Thank you Family Dickson. It is very kind of you to take the time and leave a review on Tripadvisor. Your comments are gratefully received.

You are correct. Ghillies is a wonderful lodge for a family gathering with lots of space and comfort. I'm glad to read your family approved of a Hogmanay celebration in the luxurious surroundings of Ghillies rather than Edinburgh.

Thank you kindly for the bottle of Port. Very much appreciated and always a favoured drink in the Taylor household.

May I take this opportunity to thank you on behalf of myself and my family for your valued custom. I hope to have the pleasure in welcoming you back sometime in the near future.

I wish you and your family a happy, healthy and prosperous 2012.

Yours aye,

Cameron

Dear Sir/Madam,

I apologise for the delay in responding to your review of 1 January 2012. Reviews are
important to us as they allow us to address any pertinent issues thus ensuring that our
guests are able to enjoy their stay with us.

I have noted your ‘Good Points’ although I do take issue with your allegation of dust
being seen “on surfaces, particularly the bathroom”. The only area in the bathroom
capable of supporting dust would be the one window ledge and, as I’m sure you
appreciate, ‘dust’ always comes in a window despite best efforts to keep dust free.

I will address your ‘Bad Points’ individually. Before doing so, I have to say that had you
drawn some of your ‘points’ to our attention at the time, they would have been attended
to immediately instead of you ‘suffering’ them for the duration of your stay.

The business at Portnellan has been a family one for over 30 years, the product being timber frames
lodges and stone built cottages some owned by people from various locations and managed by us on their behalf, majority owned by myself. It
is not a large timeshare complex with seemingly unlimited funds and large staff numbers
and therefore, there can be no like-for-like comparison.

Eagle Lodge was fully refurbished during our site closure throughout Winter 2009.
Such refurbishment included new items such as carpets throughout, kitchen worktops, Bosch
dishwasher, ceramic hob, 32” HD ready Sony television, reclining leather suite, kitchen
sink, kitchen floor, lighting and complete redecoration. The current state
of this lodge can clearly be seen in photographs on our website (portnellan.co.uk) and
is far removed from “80’s décor and general worn/dated condition”. In this regard, it
would seem that your perceived standards are more aligned to large timeshare complexes
instead of a clean and comfortable, 4 star wooden lodge.

You may appreciate that when designing a bathroom in property such as ours, there has
to be practical considerations rather than following a ‘wish list’. The “vinyl/plastic
wallpaper” to which you refer is in fact similar to a very common waterproof product
know as marine ply. It is a waterproof wall covering known as 'Respatex' which costs
over £100 per 2400mm x 600mm sheet and there are approximately 10 sheets in that
bathroom. Indeed, this can clearly be seen in the photograph you sent.

I accept that the bathroom can be cooler particularly during the winter months but a heated
towel rail does take the chill off and the warmth level is augmented by a 250 watt heat
light bulb designed and installed specifically to heat the bathroom.

Every care is taken to ensure that everything in every property is in working order before
being occupied by our guests. However, as I’m sure you will appreciate, things can go
wrong unexpectedly. For example, how many drivers leave the garage in their newly
serviced car only to have it break down outside? Had you reported the condition of the
cold tap and the shower pressure, these would have been attended to there and then.

As regards your allegation of an uncomfortable bed, all our beds are supplied by a
company called Dovetail (formerly Blindcraft). They are all king-size, Contract
Supreme 5’ x 6”6’. They are slightly firmer than normal mattresses. I have since
examined the mattress and can not find anything amiss. However, had you advised me of your concerns at the time, I would have addressed the
situation. I whole hearted agree that a good nights sleep whilst on holiday is so important. I have in the past exchanged bed mattresses for people who prefer a softer mattress. Another example of the lengths we will go to make your holiday a memorable one.

You allege the DVD player is old and difficult to use with poor picture quality. Again,
had you told me of this at the time, I would have attended to the matter. Frequently, the
cause is due to guests, perhaps moving the equipment and dislodging the HDMI lead or
SCART cable which if not lodged completely into the socket, will result in a poor signal.

Looking for something to do, in any weather conditions, is something that can only be
achieved by the ‘looker’ not by others. That said, had you approached me in this regard,
or made use of the extensive tourist information in the visitors centre, then perhaps something would have
appealed to you.

Finally, Portnellan is reviewed biannually by VISITSCOTLAND quality advisors and
has kept its 4 and 5 star standards for many years. Your comments in this regard are
subjective and really boil down to what you expect. We do not portray ourselves other
than what we are. If you seek quality accommodation in a timber lodge on a family run
estate in a rural setting, then Portnellan provides and exceeds that desire. If, on the other
hand, you seek a timeshare type property within a spa complex with amenities such as
restaurants, laid on entertainment, swimming pool, etc. etc., then you have clearly come
to the wrong place and would be better served by going to accommodation provided by
the likes of the De Vere and Hilton groups.

Your chosen period to come to Portnellan was during the Festive Season which is
advertised clearly as a high season period for obvious reasons. To find a self catering
accommodation provider who will release a property for 2 nights during this period
would be very difficult as most prefer a longer stay period as a minimum. Very few
businesses do what we do at Portnellan regarding lengths of stay; this being a service we
provide for the benefit of our guests. Had you come outwith this period, the price would
have been reduced to £89.00 per night as per our published prices.

You stayed with us late December in Eagle Lodge which accommodates 4 people and
is not a double room as you describe. As you mentioned earlier, you found nothing to
do during your stay and therefore, presumably stayed indoors where you used heating,
lighting, hot water, cooking and the available appliances for 2 days which equated to an
£18 in total for electricity. I think if you look at the price again, and the circumstances
which caused the usage, you will appreciate that this was value for money.

In any event, thank you for your comments. I am sorry that you found yourself unable
to fully appreciate and enjoy the delights of Portnellan and that you allowed your stay
to be ‘tainted’ by situations which could have been remedied had you
reported them there and then.

Yours aye,

Cameron