Staying at the Dowans Hotel in Speyside

The hotel & the rooms

On first approach it really looks like a castle with it’s stone facade and fairytale towers. The interior design gives Scottish luxury vibes along with a friendly approach from the staff. The rooms are whisky themed and my room was called Cardhu. I slept really well in the comfortable beds and the only thing of note is that it was quite warm but there was also a fan in the room as a solution to this. I really liked the interior design of the rooms as well and it makes the room feel like more of an experience rather than just a room to sleep in.

My room had a view towards the courtyard and not towards the garden, and I guess the benefit of this can be slightly less noise from the road which is underneath the garden on the other side of the building. The showers in the rooms were also lovely and felt really luxurious. There was also tea & coffee making facilities in the room which, for me, always is a bonus.

The Food

We had dinner in the restaurant and also breakfast in the morning. I had vegetable soup and steak which was really lovely. The soup was actually the highlight of the dinner – that’s how much I liked it. I always prefer skinny fries, but the chips were decent as well. For breakfast we all ordered off a menu and I chose the salmon and scrambled eggs. The salmon was delightful, but the scrambled eggs a bit too dry and flavourless for my own taste. However I’m really picky about scrambled eggs…

The Bar

The hotel also has a nice whisky selection and we enjoyed a nightcap in the evening after dinner inside of the lounge area of the bar. There’s also outdoor seating on the terrace in from of the entrance where we had drinks before dinner as well. It’s so lovely to be able to sit outside when the weather is in top Scotland July mood.