinner were rather limited. The shower was tiny, and the way to use it not entirely clear.

Excellent food and overall cleanliness. Staff were lovely and welcoming.

The hotel is in an exceptional loch side location. The staff were very friendly and helpful. The accommodation was spotlessly clean and comfortable and the food (at both dinner and breakfast) was excellent and reasonably priced.

Nothing

It was a convenient stop on our NC500 roadtrip. The town itself didn't seem to have much going but we were there in October so I'm sure things would normally be a bit livelier. The gentleman serving breakfast couldn't do enough for us - he was very warm and friendly. We were also happy with the breakfast itself. The bed was quite comfortable, the tv was functional. There was also an array of thoughtful treats and water left for us.

This was a pretty disappointing stay, especially given the amount we were charged. Price-quality ratio is just not there. I'm guessing/hoping this is because we stayed off-season (Oct), but the check-in process via the bar was very awkward. The server noticed us walk in with all our luggage but didn't acknowledge us so we had to stand behind the patrons she was chatting with for 5 minutes to wait before she reluctantly checked us in. We were then immediately asked if we were doing breakfast and what time and then made to pay for it in advance like we planned to dine and dash or something. The 'king room' was certainly not as described - the bed was narrow and in a cramped space, the room was fully carpeted from the 80s and the bathroom was essentially a closet with barely functional plumbing. The were layers of dust on the headboard that hadn't been cleaned in a very long time. Perhaps we could have overlooked some of these quirks if made to feel marginally more welcome. Then we went to dinner there since there weren't many other options locally, and the menu advised it was a choice of 2 or 3 course prix fixe. The food was not great and we were served by the same person from check-in who seemed offended that we were eating there. Then we saw that another customer had ordered a la carte and that it wasn't actually necessary to order more than one course despite the menu making it seem that way. Very dishonest way to do business. Would be giving a lower score if it weren't for the server the next day doing his best to give us a positive experience. Maybe give him a raise.