But I am sure that the guests in the other rooms were equally comfortable and cared for. Tony and Aurea obviously take immense pride in the ambience they create so successfully. The house is most defintiely a home and has the relaxed feeling of being at home, and all the creature comforts are on hand as well as wonderful home cooked and carefully selected food. We will be going again!

Let's face it, most of the establishments in the Isle of Man leave something to be desired (I can say that since I grew up there and even worked in one). I was not willing to spend a large amount of money for a shabby room in Douglas and listen to the lager louts parading the promenade at 2am.

I chose Hillcrest House based on the feedback here and am pleased that I did. It was the best B&B I stayed in on my trip to the UK (3 B&Bs).

Situated in the north of the Island, Hillcrest House is actually on the main "mountain road" out of Ramsey. It is set back from the road and the room I had (Clover) was overlooking the rear garden and was exceptionally quiet. The main road is actually part of the TT race course, so there was a little inconvenience because of the MGP practices from 6pm to 9pm, but Aurea (the proprietor) showed me the back way in.

Hillcrest House is lovely. It's like staying in a well kept, lovely Victorian house. Even though I didn't use it, I appreciated the guest's sitting room on the 2nd floor (1st floor in UK speak). Aurea was very helpful and the place was spotless. Even being a single person staying in a room for 2 (and paying the 2 person rate), it was a very good rate (compared to the dumps in Douglas).

The breakfasts were delightful - I loved the freshly squeezed fruit juice concoction and had the full Manx one morning and Kippers the other. No complaints there.

All in all a very good stay. No hesitation to use it again when I return.

We very much enjoyed our three night stay at Hillcrest House. Aurea Greenhalgh made us very welcome: she certainly takes a pride in her hospitality. Her breakfasts were out of this world.
The rooms were clean - and most importantly, not smoking. Some visitors may find the furnishings somewhat gloomy with college prewar photographs and old etchings. That is simply the style of that era!

We stayed here for four days in late March 2005.

Although we would concur with many of the views expressed on TripAdvisor about Hillcrest and although it may be one of the better places in the Isle of Man, it's not worth five stars when viewed against the standard normally required in UK for this ranking.
Yes the welcome is warm, the rooms are well furnished, the breakfast is well cooked, the juiced fruit is excellent and there is a good choice. Manx kippers were especially good. The guidance given by Aurelia about where to eat in both Douglas and Ramsey was good and bookings were made on our behalf.
(Do try Tanroagan in Douglas!!)

But.....
* Only liquid soap was provided. How do you bath with liquid soap?
* There was a cobweb in the bathroom
* The loo was not secure; it rocked slightly
* The shaver socket worked only with the bathroom light on which meant our electric toothbrush could not be charged overnight
* The towels although 100% cotton from John Lewis Partners did not give that "tingle" dry feeling.

On balance then, good but with scope to be better