Best Hotels Article
Posted: Tue Apr 25, 2006 9:45 pmSummer Isles voted the best hotel Monday April 24, 03:00 AM
A FAMILY-OWNED business in the Highlands has been crowned Scotland's hotel of the year.
The Summer Isles Hotel at Achiltibuie, near Ullapool in Ross-shire, took the coveted title at an awards ceremony in Glasgow last night.
The 12-bedroom hotel, owned by husband-and-wife team Mark and Gerry Irvine, beat off stiff competition from a seven-strong list of nominations, including the Old Course Hotel in St Andrews and the Westin Turnberry Resort in Ayrshire.
Chef of the year award went to Kevin MacGillivray of Ballathie House Hotel at Stanley, near Perth. The hotel manager of the year accolade went to Philip Mahoney of the Radisson SAS in Glasgow, the venue for last night's award ceremony, while Glasgow's Hilton scooped business hotel of the year.
The title of Scotland's sexiest hotel went to the city's Malmaison, while the most romantic was judged to be Ardanaiseig, at Taynuilt in Argyll.
The Michael Caines Restaurant at Glasgow's ABode Hotel took the hotel restaurant of the year award.
Edinburgh's new Le Monde Hotel - a George Street bar-with-rooms whose drinking spaces are themed around glamour cities like Paris, Havana, Tokyo and New York - was honoured with a prize for best design.
But more traditional Scottish hotels were also recognised. Inverlochy Castle won luxury hotel of the year, while the MacDonald Pittodrie House Hotel, near Inverurie, was named country house hotel of the year.
A spokeswoman for VisitScotland said: "These kinds of awards are really valuable in recognising the quality and excellence of the industry. All the hotels nominated are undoubtedly setting a really high standard across the country.
"That's extremely important for visitors who go home and tell people what a wonderful experience they have had."
The spokeswoman added that new awards like sexiest hotel and most romantic hotel recognised a nation offering a wider visitor experience than traditional tartan, heather and pipers.
She said: "New and contemporary experiences are adding another string to the bow of what we have here in Scotland.
"And in terms of food, Scotland is growing its reputation, and that has become a really major part of the holiday experience."
The awards, presented by Scottish Parliament Presiding Officer George Reid, were organised by consumer guide HotelReviewScotland.com.
A total of 25,000 votes - the biggest ever public vote on hotels in the UK - were logged, but the final decisions were made by a panel of 16 expert judges.
They included Marco Truffelli, of VisitScotland.com, and former AA chief hotels inspector David Young.
By: RAYMOND HAINEY -- 24-Apr-06
A FAMILY-OWNED business in the Highlands has been crowned Scotland's hotel of the year.
The Summer Isles Hotel at Achiltibuie, near Ullapool in Ross-shire, took the coveted title at an awards ceremony in Glasgow last night.
The 12-bedroom hotel, owned by husband-and-wife team Mark and Gerry Irvine, beat off stiff competition from a seven-strong list of nominations, including the Old Course Hotel in St Andrews and the Westin Turnberry Resort in Ayrshire.
Chef of the year award went to Kevin MacGillivray of Ballathie House Hotel at Stanley, near Perth. The hotel manager of the year accolade went to Philip Mahoney of the Radisson SAS in Glasgow, the venue for last night's award ceremony, while Glasgow's Hilton scooped business hotel of the year.
The title of Scotland's sexiest hotel went to the city's Malmaison, while the most romantic was judged to be Ardanaiseig, at Taynuilt in Argyll.
The Michael Caines Restaurant at Glasgow's ABode Hotel took the hotel restaurant of the year award.
Edinburgh's new Le Monde Hotel - a George Street bar-with-rooms whose drinking spaces are themed around glamour cities like Paris, Havana, Tokyo and New York - was honoured with a prize for best design.
But more traditional Scottish hotels were also recognised. Inverlochy Castle won luxury hotel of the year, while the MacDonald Pittodrie House Hotel, near Inverurie, was named country house hotel of the year.
A spokeswoman for VisitScotland said: "These kinds of awards are really valuable in recognising the quality and excellence of the industry. All the hotels nominated are undoubtedly setting a really high standard across the country.
"That's extremely important for visitors who go home and tell people what a wonderful experience they have had."
The spokeswoman added that new awards like sexiest hotel and most romantic hotel recognised a nation offering a wider visitor experience than traditional tartan, heather and pipers.
She said: "New and contemporary experiences are adding another string to the bow of what we have here in Scotland.
"And in terms of food, Scotland is growing its reputation, and that has become a really major part of the holiday experience."
The awards, presented by Scottish Parliament Presiding Officer George Reid, were organised by consumer guide HotelReviewScotland.com.
A total of 25,000 votes - the biggest ever public vote on hotels in the UK - were logged, but the final decisions were made by a panel of 16 expert judges.
They included Marco Truffelli, of VisitScotland.com, and former AA chief hotels inspector David Young.
By: RAYMOND HAINEY -- 24-Apr-06
