Peebles Hotel Hydro, Edinburgh

...want.

The Peebles Hotel Hydro is based, funnily enough, in Peebles about 30 miles outside of Edinburgh (Anybody who has read my other review, plug alert, on Traquair House will already know this) - For some reason it's been put in the Edinburgh hotels catagory. The hotel was open in 1907 and as far as I know has been in continuous business since. Can't be bad, they must be doing something right!

Finding It:
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...was wonderful.

Peebles itself it a lovely place to visit and this is the perfect base to work from if you want to explore the area. If you have children and you want to take them along you will be hard pushed to find another hotel that will so gladly welcome you and your children.

This review merely scratches the surface of the place. If you ever get the chance, even for the one night, do it. You won't regret it!
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Please allow me to warn you now that this is a long op, so feel free to just click on Exceptional and don't feel in the slightest guilty about not reading it.

Only kidding, feel as guilty as you want.

The Peebles Hotel Hydro is based, funnily enough, in Peebles about 30 miles outside of Edinburgh (Anybody who has read my other review, plug alert, on Traquair House will already know this) - For some reason it's been put in the Edinburgh hotels catagory. The hotel was open in 1907 and as far as I know has been in continuous business since. Can't be bad, they must be doing something right!

Finding It:
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This can be a bit difficult believe it or not! The Hydro is located at the top of a fairly steep hill, can't be that hard you say…. Unless that hill is covered in trees so you can't see the place! The opening is a small road that leads up and to the right and as such doesn't give much of a hint as to what is at the end of it.

There are signs but unless you are particularly looking you're unlikely to see them, so you have been warned!

The road as I say is quite steep and it can take a while to walk up so if you're a bit out of puff or in a wheelchair either A) Use a car or B) get someone that can make it push you up or something! It's a lovely tree lined ascent that leads to the right with some parking along the right as you near the hotel proper (It's a private road so no need to worry about parking on it so long as you don't block anyone).

As you reach the top the hotel is on your left with a stunning view over to the right, which is slightly spoilt by the parking spaces (Suppose guests need somewhere to park). Looking down the hill, to the right, you will see a tennis court or two and a few seating areas. All in all a very nice view (See pictures).

The Front:
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The front of the hotel is very grand in an old world way. It's shaped in what I can only call an E shape with the entrance being in the middle. Make sense? If not have a nose at the picture at the top.

The entrance has a giant porch which is useful for when it rains (not that it ever does in Scotland) as you can stand under it when you send someone else to the car to get stuff. This covered two small steps up to the revolving doors (Hate these things, always feel I'm going to get caught in them).

Passing through the door you are greeted with an imposing staircase complete with red carpet and gold runners. Just to your right is an umbrella stand and usually a member of staff will be down fairly quick-sharp to give you a hand with your bags. All very impressive.

Ahead:
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At the top of the stairs is the concierge desk and just to the right is a ballroom/conference room. The last time I was here I didn't get much of a chance to have a look in here as there was a conference on (Some sort of Librarians and storage expert forum or something). From what I did see it was quite a large room with very little in the middle and a glass roof. Not much to it really. I suppose once it is full of people it might look different.

To The Right:
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As you turn right, on your right is a seating area where you can order light refreshments such as tea, coffee, cakes and biscuits etc. If you walk though the seats you reach another, more enclosed seating area akin to a conservatory looking out over the grounds to the front of the hotel.

Just past the seating area there are various display cabinets lining the walls. In one you can see antique items such as brooches, razors (Cut-throat variety), pins and an assortment of jewellery, all of which is individually priced from a few pounds to a few hundred pounds. Most of it is unlikely to be of interest to most but there is a few interesting items in there. Another cabinet displays an assortment of ties, jumpers and other knitwear again all for sale.

As you walk along the corridor there is another opening to the left which leads to the games room on the left (This contains board games and two billiard tables) which is locked. You need to see the concierge desk for the key.

On the right is the swimming pool (See further down for more information on this) and at the end is the bar, serving a vast range of whisky but not much in the way of draught ales or lagers. The bar, which is cosy but not claustrophobic, appears to have been recently decorated (I could be totally wrong!) and is quite dark but modern. I was surprised that it was fairly cheap (Vodka lemonade and a soft drink came to about £3 I think).

Going back to the main corridor and turning left takes you to the dining room. This is a huge room with high windows along each wall and a grand piano on a stage at the far end. When first walking in it is very imposing, but once you are seated it becomes quite welcoming. I found that the size lent to an air of privacy despite the number of other diners. It's not so big as to take all the atmosphere out of the place but nor is it so small you feel that you are sitting on the same table as the next diner. Voices carry enough to stop you feeling isolated (You don't need to shout to the person you are with) but you can't hear the conversation of the next table so much that you can make out what they are saying.

The food was fantastic. There was a small four course set menu on offer which at first didn't seem a lot but once it arrived we realised that although there isn't a huge amount on offer what they do offer they do well.

The staff in the restaurant however left something to be desired. Most of the waiting staff appeared to be of Eastern European extract. This made things, such as ordering, a bit of a trial. In the end I resorted to having to point to make clear what I was after. Not exactly what I like having to do but it saved more embarrassment.

Whilst children are allowed in the main dining room there is a separate, children's dining room which offers food which might be more to their tastes.

The Swimming Pool:
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The swimming pool has recently (1997/8) been moved. It used to be where Lazels (See below) is but a new one was built to accommodate a larger pool.

Getting to the pool requires you to walk along a long corridor painted with a swimming pool scene which leads you to three doors and a towel chute. Here if you enter the door on your left you will go though to a seating area overlooking the pool.

The other two doors lead to the changing rooms. To get into these you will need your room key card. Before you do go in pickup a sheet of paper if there is any (You'll see it on top of the towel chute). These are for putting on the floor of your cubical. Daft but it impressed me.

On entering the changing rooms there are about four/five cubicles with pull curtains and small slatted benches in to get changed in, about 50 lockers and on the left two showers.

All pretty basic but clean, which is what matters most, and functional. At the end of the room is a door which leads to the pool.

The pool is 20x10 meters and 1.5 meters deep at its deepest. There is a small paddling pool to the left for toddlers. Across the other side there is a steam room, hot tub, sauna and shower. The hot tub works in ten minute cycles allowing you 10 minutes in and 10 minutes for cleaning. When it's cleaning you can't go in so go and have a steam (My favourite).

The pool tended to be bordering on cool but that could just be that it was a very warm few days and we had been outside. There is two water jets at the side of the pool which are turned on via a push button on the wall. From what I can gather they are mainly for children to play under (I think they're a bit powerful for that) and as such I tended to use them as there wasn't any children about. They blast water onto you and give you a massage of sorts. Very nice.

There is a gym somewhere near the pool but me being me I didn't venture too close to it and as such this is one aspect of the hotel I'm unable to comment on.

To The Left:
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The Reception:
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This hotel likes to hide things from you. The reception isn't the large desk at the top of the stairs as you would expect it to be (It's the concierge desk). Rather it's a small alcove the left. Here you will find a small desk with one or two members of staff behind it, waiting with a smile.

As with receptions the world over you come here to book in/out, pay, pickup and drop off your keys (In this case key cards) and order bits and bobs such as newspapers. At this one you can also request towels for the swimming pool.

The staff are very friendly and nothing is too much trouble. Any queries we had were dealt with quickly and efficiently. Unlike some hotels I've been in they were prepared to have a bit of banter and not just grunt at you.

The Small Shop:
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Opposite, and slightly to the left of the reception, is a small gift shop selling postcards, Edinburgh rock (Don't bother, it's like chalk), goggles, and other bric-a-brac/souvenirs. The prices are reasonable as far as hotels go but the opening times are a bit odd. It appears to close for about 3 hours in the afternoon.

Next along this side is the stairway that leads down to Lazels Restaurant, hairdressers, children's restaurant and crèche and a few rooms. Lazels serves a range of food but unlike the seating area upstairs you can get a full afternoon tea (Traditional or Modern).

The service can be a little slow at times but when we were there the staff made up for it with their friendly attitude. Also they gave us extra food at no extra cost (We were having afternoon tea) due to the delay in serving us. In the end they gave us so much we had to give most of it away to other diners!

Neither of us had the chance to use the hairdressers as it was closed. If we ever go back and need a once over I shall update this op!

Children:
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Myself and the wife (MagicMoments) don't yet have the pleasure of children and as such I'm unable to comment on the quality of service offered in respect of children. But the missus being the missus she looks at these kind of things and asks other people what they think of it all (She'll talk to anyone see). From what I heard the hotel offers a full range of facilities to children ranging from a crèche to a dining area for children.

The above mentioned services seemed to get the mark of approval from the people we spoke to and the hotel in general welcomes families.

There are a few activities to keep the kids busy including horse riding (At extra cost), pitch 'n' putt and activities within the hotel.

The Rooms:
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Now we got this on a special offer via their website (A little pop-up if I remember rightly so be careful of those pop-up blockers we all love so much) and as such I'm not sure that you would normally get the room we got without asking.

We were staying in a front facing room on the ground floor (Don't know how it can be called ground as we had to go upstairs to get to it) which overlooked the aforementioned hills, tennis courts and car-parking area.

This room had a small vestibule which contained the wardrobes (Handy as it doesn't take up room in the room… if you see what I mean), with a door to the left leading to the room proper.

The bed was lovely and soft, which I know isn't to all people's tastes, and while the décor was a little dated it was clean and fresh feeling. No complaints there then.

There was the usual kettle, TV, trouser press/iron (Which didn't work) and en-suite bathroom. One unusual point was that a cupboard which I thought was just that turned out to be a hidden fridge (Not stocked). This came in quite handy as it was our anniversary and as such I'd brought along a bottle of champagne.

The bathroom was quite spacious with a generous sized bath which even I could fit into, being of larger proportions. There was a shower but as with the press/iron this didn't work which was a bit of an annoyance.

One thing I really liked was that the room was in a little corridor of six/seven rooms meaning you didn't have any real passing traffic. As such it was a very quiet room.

Cost:
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Costs vary quite a bit over the year and as such I've just taken the rates from the 29th March - 7th July. The first price is for one night and the second for two nights Inc. Bed, breakfast, dinner and use of the leisure facilities. All costs are per person.
Front Room
£107.00 - £104.00
Standard Room
£102.00 - £99.00
Family Room
£108.00 - £107.00
Balcony Room
£128.00 - £126.00
Superior Room
£122.00 - £121.00
Suite
£144.00 - £142.00
Single Room
£119.00 - £119.00

They do offer a number of special deals which change throughout the year. Check the Special Deals section of the website for details. The staff don't seem 100% sure of what they have on offer and appear to rely on what their computer is telling them.

Accessibility:
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There is a lift into the hotel which we didn't have any need of it this time though so I'm unable to comment on how suitable it is. The internal lift which takes you to Lazels and the hairdressers etc. I found to be a little on the small side and I think we would have struggled with a wheelchair. Get more than two/three people in and it's quite a squeeze. Aside from this the places is pretty much on the flat and as such should be easy for those in chairs or with mobility problems.

Overall:
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Whilst it's not the most modern (It's just recently lost an AA star bringing it to 4) it's still one of the best hotels I've had the pleasure of staying in. It can be expensive but it is more than worth the cost. The service from the staff is second to none and the food was wonderful.

Peebles itself it a lovely place to visit and this is the perfect base to work from if you want to explore the area. If you have children and you want to take them along you will be hard pushed to find another hotel that will so gladly welcome you and your children.

This review merely scratches the surface of the place. If you ever get the chance, even for the one night, do it. You won't regret it!

Many thanks for reading.

Dean 

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