We stayed at the Balmoral for a birthday treat at the end of April and were incredibly impressed. Before we arrived I phoned the hotel to book us a couple of restaurants and despite being Bank Holiday weekend and very busy, they managed to book us 2 excellent restaurants. On arrival they were very welcoming and as I had checked in on- line we were able to be shown straight to our room by the wonderful Christian who is a credit to the hotel and constantly checked with us that all was well.

Room was lovely as was the bathroom - huge bath - fab view of the city and nice little touches like flat screen tv with free cds integrated in to it so you could pick and chose music, a turn down service with slippers, robes , water and an ice bucket in the early evening, a bath menu for if you wanted to have a bath with your choice of smellies and even food to accompany your bathing experience (this is extra but lovely none the less). Also I had mentioned my boyfriends birthday and every member of staff seemed to know and said Happy Birthday throughout our trip - they even sent some free champagne to our room on arrival. We had breakfast which is £18.50 but was really delicious and the choice was brilliant with a buffet and to-order options on the menu.

There is so much to do and the hotel location means you can get to everything easily - you are right on the main shopping street, next to the station and the open top buses and from the airport the £3 bus takes you with in a 1 minute walk (get off at the last stop)

We ate in the hotel in Hadrians one night and the food was very nice and not too expensive and their prosecco was the best I have ever tasted.

The concierge and the many helpful staff in reception gave us lots of advice and help to make our trip memorable and we would absolutely stay there again - the staff were exceptional.

Try Thai Me Up for some fab Thai food - 5 mins walk from the hotel

We live in Edinburgh and had always wanted to treat ourselves with a stay at the Balmoral. A recent celebration gave us just the excuse and whilst we had a wonderful time it wasnt quite up to expectations.

In terms of the positives the location and the building were 5* and cant be beaten. Special mention also goes to the service which was excellent throughout our stay. The staff were very friendly and attentive (without being overbearing) and they made us feel very welcome, and indeed like special guests.

Whilst our (standard) room and the communal areas of the hotel were very nice they were closer to 3* than 5* and indeed we have stayed in a number of 3* hotels in various cities which were actually more pleasant than the Balmoral. It wasnt so much that there was anything wrong with the decor and furniture but rather that it was no longer in its prime.

Particularly irksome however was the lack of a DVD player (surely a must for a 5* hotel these days) in the room and the lack of tea and coffee making facilities (instead guests need to phone room service for a complementary hospitality tray).

In terms of the other facilities my wife found the swimming pool to be rather small but as it wasnt too busy this was not a particular problem.

With all of the other hotels in Edinburgh we wouldnt go out of our way to recommend the Balmoral to anyone but with the location alone its probably worth trying out once!

Stayed for 1 night in Feb 2006.

I travel alot around the UK and US/Australia. This hotel is really excellent. I'm fairly critical of hotels. Often even if your staying in so called 5 star very expensive hotels you may encounter a problem or a lazy/ poor attitude, but not here. Each member of staff were friendly, helpful, tried their best to ensure I had a great stay. I left wanting to permanently move in.

In summary:

Location is great.
Check in easy.
Rooms/Bathrooms in excellent condition.
Breakfast, excellent choice and well managed room.
Bar is cool
Overall execellent, true 5 star service and worth trying.

Was lucky enough to stay at the Balmoral for two nights in mid-March. Absolutely first-rate hotel. Large rooms with high ceilings, comfy beds, and big bathrooms. Also had a massage at the spa -- best massage I've ever had. I took advantage of their relaxation room afterwards which was very soothing. The hotel is in a fantastic location and the concierge was extrememly helpful with directions, restaurant reservations, etc. Lastly, I left my book facedown on my nightstand to the page where I stopped reading and went out for the day. When I returned, I discovered that the cleaning lady had put a bookmark in it for me! Nice touch!