Colonsay is an amazing island with some beautiful scenery. We spent two fantastic days walking and cycling. It is a shame that at the end of the day all we had to go back to was the Colonsay Hotel.
Yes, it is a quaint hotel but there are hundreds of quaint hotels around Scotland that provide a much nicer and better service. There's nothing wrong with the building, and the rooms are fine. There's space, the showers are great and that's about it. There's no wow factor in this hotel.
First impressions were OK, we arrived and to be fair, we weren't exactly sure where reception was. It turns out it was a desk with a computer on it in a room next to the lounge. Quaint. It wasn't clear who was running the show- there was a guy who had a sheet of paper who took us upstairs to our room and then had to run back down to collect the next lot of guests to take them to their room. There was a slight air of disorganisation about it all.
Dinner was perhaps the biggest disappointment. I ordered the most expensive thing on the menu on our first night- the steak. At £19.95 I was expecting something awesome. The steak I got resembled one of those £3 ones I could easily get in any old Spar or Tescos. I was gutted. I was also hungry. Vegetables cost extra. In fact other than chips, everything else cost extra.
I decided to eat haddock on the second night and at £12.95 was more or less the cheapest thing on the menu. I was impressed, but thought I could get something similar for about £3 in a fish and chip shop! Again, vegetables cost extra.
Breakfasts were hugely disappointing. I was keen on getting a full Scottish breakfast- which, by the way, is fairly normal in almost every B and B, and most hotels around the country. The continental breakfast was free, but I would expect that in any hostel. This is a hotel! £7.50 for a cooked breakfast? Are you kidding me? I tried the cooked breakfast on our last morning, thinking I would get a fair amount. Wrong. No baked beans, one small sausage, two fried eggs and some microwave heated bacon. I had to laugh.
We ordered some packed lunches as we were walking and cycling for most of the day. I thought this was a nice service provided by the hotel. Having sampled dinner and breakfasts, we werent expecting much. We had specifically requested no butter, three times, the previous evening when we ordered them.
Sitting at Kiloran Bay admiring views of the cliffs was incredible, and that certainly lightened our mood when we discovered that our sandwiches were filled with butter and mouldy cheese. The rest of then lunch was fine, certainly made better by the location.
I really don't understand why the hotel needs to price things so expensively- I realise they are on an island and need to get items shipped in but mouldy cheese in a packed lunch? £80 per person, per night in a room with basic amenities? £20 for a steak that was probably bought at Tescos for £3 in Oban?
The Colonsay Hotel is the only hotel on the island, and probably gets away with things because there's no competition. If the Colonsay Hotel was a hostel, I would understand. The whole layout was like a nice hostel or backpackers that provided a free continental breakfast. The bar donwstairs, the log fire, the free wifi and nice lounge are all what you'd expect in a good hostel. The lack of competition has really prevented the Colonsay Hotel from improving- its almost as if it's stuck and isn't sure where to go.
We will certainly go back to Colonsay Island, but will probably try out the bed and breakfasts or some of the self catering cottages.
- Colonsay Isle Of
- Colonsay Hotel Isle Of
