What a fantastic wee hotel!! After reading the last two reviews I wonder if they actually stayed at the same place we did as we could not fault the service nor the quality of the hotel at all! Everything was superb and all the staff we encountered were so friendly and nothing was a bother at all. When we arrived we were given some great tips and advice on what to see and do around Edinburgh. The hotel is in such a great location only minutes from the Princes St on the local buses. Mathew's Restaurant onsite was also great and very affordable meals, we ate there twice we enjoyed it so much. We stayed in an Executive Room which had a huge super king bed and ensuite. We also were pleasantly surprised to turn up and discover the wireless internet access was available in all rooms and free of charge - always a bonus when the kiwi dollar is so weak against the pound! I can not reccommend this hotel more, it truley is a hidden jem!!

We stayed at the Kildonan for three nights in September. Edinburgh was our first stop on our vacation to Scotland. The Kildonan was located in a convenient location for us. It was easy to find from the Edinburgh airport and less than a half hour drive. Since we had a car, we did use the car park. Parking was never a problem. We used the bus to get into the city. It would have been a long walk to Princes Street. The bus stop is just across the street from the hotel. If you are going to Princes Street, make sure the bus you board is stopping there. Buses run frequently. We never waited more than 5 minutes. The bus driver will help if you have questions. There is a mall nearby, 10 minute walk, with banks for converting currency as well as a grocery store and pharmacy.

We stayed in an executive double room on the lower level. The room was tastefully decorated and clean. They provided a small decanter of sherry which was nice to unwind with after a long day in Edinburgh. The only minor negative comment on the room would be that the mattress was a bit hard. However, after a long flight from the US, it felt better than sitting on the airplane!

The breakfasts in the morning were plentiful. The buffet consisted of meats/cheeses, yogurt, cereals, juices and fresh fruit. The cooked to order breakfasts were good as well.

The staff was friendly and helpful when we had questions about using the bus or visiting the city. They also delivered our delayed piece of luggage directly to our room when it arrived from the airport.

Overall, the Kildonan Lodge Hotel was a nice place to stay in Edinburgh. It was quiet and away from the city centre, but still very conveniently located due to the bus access.

After looking on undiscovered scotland, kildonan lodge and trip advisor web sights, we booked this four star 5 AA diamond hotel for the last leg of our Scottish tour, we thought we would leave the best till last. But we were so disappointed with the accommodation that was offered to us. We had booked an Executive double room with a spa jet bath, which I can only describe as sleazy looking and in need of redecoration and new bathroom suite, the tiles on the walls were cracked and the grouting around the bath area dirty (nothing a bottle of bleach and elbow grease couldn't sort out). The view from the window (we were on the lower ground floor) was the side of the carpark, complete with car directly outside. The hallway immediately outside our room was full of laundry bags, which is not want you want to see when your on holiday and certainly not want you want to see every morning on your way to breakfast.

We asked to be moved to another room and was offered one in the lodge at the rear of the hotel, seeing this was suppose to be a classic room at a lower price it was a marked improvement on what we had been offered previously, although there was some sort of wire hanging from the bathroom wall and we had to boil the kettle on the floor or directly next to our bed as the flex wasn't long enough to use it on the complemantory drinks tray.

The next morning we went for breakfast, which was the usual standard cooked breakfast, but you had to ask for the extra's e.g. haggis, fried bread which we found came as standard at the other 6 hotels we had stayed at. My wife asked for poached eggs on toast, which consisted of a half slice of extremely under cooked toast and one very wobberly poached egg, which couldn't be eaten as it was 'Slimey' and the toast wet through. This greatly upset my wife as this hotel was supposed to have been the "icing on the cake" for our holiday. So we decided not to make a fuss and check out. We made an excuse that we had to leave, but was told we would have to pay all of the four days we had booked. So then we told the proprietor the real reason, that we were very dissatisfied with the accommodation, which then lead to a full scale row, which was very upsetting indeed. We were offered two further four poster rooms, but felt these were not really that much better than the executive room we were offered. I'm not quite sure when this hotel was 'Beautifully restored' but the rooms we were offered looked tired and the bathrooms very 80's style. The dining/breakfast room had two smoke dectectors in the ceiling rose's instead of chandeliers, the radiator cover we sat next two needed screwing back together and there were cables to be seen everywhere, even the bell for assistance didn't work correctly.

Although there was a guest book with very many satisfied visitors, most of them were from other countries and I do wonder if they were given the best rooms and us British who don't like to kick up a fuss given the leftovers? Anyway in the end our room was let to other guests and no extra money apart from our one night stay was payable. Be Warned!

The "friendly" staff must have been on holiday for the five days that we stayed at this inn in Edinburgh! Upon arrival, we were met by the owner who "welcomed" us with a 5 minute orientation at a lightning pace and no one was available to help us with our bags. The inn is much too far to walk to the city center and, yes, buses do bring you down there, but the owner told us to take any bus and it would bring us to Princes Stree. The first bus that came told us that he didn't go to Princes Street! I'm glad I asked. The owner also recommended a guided tour in the city. We took her advice and completely wasted 18 pounds...could not understand a single word that the guide said. When I complained to the weekend staff (we never did see the owner again), she told me that she never had a complaint about the tour (how does that respond to my complaint??) The next day she told us to take a bus to Rosslyn Chapel & gave us a bus schedule telling us that the buses come every 20 minutes. Well, after waiting one hour for the bus to arrive, we looked at the schedule and learned that it was so old that it was outdated. Great advice! We wasted an entire morning of our trip. We asked for clean towels and were told they would be brought right up. After 2.5 hours, we had to go down to the office to "remind" someone that we needed clean towels. Oh, yes, hope you don't need anything prior to 8 am or after 10 pm b/c no one is around to help!
As for the inn itself, it is very shoddy and worn down (and we had the best room in the place--so we were told). The comforter was ripped and tattered, the curtains were stained and the ceiling was cracked so that it looked as if a chandelier would fall on our heads any second!!! The bathroom was an absolute joke. The fan sounded as if it was a 747 getting ready for take-off and it took many, many minutes to switch off once it was on. The shower was encased in a "capsule" that reminded me of a coffin. I have been in cruise showers that were bigger. The faucet barely dribbled out a spit of water. By far, the worst shower of our entire 17 days in Europe. I could go on and on, but it only upsets me....this was our honeymoon after all!!!
If I visit Edinburgh again, I will definitely not stay at this place, but will stay in city center closer to the main attractions in town!!!