This was the best New Years Eve Celebration that we have ever attended, the whole New Years Eve break from start to finish was fantastic. Douglas McDavid and his partner John Walker did us proud.

We have known Douglas from his days as manager of the Cally Palace at Gatehouse of Fleet, as we visit there on a regular basis at Easter, so we fully expected it to be a very professional and well organised celebration, and we were not disappointed.

The weather was miserable, but the warmth of the welcome and the service from everyone who looked after us more than made up for it.

We were welcomed on arrival of the afternoon of the 30th, with mulled wine and shortbread, followed by an evening reception of Kier Royal and canapes, the evening meal which followed lived up to expectations, with enough choice to please eveyone.

Although the weather did not improve the following day , we entertained ourselves doing the prizewinning puzzles the Duncan was known for at the Cally. Leaving us plenty of time to beautify ourselves for the evenings celebration. This did not disappoint, with champagne and canapes to begin, followed by a delicious buffet meal, John even wore tarten trews to be in keeping with the evening. The musical entertainment was great, with everyone joining in the dancing, and the young piper who played at 12-00 pm made the finish of the year just right.

The following day was started by a late brunch, which began at 10.00am, and finished at 1-00pm, this allowed for locals who would normally eat lunch there to be catered for. The afternoon, was spent doing Douglas's treasure hunt, with his usual fiendish clues, dressed in warm clothes and macs as the weather had not improved. This enabled us to build up an appetite for yet another of chef Johns excellent dinners, and provide us with my husbands favorite sweet, Ecclefeccan tart, finishing the evening of course by the prize giving, one of our party won a lovely box of chocolates.

The bedrooms were warm and comfortable, one of our party was in one of the new refubished rooms which was done very tastefully, and they are planning to continue this process until all the rooms are of the same standard.

One of the nice touches, was also that in each bedroom, was a miniture of whisky and the same of brandy, together with a copy of Robert Burns poetry.

The following morning after a hearty breakfast we said our goodbyes, but not before we had put in a reservation for next year, we can strongly recommend the Selkirk Arms with out reservation, but if you want to join the celebrations next year, you will need to be quick, as there are only three rooms left, as most people who were there have already booked for next year. I THINK THAT SAYS IT ALL