Looking for a luxurious and picturesque place to stay with lots to do for all the family? Look no further, the SeamillHydro Hotel in Ayrshire has it all! We stayed here for two nights in May 2005 and were exceedingly impressed.
*** HOTEL OVERVIEW *** The Scottish 19th century hotel is on the edge of the coast with views of the Isle of Arran and you can access the beach directly from the hotel grounds. The hotel highly promotes both relaxation and health/well being within a high quality, luxury environment.
*** LOCATION *** Situated on the A78, from the south it is ½ mile within Seamill itself. From Glasgow, you would follow A737 and would pick up brown signs to the hotel.
*** FACILITIES *** At this point, it'd be easier to put what they don't have! They have two restaurants, one main and a bistro. Children eat free in the bistro between 5:30 and 6 pm. The restaurant opens at 6:30 and there is around a £5 surcharge for children eating in here and in the bistro after 6pm.
There is a children's club for 2+ years which gives you time to concentrate on
pampering yourself.
Also for the health fanatics out there, there are: a swimming pool, turbo pool, gym, sauna, steam room, healthcare and beauty treatments (including hairdresser), tennis, 5-a-side football, crazy golf, basketball and children's play area.
*** TARRIF (June 2005) *** Okay so it looks pricey here but it's always worth while phoning and acting a bit daft to see what the best deal is. The current deal is for £64 per adult B/B&D with two children under 14 free with a minimum of two nights stay for two adults.
We were part of a wedding party and got a room with dual aspect looking out on to the sea for just £44 per room, per night, including B&B for two adults and a baby for two nights. Not bad, hey?!!
*** OUR EXPERIENCE *** Prior to arriving, we emailed our 18 month old son's special dietary requirements with his severe food allergies and asked for them to confirm that they could accommodate his needs. A few weeks before our visit, we got a 'phone call in the evening from the head chef who wanted to reassure us that they will completely cater for him and even provide his soya milk which we had expected to take with us.
Our arrival was somewhat rushed as I had been to the hairdressers in the morning and so we didn't get on the road until 11 am which meant we did not arrive at the hotel until 5:30 pm after two stops on our way up north (one being my favourite Tebay Services for lunch!). We rushed to the Bistro to get our free child's meal literally minutes before 6 pm. In hindsight, I think they would be rather generous on the cut off point for this anyway. We ordered in the Bistro a Lasagne for me and my husband got a ham and chicken salad with drinks. We also asked for anything for our son as long as it followed the dietary sheet the chef had. Within minutes, the chef was out sitting at our table. He had a carrier bag stuffed with goodies that they had bought in just for Benjamin and wanted to run through them all at the start of our stay to make sure we'd be happy for him to have them all. They had spent a lot buying special breads, spreads, milk, soya glace (ice cream), yoghurts, etc. We had a lovely meal and I think our bill for that came to about £16 in total. Bear in mind that this was QUALITY food, my husband's salad was huge with lots of tasty meats and a side of garlic bread and my lasagne was homemade with a substantial amount of beef in it and it was served with a side of chips. Benjamin's free meal consisted of a whole chicken breast, sautéed new potatoes and a tomato based vegetable sauce. He was then given a dessert of his soya glace with strawberries, blackcurrants, raspberries and blueberries. The only negative thing about the Bistro is the huge range of food on the menu. It's ideal for picky eaters but for us, it just took us ages to decide.
Our room was very large and had a double aspect view of the sea. It had all the facilities you would expect in a good hotel (I'm not going to list them) and a large bathroom too. The bed was really comfy which meant I could sleep like a log. We took our own travel cot with us due to staying up in Scotland with relatives after our stay here.
Now to the next morning at breakfast. Benjamin was identified by one of the waitresses immediately as we entered the dining room and out came a box of Shreddies, toast made with special bread, a tub of soya spread and a carton of soya milk. For us, we had a huge choice, you name it, yoghurt, Danone drinks, porridge, huge array of cereals, full cooked breakfast for you to help yourself to, pastries, rolls, jams, marmalades, dairylea, chocolate spread, etc. You also got tea, coffee and toast served at your table. The slight complaint I had but it's more me than the hotel is that there were a lot of greasy foods, the pancakes and potato scones were oozing in grease where as I would have preferred them a lot drier.
The wedding reception held at the hotel was absolutely fabulous. Again, Benjamin was well looked after and he was offered a 4 course meal although we chose to miss out the soup element as he'd have enough to eat. He had the same starter and main course to me although they brought his vegetables on his plate as those being served had butter on them. He actually had a bigger serving than me although I was quite sufficient with what I had. There were a few nice and unusual elements to the reception, one of which the bride and groom had a competition to see who could empty two bottles of champagne into tiered glasses first, the other was they were 'piped' onto the stage and the curtains were opened to reveal the wedding cake. The service was faultless, the food was fantastic and the alcohol was constantly flowing.
The following morning we decided to give our son his first taste of a swimming pool. The fitness area was very bright, spotless and inviting. My husband planned to take him in and we had brought the necessary blow up equipment to support our son. The staff member in the reception of the fitness area was really friendly and gave me shoe covers so that I could go in the pool area and assist my husband. Despite all the wonderful attention, my son hated the pool and couldn't wait to get out. We gave him 10 minutes trying many different ways of getting him to enjoy himself but he wasn't having any of it. We will try again soon!
*** CONCLUSION *** I wish we could go and stay there again although it is unlikely with relatives just an hour drive away! On top of that, all Scottish friends are now married with no more potential invites to weddings!!! I would heartily recommend this venue for both weddings and a short break, with or without family. It is certainly ideal for those with special dietary needs although I would recommend that you contact the hotel in advance to warn them of your requirements.
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
very helpful by (100%):
