Best Gifford Hotels

I feel rotten giving this hotel a bad review as the people working there were lovely. However, we had a big shock when we arrived as the photos on the website bear no resemblance to the hotel. We had booked online a 'standard double with super king bed' and had later called the hotel and requested a shower rather than a bath and the lady who answered said she would make sure we had a 'walk in shower'. Exhausted after a very long journey we climbed the steep stairs (no lift) and were a bit shocked to see the room. The size was what we would think would pass for a single sized room. The bed was no more than a small king sized on a double headboard. There was a relatively modern open hanging wardrobe with shelving to the side; a desk and two slightly grubby looking upholstered chairs. A very small tv was on the wall opposite the bed and to get to the other side of the bed was a bit of a squeeze along the wall with the windows overlooking the 'view' which was the dirty conservatory windows as seen in other travellers photos. The carpet was worn with a large section where it joined another part completely threadbare. The bathroom with 'walk in shower' was extremely small. On opening the door there was a sink immediately to the left and the toilet next to it with a towel ring in between. Immediately opposite the loo was the shower which could better be described as a 'step up' rather than a 'walk in' shower as the shower was in a deep cubicle which in turn was mounted above the skirting boards, which is fine if you are tall but not so much at 5ft 3 !! The shower needed re-grouting as it was pretty old and the enamel chipped; the sink had several cracks in it; there was nowhere to hang or dry towels and there were holes where the loo roll holder once would have been. Worst of all there was a shower curtain rather than a glass door/panel. Our initial reaction was to check out to find something else, however, we did not know the area and had an event to attend early the next day so exhaustion won the day. The bed was clean, as was the linen and pillows so we stayed. We ate in the restaurant that night and the food was pleasant enough and the service attentive and friendly. Limited menu but all cooked nicely and presented well. We slept but the room was very hot (day and night) while the rest of the hotel felt pleasantly cool. Breakfast was OK ..I'm not a breakfast person so the limited choice was not a problem for me but the tea was stewed in a thermos type tea urn and not good so I stuck to juice. After an early start and a full day we returned late and as we were to be out at another event all the next day until late at night I persuaded my partner that packing up and trying to find somewhere else was just not worth it. We were stunned to hear that another guest at the event we attended had booked into the same hotel a year or so ago and had the same encounter..even think they had the same room as us as they described it perfectly! To put it k

Despite only living 15 minutes from this pub we've never been in before. We decided to try a steak midweek. What a lovely place. It has a great snug bar as you walk in, with a nice clean restaurant area round the back. Our steaks was cooked to perfection, really soft, a bit more peppercorn sauce would of been nice. The steak pie was also really good. The staff was all super friendly and kept checking we was happy with our food. We will definitely return. We highly recommend you give it a try. Set in lovely surroundings. Thank you for a lovely dinner and kind hospitality. See you again soon

Chose to stay 2 nights to explore an area we were not familiar with and found this to be a very comfortable stay. All in relation to the cost paid, for an out of season stay we found this a good base to explore surrounding beaches, Gullane and North Berwick etc. I’m not into golf at all but if you are the whole area is just one golf course after another. The lodge itself is in the golf course/members club. The room facing the sea etc was very large and cosy. Shower room was piping hot. The bed was very large and extremely comfortable. Decor was fine, oak furniture etc. Solid and functional. I like a bath when out exploring so bit disappointing only showers but I knew this in advance and shower was good. Decor in restaurant / bar area nice and lovely Christmas lights and baubles hung on the windows gave a nice feeling. We ate two evening meals which were fine. Slightly on the expensive side for what they were. Breakfast included but could have been better. Fine if you are into full Scottish breakfasts which most golfers probably are but no choice of nice breads or pastries etc. Very handy for numerous beaches which I enjoyed with all the various rock formations and handy to visit wonderous woods light show in nearby Gosford house grounds that just happened to be on while we were there. Access to the lodge is a bit hidden and tricky on dark winter roads though.