OK, so its taken me 2.5 years to write this review...but the fact that I'm bothering to put "pen to paper" after that time tells you something. this is without doubt one of the most memorable places i have ever stayed in after 30 years traveling the world. after visiting there in 2009 my wife and i still have fond memories of our stay. as you drive down through the forest you have no idea what awaits you as the trees clear...paradise. the house, the gardens the setting, the views are unbelievable. the breakfast was gorgeous. hey, it aint the Ritz but its on an island in the midde of nowhere...and if you seek calm solitude and and an environment to die for i can think of no better place on gods earth...as long as its sunny. honestly and truly this is the most memorable place i have ever been...

This is a very difficult review to write. There are many nice things about the property and some glaring deficiencies. If the Hotel owned the view it would be easy to give them 5-stars ... but they don't. Since the owners claim to have a 'special' property: I find myself having to be a little tougher on them than I would be reviewing a normal B&B or hotel. (If you flaunt it ... you better have it!)

After reading the various reviews here I decided to take a chance and book for 4 nights as a special treat for my travelling companion even if it was way beyond my budget. The "5 Star" prices were a little intmidating. Later I got worried and changed the reservation to just 3 nights and found out it was a good decision. So, on to the ratings:

SERVICE: This is a bad one to start out with, but it is the first on the list. One word: Poor. The superficial things are all handled properly but after that it goes downhill rapidly. The Hotel is extremely under-staffed. For the prices charged it should be swarming with help, but it is not. According to my count there were 6 off and on during the day ... Pascal the manager, Barbara the assistant manger, 2 waitstaff (maybe) during serving hours, a cleaning person, and the cook I never saw. The manager doubles as a waiter, bell hop, bartender, dishwasher, and maintainance man. The assistant manager doubles as a bartender and waitress. As a result service is pretty much non-existent unless you are lurking in the bar. There are little 'if you need assistance' call buttons scattered throughout the building (which is a bad sign in and of itself) and if you push one the results are very iffy. Half the time you just end up staring at the buttton for 15 minutes waiting for the Genie to appear. Is the owner to blame for the lack of staff??

Plus I had a problem with the flushing mechanism in the toilet in the room during the first 2 days. Pascal came up and fussed with the float a little bit and informed me that there was nothing wrong. Unfortunately the 'functioning' toilet was now hopelessly plugged up since it hadn't been flushing properly and despite my strong hint that we needed a plunger none was forthcoming and I eventually had to spend 2 hours trying to unplug it with my hands and by whatever means I had handy in my luggage! It was rather upsetting. I should have sent him a bill!

Unfortunately 2 STARS **

VALUE: Over-priced for what you get. In every aspect: rooms and dining. For the 'on-season' rates of $170 for a room in Flora's cottage garret to $340US for a "flagshp room" per night one would/should reasonably expect a 5 star property. I just didn't see it. The property was very nice ... but NOT that nice. 2 STARS **

SLEEP QUALITY: Very good! The beds were comfortable enough and there was some but very little ambient noise from inside the Hotel. Absolutely no noise from outside ... unless you can hear the sheep snoring in the pasture next door. Wonderful place to get a good night's sleep. 4 STARS ****

CLEANLINESS: I'll address the inside of the hotel and the room here ... more later. The entire place was spotless inside. Very impressive overall. Really tremendous 5 star stuff!

So why do I only give it a 3? Simple: gross nasty mold and 'people scrunge' around the fixutres and tiles in the bath/shower. Once again: for the kind of prices charged that shouldn't be happening ... ever! The three other inexpensive 55 quid/night B&B's I stayed in for the rest of trip didn't have that problem! A simple wipe-down with bleach once a week would prevent the mold. I'm not usually overly picky but I had to request the 'vegetation' be removed from the bathtub before I felt comfortable indulging in a good long soak on my 2nd evening. (and they still didn't get it all)

Unfortunately I can reluctantly only do 3 STARS *** because of that and another factor to be later mentioned under "GROUNDS".

LOCATION: God blessed the Isle of Skye. The geology and topography found on the northern part of Skye are unlike anywhere else in Scotland! The area surrounding the Hotel is truely impressive. God gets a definate 5 STARS! *****

ROOMS: Generally very nice. We had one of the 'superior' rooms. It was indeed spacious with a nice sitting area included. If you look at their website it shows a picture of the room in the "rooms" tab under the caption of "one of the bedrooms" showing a couch and chair and part of one of the beds. The superior rooms are described as follows: "They are magnificently situated to enjoy spectacular panoramic sea and mountain views." Wrong, wrong, wrong ... our room was located in a recent ugly concrete block 'tower' to the rear of the building ... see my pictures from both windows and decide for yourself. And there is a good reason they don't show anything but one corner of one of the beds. They are both extremely small "single" beds on rolling frames that tend to 'creep' around the room during your stay, with tubular metal headboards just leaned up againt the wall for decoration I guess. Once again: for what you have to pay ...

Also beware of what you will be getting: all of the 'standard' rooms are small and in one of the garrets or the Cottage. And none of the 7 small rooms in the Cottage have a view thanks to a large tree 'hedge'. If you must visit: hold out for one of the front Superior or Flagship rooms

BREAKFAST: Skimpy at best with cafeteria quality. The worst portions of the four properties I stayed at in Scotland. A true disappointment. Definately 2 STARS.

DINING: I will basically let other reviews to speak to menu and "rosettes". Once again their web site appears to overstate reality. The dining room, described as "elegant", is nothing more than a small room crammed with 7 tables. The web site shows the very nice and lovely conservatory being used for dining (maybe that is how they got the rosette?) but it wasn't when I was there. It should be used at all times and seasons. It is much more appropriate and the existing one should be reverted back into the 'private bar' that it seems it was originally intended to be. 3 STARS (and no rosettes)

(PS: if you want to make a fortune buy a house in Staffin and turn it into a Restuarant/Bar that features good 'home-cooked' Scottish food in the 10-15 quid range. Mark it well on the main road and you will be set for life with eager customers hoping to escape from the tourist trap(s) in both Flodigarry and Portree!)

GROUNDS: Very wonderful, gorgeous, and well maintained ... but don't peek around the rear corners! You will be greeted by molding outbuildings, a crumbling caravan, and random junk scattered around. (Do they think nobody will ever look? I did!) 4 STARS

OVERALL: Even though I really liked the place in general with it's lovely house, lounge, conservatory and grounds, I think that this is just a property that is resting on it's past glories.The owner's website pumps it up to something grand; which it is not. The owner needs to make some radical changes to insure it's future survival. Get rid of the 'mud room in the entrance, install a real reception desk (and staff it full time), dump the fake pretentious dining (and it's rosette) unless it actually reflects reality, and hire some extra help so guests are taken care of properly and also so the manager can do his real job and not be so grumpy from overwork.

But since it appears that it is one of the nicest ones on Skye for now give it try for one night if you are feeling rich ... otherwise leave it to the crazy rich tourists from overseas and stay in Portree for a third the price!

If you are searching for a hotel in a wonderful location, this is it! Our room had spectacular views across the sea to the Torridon mountains and we could have sat by the window all day. We found all the staff helpful and polite. Breakfasts are great - try the Mallaig kippers and home-made fish cakes. We stayed for four nights and ate in the bar which has a good menu, excellent local beers and whiskys (of course!), and good service. Although the hotel is at the top end of Skye, it's very close to fantastic walks on the Quiraing, 15 minutes spectacular drive to the Museum of Skye life which is a must-see venue and 30 minutes from Portree and Uig. Flodigarry House is a 'one off' and full of quirky charm. Enjoy the dram on arrival! We only wish we could get there for the Christmas festivities which look great fun.

Let's not forget this is only a 3 star hotel ( so where do they get the prices ? ) Firstly, may I say I have no complaints about the staff, service, cleanliness or most other aspects of the hotel. But, My God, £17.50 for a starter portion of scallops and 25 quid for a sirloin steak. Sorry, I don't think it was that good. Lots of overseas visitors who maybe don't mind paying a bit extra ,but when you're only away for a few days break in your home country it makes for a very expensive " holiday ". Maybe it's the whole Skye thing. They certainly appear to command a hefty premium. Good luck to them, but please try and remember the Scottish folk who are just looking for a few days away and don't want to spend a fortune.