Arguably the worst customer experience…
Arguably the worst customer experience I have ever had. We popped into the woodshed for a pizza and a coffee, something we have been doing for over a decade. The girl serving at the bar could only be described as surly! The food took over an hour for 4 small pizzas which arrived in groups of 2, 20mins apart. On asking for an update we were treated as if it was our fault! Several customers arriving and ordering food after us were served before us only to receive the wrong order, one vegetarian customer was served a pepperoni pizza. Absolutely astonishing approach to customer service, we will never go back.
Paul Hanson
Weekend in Coylumbridge
Had a great weekend with the family, 15 of us in total. Ross on reception was very helpful, efficient and had us all checked in without any issues. Rooms were fine and food was very good. Christian in the restaurant was very efficient and friendly and went out of his way to make sure our meals were very enjoyable. Staff at the woodshed and leisure facilities were also great. It’s not the Hilton anymore but it’s brilliant value and the staff worked very very hard and were nothing but pleasant and helpful. Well done to the team we’ll definitely be back again next year.
Ross McIntosh
Hotel is short staffed
Hotel is short staffed. Food inedible absolute slop at the buffet. Complained 4 times about having no heating no fresh bedding and got no assistance. Also phone in room not working so have to keep going doing tk reception to complain. Manager acted as though it’s not really her issue and they have no housekeeping. Currently sat in a freezing room with a filthy bed. Would not come back.
Margaret Hicks
Mediocre resort, not really worth the cost.
We stayed 2 nights Jan 5th through to 7th with friends (a family of 5)A generally nice reception area, warm lots of chairs. Took a while to get checked in. When we got to our room, which was fine, basic but clean, there was a strong chemical smell that made me feel nauseous. It dissipated somewhat on opening the window, but it was then freezing in the room. Everytime we returned to the room I could smell it, but thankfully seemed to get used to it and didnt get a migraine. The breakfast was alright. Some stuff a bit overcooked, but eggs, haggis and hash browns were great. The machine coffee was good,always a must for me.. not sure what was going on with the fresh orange though, it was weak and watery as if it were diluted. Evening buffet we decided not to partake, opted to go out...again waited an hour for them to put the menu up outside...Then nobody like what was on it. I'm unsure why reception couldn't just tell us what would be in the buffet. It just seems there's no real flow or collaboration between the staff there. How easy would it be to just speak to the kitchen and ask ? The worst thing about our stay was the lack of staff. On the evening they had ONE person running between the bar and the coffee bit, also fetching food orders for people and clearing away plates etc. Poor girl was run ragged, it was quite busy, they know how many ppl they have booked so an extra member of staff would've made a huge difference to waiting to be served.Reception staff didn't come out to help even when the kids stood waiting over 25 mins to get a hot chocolate, so again, how hard could it be to come round the counter to the counter opposite and just serve them, OR phone the 1 member of staff at the bar to inform them someone was waiting there. The pool wasn't open until the morning we were leaving and checkouts 10am. So the kids were disappointed, this is supposed to be part of your booking. So same cost but no pool facility.Lots of snow. But they didnt put a digger out to clear their main entrance road and car park areas until the 2nd afternoon we were there. Just some things they could improve on. Our friends had a few room issues, family room, only 2 bath towels ?? Radiator not working. The 2nd day they got a heater put in the room. We still managed to have a nice time with friends, but because you should get the service and facilities you're paying for, and we didnt feel like we did, Its doubtful we'd stay there again.
JJ
Had read the reviews and was worried…
Had read the reviews and was worried about my stay. Needn’t have worried though. The hotel was lovely. Reception area busy and person behind the desk was welcoming. My room was clean and had everything needed. Toilet/shower had recently been renovated and was lovely. Will definitely stay here again. Don’t always trust the reviews!
F Kelly
Pleasant enough stay
Pleasant enough stay, some areas are a bit tired looking and could do with some updating. Hotel was very hot in corridors and rooms, so much so we had the fan on in October, windows open all day when we were out. Pool and sauna area is modern and clean. Staff in the main very polite and helpful.
Steven Cairns
Firstly the 1 stars you see are abit…
Firstly the 1 stars you see are abit dramatic for this hotel. We only have 1 negative and that’s how clean the hotel rooms are and general public areas, however that’s only down to the lack of staff and that’s not the current staffs fault. The public areas are also guests fault, by not bothering to clean up after themselves and leaving dirty glasses everywhere. It takes 2 seconds to take the glasses up to the bar. The staff here couldn’t have done enough for us during our stay, a special thanks for the two barman Graeme and Stuart and the manager Ross. We had a situation unfold with an incredibly intoxicated guest and they resolved the issues instantly, for our troubles we were even granted vouchers for drinks which they absolutely didn’t have to do. This hotel is PERFECT for young families, they have so much to do for kids here. The location of the hotel is amazing, it’s so beautiful and very well kept. One thing I will say, is the company that owns the hotel NEED to do more for their staff and put in the extra money to make this place more modern. The company are clearly hounding the cash for this place. It has SO MUCH potential. Again we want to thank the staff for their hospitality, they really do go above and beyond with the little staff they have. Keep up the good works guys, we will be back soon.
Rebecca Stewart
We had a very pleasant stay at this…
We had a very pleasant stay at this hotel. Don’t understand all the bad reviews. Checked in at 3.30 and it took two minutes. We were upgraded to a spacious family room which was nicely decorated recently - new shower room. Very clean with coffee facilities which you could top up yourself when passing reception. All staff were very helpful and polite. Very good buffet breakfast with a wide variety of everything. Will definitely be back! 👍😻
tessawessa
horrible
September 2025 Hotel in a very lovely position, was in room C2 family room, the room consisted of a double bed and a single along the wall below where tv was situated making it impossible to view from that bed, Kettle cable could not reach socket from desk, had to move to bedside cabinet to use. Only one pillow on each bed and only one spare in wardrobe instead of three {one for each person} unable to get through to reception to ask for more and nails sticking out of headboard on double bed, no where to hang towels in toilet, toilet seat not secure. The room was only set for two people ie cups etc. Room walls very grubby and in need of a good freshen up.
Edward Mccarl
Don’t stay at the Coylumbridge hotel
I booked the Coylumbridge hotel for a mountain biking trip away with Aviemore as the central jumping off point to set out from so the Coylumbridge hotel seemed a good choice as we were camping a couple of nights before the hotel.I booked a twin room so my mate and I had somewhere guaranteed that wasn’t camping for the last night.At check-in the lady on reception was cold at best and actually rude at worst. She decided to make us wait over five minutes whilst she sent emails. A bizarre and unusual approach to customer service especially front desk?! Finally calling us forward again to get checked in she gave us a double room? Clearly this was not what I booed and so a tedious dialogue back and forth took place whilst I provided the original emails indicating my original booking of a twin room.Eventually after watching the receptionists range of emotional outbursts she finally found a twin room. The twin room was an initial relief but unfortunately soon to be hugely disappointing.The room was an old store room!Clearly a lick of paint and the toilet upgraded to include a shower but overall I can say hand on heart this is the first and last time I would ever use the Coylumbridge hotel and strongly recommend anyone avoid this overpriced and underperforming place as a way of having a better time and vacation anywhere else in Aviemore or the surrounding area.I took a video and several pictures of the room showing the state of disrepair: the shower rail holding the shower head literally held on with string?! This was the starting point. The window held a view of….the skip for the hotel. Next to this were work vans and general equipment left outside unwanted/needed anymore. The room echoed at just normal level of conversation as it was clearly a very tall storage room in its originally intended purpose. The place wasn’t clean and after pushing the twin beds apart the floor was half an inch thick with dust along with chewing gum and general detritus.I stay in many hotels in the course of my job. This gives me a very broad spread of experience and standards of hotels. To say the Coylumbridge hotel is one star would be being very kind given the reception staff and general conditions of the room.The good points would be the bar food and staff were actually very friendly and nice.Unfortunately it’s just not acceptable to pay so much for this hotel. Sadly I think the huge numbers of unsuspecting tourists will provide the hotel with ensured customer base. Hopefully this review will be seen by as many as possible and they can then pay their money and gamble on their choices if they choose this hotel.
James
So… this is probably the worst hotel we…
So… this is probably the worst hotel we have stayed in. I’m not quite sure where to start. The food in the buffet restaurant is absolutely shocking. Avoid at all costs, especially the blimin price! So bad for what it is. Now the breakfast buffet was all cold. The queue was beyond reception get in and some people were actually asking for breakfast refunds. Absolutely NOT WORTH IT! Now the additional costs to things. For example the soft play. It’s a joke considering we have paid nearly £400 for two nights. Only thing that’s free is swimming and it’s SOOOO cold. The staff when I called to reception were rude and kept putting me on hold. Also my son is autistic and this is not a ASD friendly hotel. The rooms so standard and don’t get cleaned unless ur staying 5 days. So using the same towel for 5 days! Great service!!!!!!! Yeah we will NOT be coming back I would seriously avoid this hotel.
ES
Nice hotel in a beautiful location.
On arrival we were greeted by very pleasant and friendly staff who immediately upgraded our room for free so that we could be close to our friends. The rooms as well as the hotel in general were spotless and there was much evidence of constant upgrading work going on. The dining room too was spotless, so on the first night we decided on eating there rather than go elsewhere. Were it not for the lack of choice (not a lot for vegetarians) in the £25 buffet I would gladly have awarded 5 stars,as it really is a great location. The breakfasts, however, were first class with plenty to eat and discreet service.Over all we all enjoyed a relaxing stay with lots of nice walking. Undoubtedly, our stay being out of season helped, and I would imagine that over the summer months it might be different with the arrival of coach parties Lots to do for the younger ones though, and we would like to return later in the year.
John Brown
AVOID
We left property in the room and have contacted numerous times to get it back which has been met by useless staff and very very poor communication
Mary Mf McDougall
Won’t be visiting again
As a family we love visiting Aviemore but that’s the 3rd and final time we’ll be staying at the Coylumbridge. First time, no hot water - fair enough these things happen. Second time, our room had a horrible smell to it - not ideal but oh well you got used to it once you’d been in the room for a bit. This time we were awoken to water pouring through the roof all alongside the bed me and my 7 month old daughter were asleep in. It took no time at all for the bed to become soaking wet. I have a video. The receptionist was lovely, obviously isn’t his fault that it happened. Room 114 incase anyone else gets that room as I doubt it’s been fixed.
Gemma Geddes
Dissatisfied customer
Beautiful location! Rooms require refurbishment! The rate for the room was very overpriced ! I would have expected far better at the cost of £150.00 per night! 😞
Karen Chesney
Room
Arrived, went to book in and given room key. Went to room only to find it was still occupied!!! Husband went back to reception and was told it was a computer cliche. Then asked for extra pillows, they were put in wrong room!!! Corridors very noisy esp at night. Bathroom very small. One of the bath towels was dirty when we arrived.Good thing was food was nice, always plenty of food at the buffet.
customer
Quite possibly the worst Hotel I have…
Quite possibly the worst Hotel I have ever stayed in !!! We had to walk through the children’s “ arcade/play area “ to get to our rooms ( with 3 dogs , you could see the panic on parents faces ) The public areas were very dirty and needed a good hoover The night before’s beer bottles were strewn all over tables in the seating area in the morning Rooms were tiny and beyond basic There was a kettle sitting on a small table but no socket Had to sit the kettle on the floor beside the bed to plug it in Tiny double beds , couldn’t turn over they were so small Very cheap flimsy plastic cups in the bathroom and one very small , basic tube of shower gel A note saying your room would not be serviced if your stay was less than 5 nights 😳 no fresh towels !!!Thankfully we were only there for 1 night BUT the worst is yet to come …….. the food Oh my goodness , I have never seen such an awful buffet in my entire life They take your £25 per person before you are seated , which in hindsight is a very devious move on their part If you had viewed the food on offer you would have walked straight back out and gone to the local chip shop but you couldn’t as you had already paid !!! It was a disgusting array of dried out looking dishes , and we couldn’t actually bring ourselves to eat any of it How a Chef can be proud of serving that is beyond me It was worse than school dinners , just awful And the serving dishes were almost empty most of the time , they were not being refilled The “ salad “ bar , which consisted of wilting lettuce , tomatoes that were almost mouldy and sliced cucumber was embarrassing And the deserts were a selection of the most dried out looking cakes that had clearly been bought in from a very low budget catering company Shell shocked is the only word I can use to describe how we felt , we were appalled And the saddest part is that the dining room / hotel was full of Europeans , Americans etc on bus tours and they must have left thinking the absolute worst of Scottish hospitality / food The whole experience was just awful We were only staying there as my husband and daughter were doing the Laraig Ghru the following morning but if I had been on holiday it would have been a disaster Avoid !!!!!
dawn stuart
Apparently explaining I'm disabled to…
Apparently explaining I'm disabled to the receptionist and highlighting there's no lift isn't enough of a prompt for the staff to care. Couldn't make it up the stairs, had to leave. Degrading experience.
Matthew Rogers
What am absolute dump
What am absolute dump , nothing worked ,rooms were utter crap ,stay away from this complete dump at all costs .
Ian Hendry
Terrible experience
Terrible experience. As a disabled guest the key on my room did not work and I was back and forward to the reception ( my room was the furthest away from reception ) when I finally got in , 2 hours later, there was tea stains all over the wall,and the room filthy I was answered with a shrug ! And you’ve got a dog anyway While at reception a young woman was given an upgrade for the inconvenience of her key not working and so was a young man for his grubby room. As a disabled person I was treated differently also fire escapes had sand , wheelbarrows blocking them again met with a shrug ! Children were in the hotel
Heather Caldwell
