we stayed not in the city in over night (had already al local accomodation), but we dived there with extradivers who are located there and went there for many good breakfasts or some dinners and some divers who stayed there showed us their very lovley rooms in a exeptional good location between plants up to a small hill, the sea right in front and we had some little swimms in the small but nice and very clean pool too. I loved being there, not just the diving is exeptional good, wether with the local leon or stephan form germany, also we felt very welcomed, stephan (diveinstructor) and jens (hotelmanager) were everytime availiable for any kind of questions, transportarrangement, tips for other activities then diving and and and... the service while breakfast or dinner was for tobago even quite fast, in many places (we´ve been not just in speyside) we waited for dinner up to 60 min., in the speyside never longer than 15 min.... next time we´ll stay in the speyside inn, a very friendly nice place with really good diving (-:

The Speyside Inn is in a lovely location. The balcony we had looked right out onto the beach and ocean which we could hear at night. It came highly recommended but didn't live up to my expectations. The only downside was the management which had changed since my friend had been there last. The young man from Germany in charge of the hotel was difficult to find, was unclear about room charges and was not very helpful to our group that was visiting Tobago for the first time. The dive shop operator (also from Germany) wasn't available to our group since a larger group canceled leaving not enough people for his minimum. Our group had twelve people in it, so I'm not sure how many people are needed for his attention. There was also a young lady (from Holland?) there who set up a turtle watching tour for us. She said she was married to a local who would take our group out, but I think we were a cover for some illegal activities that were going on down at the beach.

The swimming pool was not open although the paths around it were lovely to explore.

If you go, Speyside is a lovely place to stay but take no advice from the international group of young people currently running it. Ask the maids that come in each day for advice or the cook or walk down the street to one of the other restaurants to ask a local. The non-T$T people there don't really seem to care or are only worried about themselves.

We arrived at the Speyside Inn looking forward to being away from the main tourist area of Tobago, we had read reports and although some were said the service was not too good, we were not looking for a 5 star resort so gave it a go.

When we arrived the receptionist seemed pleasant enough but it was when we left the reception area that we began to realise something was not quite right. The door handle of the room was all rusted and didn't work properly, the wardrobe in the room did not close, there was no hot water and the windows had been boarded up and painted, and this was their superior room!! We stayed positive and decided to have a walk around the hotel and it only got worse from there. We went to the bar where the lady was on the phone, after a few minutes of being ignored we attracted her attention to be greeted with 'You want something?'. They had no rum, in Tobago this is unheard of, so we got a beer and sat down. The bar / restaurant area was nice enough, if not a bit run down so we decided to have some food, after waiting for a good while we got up and walked off! Then we went to look at the rest of the hotel - the pool was green and only half full, the walkways were tired and run down and there was no-one anywhere to ask when we could get some food. So we headed to Jemma's kitchen across the road and had a wonderful sea food dinner (highly recommend the place!). On returning to the hotel we decided that we did not want to spend 2 weeks in this place and needed to look for alternative accommodation, so we asked where the computer was (advertised as wifi in the reception area), we were lead to a little room (cupboard) which was empty except for a few leads and were told the internet would not be available until the next day! So the next day we found another hotel (Rex Turtle Beach - a bit touristy but lovely none the less), checked in and had a wonderful 2 weeks there.

But the story does not end here, we had paid 50% deposit for the Speyside and when we checked out we spoke to the German manager who apologised for the state of the hotel, said he understood our decision completely as he has been bought in by the German parent company as the previous manager had run the place to rack and ruin, he had only been there 2 weeks. He said he would arrange for our deposit to be returned, minus the one night we had stayed. We have not had a penny! As soon as we had left the story changed, now we were not entitled to any money back and in fact they stated that we should really have to pay the additional 50% as we had cancelled within 48 hours! They have completely ignored the fact that they had a duty to notify us of the issues with the hotel and that they had to bring a new manager in to sort out the previous incumbents mess. So the story goes on ............ Fingers crossed we will see some of our money and some point, although I doubt it as they do not even have the courtesy to reply to me when I contact them now, but safe to say, we will not be going anywhere near the Speyside Inn again.

If you are looking for somewhere to go in Tobago where you'll be guaranteed the usual 4 star European hotel experience...stop reading now! Whatever most people may consider to be its faults, the Speyside Inn delivers a true Tobago experience. The inn isn't luxurious, its actually very basic; it doesn't offer elegant cuisine, it offers simple local food; it isn't in the slightest way contrived; its almost like being part of the local community. And this is its real strength as you can't help but feel as though you are melting into the surroundings and becoming part of life in Speyside.

We went to Tobago to enjoy the diving. There is an on-site dive centre in the grounds of the inn and we made full use of it. The reefs in Tyrells Bay are full of a variety of life and the local dive master - Leon - knows them like the back of his hand; he should do, he's been diving them since he was a small child! Some of the swells and currents are not for the novice, but Leon knows how to help amateur divers along the way - trust me, he helped me!

The inn has a laid back atmosphere. It does take a few minutes for staff to come to you and take your order - but that is the way it is; and so what? Breakfast is included and comprises of fresh fruit and juice and then a hot choice or cereal with tea or coffee. The evening meal changes according to what is caught in the surrounding seas, but was always delicious and stays true to Tobagon cuisine. If you prefer, you can always dine at the local restaurants which are a short walk towards the centre of Speyside. We enjoyed local dishes, but they tend to produce very similar meals.

My advice would be to book a room fitted with air conditioning. We didn't and found it difficult to circulate air into the room at night even with the doors and windows open. The mosquito net was a must! Otherwise, the rooms are basic but functional. You have a bathroom with a sink, WC and shower; the main rooms are fitted with a wardrobe with a safe, a couple of bedside tables and a bed - and most important of all, a fridge! We enjoyed a balcony view out into the bay and the magnificent sunrises.

Overall, the inn is basic and functional. The staff are friendly and helpful, and Lenore pours a mean gin & tonic! It isn't luxury, but it is a feel of true Tobago. We loved it, we would definitely go back - but we'll be taking advantage of the air conditioning next time!