Perth, Quality Hotel

My room was a tiny one in the attic. The paintwork was all chipped and the wallpaper peeling off. The window frame was rotted away. The bedspread was covered in cigarette burns. The bathroom was filthy with a dirt encrusted vent. It had obviously not been properly cleaned for years. The towels provided were frayed and torn. The window and door rattled all night, and the heating was jammed on. Opening the window made it too noisy to sleep. Service was atrocious with a breakfast very reluctantly served after a long delay with no staff available to take the order. It was impossible to find a clean table set for breakfast, as dirty crockery and cutlery just seemed to be left on the tables. Getting attention at reception was difficult, with the staff standing outside smoking and ignoring the queuing customers.

The Quality Hotel in Perth, Scotland (I'd guess it was the old railway hotel) was once something special. It's outside, clad in what looks like sandstone, hints at its past glories. I think that once this hotel was something special.

On arrival I noticed that although the hotel was newly carpeted, much of the interior furnishings were scratched and damaged. The lift that took us to our room was reminiscent of a freight elevator. The wooden portion of the interior looked as if it had seen many collisions.

Our room, a family room, cost £109 per night. The hallway leading to our room stank of old socks and stale mustiness. Not a good omen. The room itself, though large, seemed to have seen better days. The floor sloped at an appreciable angle. One wall showed signs of old water damage. The furniture looked like rejects from a thrift store. It was characterised by battered appearance, heavy scratches and splitting veneers.

The bathroom was a shock. Tiny in size, and lacking anywhere to put toothbrushes etc. I made the mistake of trying to put my towel on the towel holder which promptly fell from the wall and hit my foot! Attempts to re-attach it to the wall were not successful.

The Hotel Information folder revealed some interesting facts. The most important being that a cooked breakfast (served in the hotel restaurant) was going to cost us a whopping £11.99 each! The Hotel Information folder was actually interesting in itself. It was disgustingly sticky. After handling it I washed my hands twice to remove both the filth and the feeling that my soul had been soiled.

Sash Windows - it being a hot August day I wanted fresh air to aid our slumbers, but they had been painted, and it wasn't possible to open the windows. Someone had already tried with what might have been a large bowie knife. Even they had failed. A small window at the top was open, but it let in a wholly inadequate amount of air.

Food - restaurant served us an evening meal. Served by a very good French waiter. The food itself was quite good and well presented. As was the bill! £70 for two adults and one child (inclusive of a bottle of Chablis at £20).

Bar - £2 for a small bottle of cider. Decor OK.

Nice gardens around hotel, but no children's play area or equipment.

Before 08:00 next morning we were rudely dragged from our slumbers by a cacophony of sound from right outside our door. Staff were moving boxes and what sounded like an army of rustling plastic bags. It emerged that opposite our room was a room used by the housekeeping staff. The noise was apparently something to do with fitting waste bags to vacuum cleaners and the like. When I asked what they were doing, I was answered with "sorry, but we start this at 7am every morning". This was delivered with a cheery smile! What little sleep we had enjoyed whilst in our damaged and poorly furnished room (stuffy as hell) was utterly destroyed by this episode.

I would only ever use this hotel again if there were no other choice. I have stayed in Youth Hostels that were cleaner, more customer focused and more restful.