Lochside Hotel

Myself and my husband and 2 dogs stayed here Easter weekend. The entire stay was perfect! Food was amazing the best we had on the Island. All the staff we so genuinely friendly and Sophie the manager was a ray of sunshine! We loved even minute of being here. Book it!

My husband and I stayed at Lochside while on Islay for our Honeymoon, and we are so glad that we did. Everyone at Lochside was so incredibly accommodating. The room exceeded all expectations. The view was absolutely stunning. Breakfast was so convenient AND delicious! We would stay here again in a heartbeat!

Enjoyed an excellent stay at the Lochside while visiting Islay and the distilleries. The room was very comfortable and clean with plenty of space (I was in the family room). We ate 2 breakfasts, 1 lunch and 2 dinners in the hotel and all were excellent! There was a wide choice on the menu that catered for all tastes in our group. The views from the hotel are second to none and I was lucky enough to see them on a lovely day although I imagine they are just as good on a stormy day! The bar has an amazing whisky collection and the barman was very knowledgeable about them all. What made the stay though was the staff. They went out their way to make sure we enjoyed our stay as much as possible. I thoroughly recommend the Lochside and will definitely stay again!

We stayed here for one night, following our whisky tasting experiences! It’s about a 20 minute drive from the Port Ellen ferry terminal, and an easy drive through the Islay. This hotel was bustling with people, and much busier than I anticipated! We were promptly greeted and checked-in, given instructions (especially regarding sensitive smoke detectors) and were made a dinner reservation. The room was small but comfortable, and the bed was large and cozy. Dinner was convenient and delicious (though it was an added expense for us, and not included in our stay). Seating is limited and best to book in advance. The hotel is located close to many shops, the Bowmore distillery and the shoreline. There’s an attached bar (Duffy’s Pub), which was boisterous and seemed like a fun time. Our room was up the stairs, at the top of the hotel. Unfortunately, the walls seemed extremely thin and there was quite a bit of noise and very loud voices between 2200-0000. It was a little annoying, and made it hard to sleep. Breakfast was included in our stay, which we took advantage of. It took quite awhile to have any service once we were seated, and the gentleman serving us seemed like he wasn’t paying much attention. Scrambled eggs came out over easy, coffee was never refilled, and we weren’t checked on once the food came out. We were seated with a little view of the water this time, which was nice. We did enjoy our stay here, and would return if we had the chance.

The family suite was large and comfortable. However, there were no handrails on the third floor stairs leading to the room making it challenging. The staff were very helpful with the luggage. The shower was small and hard to get into. The view was great. The breakfast was very good. Recommend staying on a lower floor.

The views are great over the sea and the food was good albeit expensive. I had langoustines and my wife had them two days earlier at the Bridgend Hotel but mine were £10 more expensive for roughly the same quantity. My wife had venison steak which she said was very good. We went on a Tuesday night and fortunately we had made a reservation as they were turning people away. I had a glass of Pinot Grigio which was not very nice but my wife’s Pinot Noir was very good. A 10% service charge is automatically to the bill which can be removed if requested.