Old Waverley Hotel

The Old Waverley is in a fantastic location on Princes Street with views of the castle and gardens. Staff were friendly and helpful. The bedroom was freshly decorated and all was very clean and it was not one of the more expensive rooms but still had a view including the castle and Jenners Department Store. Public areas were smart and clean. The Scottish breakfast can't be faulted - help yourself to what you want. A great place to stay in the centre of things - nowhere is far away. Airport bus only 2 minutes across the road. Will definately be back!

i was a little worried about going to this hotel after reading some of the reviews, but i was pleasantly surprised. the room was a good size and very clean as was the bathroom, lovely views overlooking princes street and the scott monument. very central to everything, in fact we walked almost everywhere. the breakfast was ok, lots of choice and you could be as healthy or naughty as you wanted and eat as much as you wanted the staff were all very friendly and helpful, infact one even looked up the weather for us to enable us to choose what to do on which day. a little noisy because it is so central but a very small price to pay as it was the only complaint if i was to go back to edinburgh i would most certainly go back to this hotel.

I have stayed at the Old Waverley Hotel on a number of occasions previously when it was part of Paramount Hotels mainly because of location. However it has truely been transformed now that it is an independent with many more reasons to stay especially if you get one of the new renovated rooms with fantastic views and modern tastefully designed bathrooms. The reception lobby is also a major improvement and the atmosphere in the lounge bar is very warm & comfortable.

I was a bit nervous staying at the Old Waverly after reading some bad reviews, but we had a GREAT stay in Edinburgh. Our room was one of the newly refurbished rooms and it was very nice. It had twin beds which were comfortable, the shower had excellent pressure and we had a nice view of Princes Street and Scott Monument. The hotel staff was very nice and friendly, and they took care of our luggage after checkout since our flight wasn't until later that night. There was some more refurbishing going on across the hall from our room, but we didn't even hear it when the door was shut. Overall it was a great stay, and I would definitely recommend the Old Waverly.

I only stayed one night, and then because there was no room at any better inn. The decor was tired but not too bad. What I saw of the hotel was clean. I'm not surprised to read in other reviews that the food isn't up to much. One look tells you that this is an old style, "land that time forgot" British hotel, where you half expect to meet Manuel and the Major at breakfast. The lift was tiny and excruciatingly slow, the bedroom cramped, bathroom clean but dated he alarm (on the TV) didn't work, there was tea and coffee-making int he room but no room service. On the plus side, it has an excellent location on Princes Street, but unfortunately that makes it very noisy and despite a third floor bedroom on a side street, I was woken several times in the wee small hours. My verdict: not so bad if you're desperate and on a quick stopover for business, but don't expect to want to luxuriate in your room. Basically, you can do a lot better for the money.

Went to Edinburgh with a friend for a weekend. Here are just a few 'highlights' of the weekend: Staff at the hotel has the worst 'no-care' attitude I have ever experienced (and I travel alot!), it seems that they don't like to work there! I cannot express enough how disappointed I was, cause whatever one needed or wanted to ask, they just didn't care! The hotel itself is very tired and seems to fall into pieces. There seems to be some building work going on inside, which leaves the hotel look real tatty, as some parts are covered with sheets and dust.....In the rooms the wall paper is falling off and I didn't find it very clean(the bathroom leaves alot to be desired!) The worst is actually the smell of the hotel, don't know what it is, but it smells very unpleasant. Upon departure we asked if we could leave our lugguage, they had a room for it, and just crammed our lugguage in with the rest without even given a ticket/receipt!! There is only one thing I will give this hotel, it has the perfect location... So all in all, I will never ever return to this hotel!

In early June 2005 I had reservations at the Old Waverly in Edinburgh. Upon arrival, which involved dragging suitcases up too many steps, to the tiny lobby, I was informed they had no reservation. Funny, since my credit card had already been charged. I finally got a room. The room was tiny, the fixtures were very old, and the shower would stop when it felt like it. I was awakened at a late hour by staff insisting I produce the paperwork that I had previously produced. I had to go downstairs with them to insure my paperwork did not disappear like the reservation. The hotel building is falling apart. There are places where sheets hang over work areas that have come to a standstill, carperts were filthy and missing in places, there is no telephone in the room, the street noise is extreme and the TV sits on a stand so low that to watch it you will be guaranteed a sore neck. The food was nothing special. For the price, $200.00 US per night, it is harldy a good choice. The only thing positive is the location, but there are other hotels just as close and much nicer in the same price range.

Date of visit 27 & 28 May 2005 When we arrived from Belfast on Friday morning, our room was not available until at least after 3pm. We had to climb to the 4th floor as the lift was lift out of order and was continually broken during our entire stay As you come into the room, there is an atrocious smell, and the carpet outside the bathroom door is wet. On the Sunday prior to checking out, a member of staff entered our room at 11.05 with her key, We were given the impression that staff were extremely keen for us to check out, even though we had to wait over 4 hours for our room to be available when we first arrived. When checking out, I was given an invoice for the full amount, even though I had posted a cheque as deposit one month prior to my stay. The receptionist was completely unaware I had paid a deposit – it was obviously not recorded. I consider a very serious error on their behalf and extremely unprofessional. Our return flights were not until later that evening, before travelling back to the airport I asked if there was a bathroom where we could freshen up before our journey, we were bluntly told “No”. It was pointed out that there were no such facilities available, not even for staff. the level of hospitality and customer service is severely deficient. We are totally dissatisfied and disappointed with the hotel. The price of accommodation is extortionate considering the service, the deplorable state of the room and the arrogance and nonchalant attitude of staff. I have travelled to Edinburgh many times and this has been my worst experience of any hotel in Scotland or indeed any hotel I have stayed in.

Having stayed in this hotel i had to write my review..... we were so disappointed. We had arranged this trip as a surprise for our mum's 50th birthday, but i think the surprise was on all of us. Were do i start.....on entering the room you were hit with the smell of mould and the first full wall had damp down the wall paper. The tolilet wasn't attached to the floor so banged everytime you sat down or got up which was very annoying in the night cause you woke everyone up. We ran a bath and found that the water was brown....and was told by reception that this was normal for Edingburgh?? The phone in the room didn't work, the heating only worked in the night so you woke up sweating but were cold during the day....and lastly the breakfast was absolutly disgusting it was either under cooked, cold, or generally just tasted off. Edinburgh however was beautiful we just wish we had choosen another Hotel.

The staff at reception were not very friendly. It seemed to us like they did not want to be there. The room was very small however the beds were very comfortable. The breadfast leaves a lot to be desired. I would not recommend this hotel to anyone.