Clonyard House Hotel

Very Disappointing Stay – We Out After 20 Minutes The hotel is extremely basic. There was no one at reception when we arrived and the cook ended up checking us in. When we asked about booking dinner, his response was, “You’ll be lucky,” which didn’t inspire much confidence. The room itself was very basic and definitely not worth the £99 we paid. On top of that, it had such an overwhelming smell that we decided to check out after just 20 minutes. I emailed the hotel requesting a refund and have had no response at all. Based on our experience, I would not recommend this

As a family we have visited the Clonyard numerous times over the years, we will not be back. 7 of us dined, having booked our table in advance. They had a total of 4 menus in the restaurant, 2 of our party arrived just after the rest, to be welcomed by everyone’s order having been taken which was awckward to say the least. We got over that, the starters arrived - the “fresh salad” was not fresh, food mediocre. Mains arrived - mostly cold but the chicken burger was stone cold like something out of the fridge, it was returned to the kitchen and came back 2 minutes later roasting, completely impossible to have been made fresh as stated by the staff, the whole plate had clearly been put in the microwave, the salad on the bun, the bun and the skewer through the burger all hot, the chips still the same with the salt and vinegar that had previously been added also heated on the plate. Aside from that the food was just poor all round.

We stayed at the Clonyard with our dog for New Year. I had been many times years ago with my parents and it had hardly changed. The grounds are lovely and great for giving the dog a short walk. The location is great and it’s only a five minute drive to lovely Rockcliffe and Kippford or Sandyhills. Loads of great walking in the area and places to visit. The interior of the hotel is a little dated and yes it could do with a bit of TLC, but it was warm (heating in rooms and big fire in the bar), very clean, the food was good and the service helpful, but not intrusive. The owner/manager and his wife and children all pitched in at Hogmanay giving the hotel the real family run feel that I remember and they gave out glasses of fizz, sandwiches and mince pies which was a nice touch. Great atmosphere in the bar with many locals and residents all mingling. We stayed in an annex room which had a comfortable double bed, adequate storage, decent shower/bath, VERY hot water and patio door accessing the garden. Ideal for our dog and nice to lie on the bed and look out at the birds. The single glazing could have made the room cold, but with the heating on it was fine. Kettle, tea bags, coffee and a biscuit provided, although not renewed over the two days. I’m sure if we’d asked they would have replenished these. The cooked breakfast was lovely with plenty of choice and well cooked. The meals we had at night equally good - just really well done pub style food and delicious. We would definitely return to the Clonyard. Perhaps the decor and slightly old fashioned appearance won’t be to everyone’s taste, but it is great value for money, comfortable, relaxing and the food is great. Dogs are allowed in the dining room and bar as an added bonus.