Balmoral Arms

Our trip was for 20 days and some 18 nights. Of the 7 Hotels/B&Bs we stayed at the Balmoral Arms had the best breakfast hands down of all 7 establishments. Order the Eggs Benedict, you will not be disappointed.

Our ground floor room had a rather close up view of what I think was a shrouded dumpster. (When we opened our curtains, we were immediately reminded of a stay in a Left Bank hotel in Paris some 15 years ago, where we had the worst room in the hotel (we could tell from the room map on the back of the door it was the smallest with no view) with a view of a smallish air shaft.)

Good location in this small town, well placed for touring the area. Not a very old property, but felt as if it has been there for ever, very well decorated and presented. Very attentive & helpful staff, especially the check in teams, and bar staff. Lovely room - we had booked a standard double, but got a small suite, so probably upgraded!! Very comfortable, great bed, well decorated and lots of nice "Scottish" touches. No on site parking, but large public car park (free) very close by

Breakfast experience a little underwhelming. All nicely set up, didn't have us booked in (we'd booked B&B) but found a table. Seemed a little undermanned, so level of service a bit disappointing. waited half an hour for porridge to arrive, which was lukewarm at best! "Scottish Platter" OK, but basically meats & a couple of cheese choices, not accompanying breads or fresh salad/pickles. Main breakfast order also took ages to arrive, and they forgot the toast completely! Everything else great.......

The room was lovely and large, with comfortable bed and large bathroom with rolltop bath. The cooked breakfast was great with a good choice of menu. The dinner was excellent too. Parking was very easy in a free public car park right across the road. Reception staff were very friendly and efficient. We will definitely recommend The Balmoral Arms to friends visiting Scotland.

The hanging baskets and window boxes outside the hotel were in need of attention. Some restaurant staff needed more training in how to greet guests and how to serve and clean tables. We were told that they were all newly employed but basic training should perhaps be given before they start.

When I visit Scotland I always want to feel like I’m surrounded by the locations charm and the Balmoral Arms did not disappoint with its authentic styling, inviting communal spaces and comfy rooms. The staff were all fantastic and friendly throughout our stay and nothing was too much trouble. My friend and I also got to experience the hotels spa treatments, Kirsten was amazing with my massage and I felt like I was walking on air afterwards, highly recommend I’d like me you were skiing/driving lots during your stay. Thank you to Joanna and her team, this may become my annual retreat.

There really isn’t anything note worthy to say here.

The hotel was amazing! We had a beautiful room with an old bathtub, the interior looked amazing. Try the dinner there, it was really delicious. The breakfast was good as well and the staff was really friendly. Unfortunately we were only there for one night, would have liked to stay longer. In my opinion it was one of the best hotels that we had during our Scotland road trip. So I can definitely recommend it!

We were traveling by car and could not park directly at the hotel. However, the parking lot was right near the hotel, the staff even offered to carry our luggage to the room since there is no elevator.

Great location, nice warm feeling ion entry and in restaurant. Very good management.

when I first arrived I was put in a room that was not advertised. It was small than expected with no bath (which I had wanted). Although it was clean and tidy it didn’t have a good feeling and was super cramped. Having said this the manager did respond to my email very quickly and after agreeing the room was not as advertised I was moved to a much very room and from then on I very much enjoyed my stay. Had this not happened I would have left feeling extremely disappointed and the review would have been quite poor. I would say that in the good room the pillows went that comfortable, all else was great.

Nice big comfortable hotel trying to be upmarket but not quite making it yet (maybe staff shortages was the main problem).

Bad situation for parking being in the middle of town. No disabled parking bays. Bedroom and bathroom were very good and comfortable, but the fancy shower unit was diabolical to operate- very poor. Evening meals were excellent good choices on menu. Breakfast was a disaster we booked an early breakfast for 08.00 as we had a long journey south but it was 50 mins before our meal arrived. They blamed staff shortages but shouldn’t be charging full prices if they can’t provide the service - the few staff are run off there feet but did there best.

Super little find in the always welcoming Ballater. We had a 4 day break between Christmas and New Year and could not have loved it more. All the staff were friendly and welcoming, even given how busy the hotel was during our stay. Special mention must go to the wonderful young lady who looked after us at dinner in the bar on the first and last nights (from Avignon, sadly we never got her name!), the very busy, smiley lady who served us at breakfast for three days and the young red haired lady who was at breakfast on our last day. The room was comfortable and larger than expected, and the room treats of chocolate, tea and coffee were very welcome after a hard day walking. Having always stayed in private cottages, we’ve been converted! Thanks to the team for a memorable stay.

Mirrors were a few inches too low for my 6ft frame!

We had a wonderful stay at the Balmoral Arms. Ou room (a junior suite) was beautiful, definitely worth the upgrade as we wanted something a bit special. Everything is clean and seems recently renovated but it hasn't lost its charm. The food was fantastic, we really liked being able to eat in the pub as our dog was allowed to join us there and we liked the atmosphere better than the restaurant area anyway. The staff were kind enough to set up breakfast for us in the lounge every day so our dog could join us there too. When they say they're dog friendly at this place they really mean it! We felt so welcome and thoroughly enjoyed every moment of our stay. We hope to be back some day!

The bedroom and other accommodation were good. Generally, most staff were helpful and accommodating.

At breakfast, I was approached by a (possible manager) senior male member of staff and was asked if I would like to order breakfast. Not sure what I was entitled to, so I requested full Scottish breakfast. The order could a half hour to arrive which in itself I found a long time. During this wait, I observed other table receiving, what I perceived to be, a number of courses, e.g. fresh fruit salad, toast, cereal, etc. In hindsight, when placing my order, this senior person was reserved and did not say or explain much or possible did not recognise that I may have wished an other item. All tables had a toast tray on them apart from mine. Suggest travellers to be more forward.