Inverness West hotel

Truly appalling - apparently had a leaking roof this week. But looking at the outside there is evidence of unhealthy damp on all vent areas. Room on 3rd floor was unusable because of stink of damp and rotting. I have been moved to ground floor and room OK If you are looking at this expecting a Premier Inn experience I'd strongly recommend looking elsewhere. Restaurant has next to nobody in it but staff shortages mean that barely any booking available.

The staff at the hotel were amazing — very helpful, friendly, and accommodating. They even provided snacks on Sunday morning for the marathon, which was a thoughtful gesture. This is the only positive thing I can say about the hotel, and I want to emphasize that every member of the team was genuinely kind and attentive. The hotel itself is very run-down, with leaks everywhere and unpleasant odors throughout. The corridor on the ground floor between the rooms had a drainage leak, leaving everything damp and musty. Our room was poorly ventilated (the windows couldn’t be opened) and had a constant smell of moisture and mold. Every time someone in the hotel flushed their toilet, the smell would come through ours. The humidity in the room was unbearable — even after 24 hours, none of the towels would dry. Trying to minimize the number of towels we used to help the hotel reduce washing, we ended up having to reuse damp towels repeatedly. We paid what I consider an extortionate amount for our stay (I understand it was a busy period due to the Loch Ness Marathon), but the condition of the hotel was shockingly bad for the price. I’ve stayed in many hostels during my student days in the 2000s, but I’ve never experienced one as poorly maintained as this hotel. Oh and the wifi was atrocious.

We were pleasantly surprised after reading the recent negative reviews on various sites. Despite the restaurant undergoing renovation and the hotel being very busy due to the Loch Ness marathon we were able to book a table for dinner Fri, Sat and Sun, albeit quite early. The food and service were good. Communal areas definitely need an upgrade and more frequent cleaning but our room was clean and comfortable. Staff were welcoming and free cereal bars, bananas and bottled water for marathon participants was a nice touch.

The hotel room was large and clean and the shower was great (but I asked for a bathmat to use as the bath was slippery). The staff were excellent - always helpful and quick to help whenever asked. The downside was that you can't open a window and the room was very hot overnight - the room controls didn't help and even the central controls from the reception desk couldn't cool my room overnight. The lowest the room temperature settings allow the room to cool to is 19 degrees, but with the heating from the corridor (and possibly from other rooms) my room was much hotter overnight (It was around 21-23 degrees in the night which is far too hot for me). The bed was not that comfortable - a bit lumpy and the corridor had leaks from the ceiling so there was a large damp patch on the carpet in the corridor which gave off a musty damp smell.

Location is ideal for Inverness town and also to join in the Marathon activities. The atmosphere in the hotel feels dated and dull. Rooms were good and comfortable. The price I had to pay for the room was not good value - I would not use this hotel again for this event. Cleanliness in the public areas could be better but some of that is down to decor needing to be refreshed. Noise level in the room was good. Staff were amazing but could not cope with the number in the hotel. I felt very sorry for them - they were working so hard against the odds.