Our stay at the Castle Hotel in Huntly was one of the best experiences we had in Scotland in our two times there. While on the outside it might look a bit underwhelming as you're driving into the parking lot, I can assure you that once inside it is the complete opposite.
The owners are warm and kind and they instill values of courtesy and friendliness into all of the staff that we met. Once you walk in the front door you're greeted with a warm atmosphere and all the charms of an estate house in the country. We climbed up one flight of slightly crooked stairs and down a short flight of straighter stairs to get to our room. Our room was lovely and spacious, but still had a cozy and charming feel to it. The view was also gorgeous looking out onto the back lawn and a deer statue. The washroom was also large and the bathtub was divine.
We ate four meals at the castle two dinners and two breakfasts. The dinners were just absolutely delicious - the first night they had a tomato soup that just warmed me right up after our long flight. The fish and chips was also very much to my liking and if it hadn't been such a large portion of fish, I would have devoured the whole thing. We also enjoyed that one of the owners was on hand for our dinners in the bar and he made his way around the room greeting people like old friends - including us - even though it was the first time we'd stayed there. The breakfasts were also very good - one morning the hot food was served as we arrived and the next we had a breakfast buffet.
Now for the very short list of things that I was slightly displeased with, but I will say it's just nitpicking, overall we would stay in this hotel again, and we'd be excited to return. It's highly possible these are also just due to my American expectations.
First, eating in the bar, while delicious, is bound to take a bit of time - the wait staff, while exceptionally friendly, aren't exceptionally speedy - so if you're a thirsty person, like I am, make sure to order all your beverages up front (including a pitcher of water), because once your food arrives at the table it might take a while to catch them again.
Second, the road getting to the Castle Hotel is a tiny one lane Scottish road complete with potholes, pedestrians, bicyclers, and passing areas, which is fine and quaint and lovely when people stop in the passing areas like they should, which in our experience didn't happen. Not the Hotel's fault - just pointing it out so that you're in the know.
And third, no screens on the windows. Staying in Scotland during the summer is quite the treat because the weather is perfect for exploring, but most of the hotels keep their insides quite warm, which is great when you're coming home after a rainy day of exploration, but when you're trying to go to sleep at night the luxuriously plush bedding and the warmth do not mix for a happy experience - we would have loved to just open the windows to let a breeze in, but doing so also let the midges in. So we had to decide between sweating or scratching.
Again, all in all a wonderful experience, I would go there again. It's been our favorite place to stay by far, and I cannot recommend it highly enough. read more
