I stayed at The Ayre over three cold January days. This was my first visit to Orkney and by the time I had done the tube / airport / airport / taxi combo, I had spent 10 hours feeling uncomfortable. So, it was great to get a quick and polite check - in and then open the door to one of the biggest double rooms I have ever stayed in. The decor was a homage to the 1980's, which rather detracted from the room's splendour (if you're too young to remember 'the decade taste forgot", think two different Laura Ashley wallpapers, separated by a border in a third design, curtains to match and you'll get the picture) but the en -suite was modern and white and the water piping hot!
Both the room and the bathroom were immaculately, totally clean, and kept that way throughout my stay. The restaurant is next to the bar, and not really separated at all, except by distance from the optics, which may not suit everyone at busy times, but in January, this was not a problem! The menu contained predominantly local produce, which was well - cooked and presented, if rather plain. Breakfast was very good, an imaginative cold buffet plus cooked food and / or cereals and porridge.
Where the hotel scored most highly, though, for me, was in customer service. The business is family owned and run and although conversation was never intrusive, I really was treated as an individual by all the staff I met, who, I felt, took the time to speak to me, offer advice to help me get the best from my stay etc. etc.
In conclusion, the hotel occupies a prime, harbour - front location, and if the fixtures and fittings were updated to match the genuinely great service, it would be not just good, but great.

We were booked into the Ayre Hotel as part of an overnight Orkney tour and were very pleased with our stay. We had two rooms, both with harbor view. The rooms were comfortable and well appointed, with a nice bathroom, comfortable bed and blackout drapes that thankfully worked well.

I noticed none of the previously reported problems such as noise from other rooms although I did hear people talking in the hallway once or twice.

While this hotel lacks some of the personality of other historic places we stayed in, it certainly didn't lack for service. All the staff we encountered were kind and helpful. The restaurant served an excellent dinner (and was our first introduction to Orkney Ice Cream!) as well as a very nice breakfast.

On the whole, I couldn't have asked for a nicer place to stay in Kirkwall.

We stayed at 'The Ayre Hotel' whilst working on Orkney.

After a couple of weeks of looking for reviews on certain hotels, we decided on this one. We stay all over the country and find trip advisor a useful source of information.

We would highly recommend anyone to stay here, whether you are on business or pleasure.

On our first night, we were late arriving, due to the ferry being delayed. We phoned the Hotel who kindly kept the restaurant open until we arrived at 9.30pm. So if you are going to be late, give them a call! We didn't just have a snack, in fact we had a 3 course meal, including a Sunday roast! The food was excellent and nicely presented.


The people that run the Hotel have been there just over 12 months so comments on this site prior to that can be ignored.

Glad we ignored them!

The room was very clean and well looked after every day, excellent views across the harbour.

The choice for Breakfast was unbelievable - including Orkney smoked salmon and scrambled eggs.

Also good choices for vegetarians.

The bar attached to the Hotel was lovely with locals and tourists in there most nights, with a friendly atmosphere. If you don't like bars then you can sit in the Restaurant or Garden room where you can have peace and quiet. Having said that, the Hotel was NOT noisy though!!

We stayed for 8 nights so we feel justified on putting these comments on here, so anyone visiting Orkney, this place is your ideal base. The Hotel is close to the Harbour (local island ferries) and close to the town centre.

We will definately stay here again!!

Well done to the Hotel staff and Management - you do an excellent job!

Me and my new husband stayed at the hotel as party of our honeymoon, we requested breakfast in our room on our first morning, the breakfast was very well presented and tasted even better. All the staff at the hotel were very well mannered and most helpful to all our requests. The rooms were lovely and as it was our honeymoon they made sure to give us a lovely room overlooking the sea front. All in all it was a most enjoyabe stay i would recommend this hotel to any holiday maker.