The Balmoral Hotel
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1 Princes Street, Edinburgh EH2 2EQ Scotland
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$1,531
$566
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Room & Suite (326)
Dining (164)
What is Travelers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
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What you can expect during your stay
- All linens sanitized in high-temperature wash
- Face masks required for staff in public areas
- Floors marked for social distancing
- Hand sanitizer available to guests & staff
- Regularly sanitized high-traffic areas
- Staff required to regularly wash hands
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Updated 05/08/20 Safety precautions are provided by the property and are not checked by Tripadvisor for accuracy.
A note from The Balmoral Hotel
Updated 05/08/20 Safety precautions are provided by the property and are not checked by Tripadvisor for accuracy.
About
#11 of 164 in Edinburgh
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Value
Travelers' Choice
For over a century, The Balmoral has found a home at Edinburgh’s most prestigious address, No. 1 Princes Street. A landmark Rocco Forte hotel set in the heart of Scotland’s capital city, The Balmoral combines stunning views and warm hospitality with world-class facilities to create the perfect urban retreat. The perfect marriage of tradition and modernity, each of the 167 rooms has been individually designed by Rocco Forte Hotels’ Director of Design Olga Polizzi. Elegant and stylish with unmistakably Scottish accents, each of our 20 Edinburgh suites are generous with magnificent views. Enjoy Michelin-starred dining at the famous Number One restaurant, sample modern Scottish Afternoon Tea under the glass dome of Palm Court or relax in the serene sanctuary of The Balmoral Spa. Brasserie Prince, launched in 2018, celebrates a 'new alliance': matching the very best of Scottish produce with classic French cooking, while The Balmoral’s signature whisky bar, SCOTCH, pays homage to Scotland’s national drink and is home to one of Edinburgh’s largest collections. Take a seat on one of the tweed sofas and let a kilted Whisky Ambassadors help you choose from over 500 varieties. The Balmoral is the perfect home-from-home to discover Edinburgh and Scotland’s finest attractions. Whatever the season, the hotel’s dedicated Concierge team can open doors to some of the most unique experiences in Scotland. From tickets to the world-famous Edinburgh Festival events, access to the city’s royal establishments - Holyrood Palace and the Royal Yacht Britannia – to the hotel’s Tartan Butler Clan Tour, you’ll find the best of Scotland at your finger tips.
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Property amenities
Valet parking
Free internet
Pool
Fitness Center with Gym / Workout Room
Bar / lounge
Walking tours
Pets Allowed ( Dog / Pet Friendly )
Airport transportation
Wifi
Paid wifi
Indoor pool
Heated pool
Fitness / spa locker rooms
Fitness classes
Personal trainer
Sauna
Restaurant
Breakfast available
Breakfast buffet
Breakfast in the room
Complimentary tea
Kids' meals
Special diet menus
Wine / champagne
Taxi service
Conference facilities
Banquet room
Meeting rooms
Spa
Couples massage
Facial treatments
Full body massage
Head massage
Manicure
Massage
Pedicure
Salon
Steam room
24-hour security
Baggage storage
Concierge
Currency exchange
Newspaper
Non-smoking hotel
Butler service
Doorperson
24-hour check-in
24-hour front desk
Private check-in / check-out
Dry cleaning
Laundry service
Ironing service
Shoeshine
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Room features
Allergy-free room
Soundproof rooms
Air conditioning
Desk
Housekeeping
Coffee / tea maker
Flatscreen TV
Bath / shower
Bathrobes
Interconnected rooms available
Room service
Safe
Telephone
VIP room facilities
Wardrobe / closet
Bottled water
Clothes rack
Private bathrooms
Tile / marble floor
Wake-up service / alarm clock
Minibar
Refrigerator
Complimentary toiletries
Hair dryer
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Room types
City view
Landmark view
Bridal suite
Non-smoking rooms
Suites
Family rooms
Good to know
HOTEL CLASS
HOTEL STYLE
Classic
Business
Languages Spoken
English, Italian
Location
Full view
100Great for walkers
Grade: 100 out of 100
316Restaurantswithin 0.5 km
192Attractionswithin 0.5 km
5103Reviews101Q+A100Room tips
Reviews
Traveler rating
- 3,773
- 895
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- 112
- 58
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Popular mentions
Because our experience in parts was amazing and in other parts incredibly disappointing I am unusually going to start this review with a summery so you don't have to read the full rant below unless you really you want to. So to summaries we will not be staying in this or any other Rocco Forte Hotel ever again. We have stayed in other hotels in Edinburgh where the rooms were just as nice, the service much more personal and the rooms were considerably less expensive, and had no hidden costs that you are guilted into paying for. That being said we will be back to the Brasserie Prince and for afternoon tea at the palm court as these experience were so good I will remember them for the rest of my life. We found this hotel to be a bit of a mixed bag, when we visited it recently for my Wife's birthday. I will start with the positives. The afternoon tea in Palm Court, was amazing and felt very special indeed. The choice of teas was mind blowing and the food even better. I had mentioned in advance that it was my Wife's birthday, they brought out the cakes with a candle in and the harpist (that was playing lovely background music) played Happy Birthday To You, which absolutely made the experience for us. We had dinner in Brasserie Prince which is attached to the hotel and I would have to say I cannot think of an occasion when I have ever had a better dinning experience. The food was out of this world and the service was amazing, simply second to none. Again they remembered that it was my Wife's birthday and gave us both a glass of champagne on the house. My Wife had two Spa treatments and she raved about them for days afterwards to anyone who would listen. She said to me repeatedly that they were by far the best spa treatments she had ever had. The hotel on the other hand was a complete disappointment. Not one member of staff wished my Wife a happy Birthday despite me making sure this was mentioned on the booking and again when we checked in (which seemed to come as a surprise to the checking staff). I had upgraded my booking from an executive double to a junior suite, on-line about a month prior to arrival. This upgrade seemed to have been lost in the ether. I did not want to make a fuss in front of my Wife so had to accept this mistake. Although when I did report this to the check-in staff, I was offered a Junior Suite at an additional expense but by this stage my Wife had unpacked and I did not want to have to make her move rooms. My wife tried to use the hair dryer in the room, but it fell apart halfway through drying her hair and sucked her hair in through the back of the hair dryer. This then took quite a bit of time and pain to extract her hair from it. Then we come to the overall experience, which to me was ruined by the blatant attempts to try and extract as much money from there guests as possible. I first noticed this when I went to use the TV in the room, while my Wife had a treatment in the spa. The TV was obviously a modern smart TV with all the smart capabilities disabled. However there was a selection of films you could purchase through the TV. These films were not particularly modern and were being charged at £12.99 a film or £59 for all the films you could watch in 24 hours. I watch a film on my phone through Netflix, which I would much rather have watched on the big screen TV in the room. This experience followed me all the way to check out where I found a £49 charge for room service, which we had not used. When I queried this they advised it was for cleaning the room before we arrived. Although I was advised that it could be taken off, the lady on the check in desk made me feel that I would only take this off if I was not happy with the cleanliness of the room. I have stayed at other high end hotels before and have never heard of a charge like this. You would think at over £800 a night for our room this would be included! They should be very glad of Palm Court and the Brasserie otherwise the rating for this review would be considerably lower.…
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Date of stay: May 2022
Rooms
Cleanliness
Service
Helpful
I had a recent stay at the Balmoral Hotel in Edinburgh on the day of my wedding. I felt the overall experience we had was a real let down on our special day. We phoned 3 or 4 times prior to our visit to ensure the room would be ready for our earlier arrival on the 14th April 2022, to allow us to get changed. Our wedding was due to start at 12 noon. Reception confirmed on each occasion via phone that this would be no problem, and they'd be able to sort something for us. We arrived around 10am, as previously agreed, and the room was not ready. This was of course very inconvenient, given we also had our 7 month old son with us too. We then had to wait in reception with our luggage until 11.30am, before we gave up, and got changed in the toilets. This really upset my wife, as she didn't have time to properly get ready for her wedding. We were both 20 minutes late for the wedding at the City Chambers, which was very embarrassing, and we didn't have time to take pictures with our family before it started. At no time were we given an alternative area to get ready and feed/change our son, so we had to do this in reception. I asked politely twice to be given access to our room even though it was vacant, but wasn't cleaned, but the receptionist refused. In general, we found there to be loads of staff, eager to help, but not actually helping. Our experience at the Balmoral really spoiled the morning of our wedding, and really didn't expect this to happen given its reputation. When we did get into the room, there was no cot for our son, despite it being requested. Little things such as spelling my wife's new surname wrong, showed poor attention to detail, and really didn't leave a good impression. There are better hotels for less money in the Edinburgh area. I am just so disappointed in the Balmoral. They said the early entry would not be guaranteed when I complained to central office, but the reception confirmed they would be able to help us in some way.…
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Date of stay: April 2022
Value
Cleanliness
Service
Helpful
Last week, I decided to splash out for a night on what I thought would be a top experience at The Balmoral in Edinburgh.......it certainly wasn't what I expected. The hotel is nice (I've stayed in better for less money) and it's in an OK position, although Edinburgh Old Town may have been a better choice. The reason for the low score is that when you are paying £577 for the night (including breakfast) you have certain expectations......for example, for the doorman to help you with your bags, or for the hotel to offer to take your bags to the room. Neither of these things happened. Not that I would have accepted it, but I certainly expected to be asked. The room we were given wasn't big enough to open and layout 2 suitcases and the view was looking at the centre of the hotel which was basically brick. I would expect this if you book through a third-party site, but I booked directly with the hotel so that they got all of my money and they did not have to pay a third party company commission. On checking out, I was given a bill with a line item stating "Service Charge Rooms" for the sum of £24.75. I queried this and was told that it was new and that this is for the maids to service the room!!!! Isn't that why you pay the hotel anyway!!! I was extremely annoyed by this, given the experience was nothing like I had hoped it would be. My strong advice to anybody reading this is to save your money and stay somewhere where they care about your custom. Finally, I have often read bad reviews and thought that the person writing them was being unreasonable.......I am certainly not one of those people, but for the expense of this hotel I did expect certain things…
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Date of stay: May 2022
Rooms
Service
Sleep Quality
Room Tip: Request a room outward-looking
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Helpful
+1
Enjoyed afternoon tea in the palm court, everything from ambience, food, service, attention to detail was simply perfect. A fantastic experience that I will hopefully experience again. Prior to afternoon tea we had cocktails in the bar which was average
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Date of stay: January 2022Trip type: Traveled
Room Tip: Book the bar if you plan to visit too
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1 Helpful vote
Helpful
It was a very lovely hotel with a friendly staff. The spa was simple and peaceful. We were there for our honeymoon and got an upgrade to a top floor room. The room was stunning however there was a few visible damages in the bathroom. In a five star hotel I would prefer those things to be kept up with. The turn down service was a welcoming surprise when we returned from our dinner.
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Date of stay: May 2022Trip type: Traveled
Room Tip: If you are a light sleeper the AC is very loud so bring some ear plugs.
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1 Helpful vote
Helpful
PRICE RANGE
US$454 - US$903 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
balmoral hotel edinburgh, balmoral edinburgh hotel
LOCATION
United KingdomScotlandEdinburghPrinces Street and Gardens / Old Town
NUMBER OF ROOMS
187
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Claim Your Listing Frequently Asked Questions about The Balmoral Hotel
Which popular attractions are close to The Balmoral Hotel?
Nearby attractions include The Real Mary King's Close (0.4 km), The Chocolatarium (0.4 km), and SANDEMANs NEW Europe - Edinburgh (0.3 km).
What are some of the property amenities at The Balmoral Hotel?
Some of the more popular amenities offered include an indoor pool, an on-site restaurant, and a lounge.
Which room amenities are available at The Balmoral Hotel?
Top room amenities include a minibar, air conditioning, and a flat screen TV.
What food & drink options are available at The Balmoral Hotel?
Guests can enjoy an on-site restaurant, a lounge, and breakfast during their stay.
What are some restaurants close to The Balmoral Hotel?
Conveniently located restaurants include Makars Gourmet Mash Bar, Howies Waterloo Place, and The Haggis Box.
Are there opportunities to exercise at The Balmoral Hotel?
Yes, guests have access to an indoor pool, a fitness centre, and a sauna during their stay.
Does The Balmoral Hotel have airport transportation?
Yes, The Balmoral Hotel offers airport transportation for guests. We recommend calling ahead to confirm details.
Is The Balmoral Hotel located near the city center?
Yes, it is 0.3 km away from the centre of Edinburgh.
Are any cleaning services offered at The Balmoral Hotel?
Yes, dry cleaning and laundry service are offered to guests.
Are pets allowed at The Balmoral Hotel?
Yes, pets are typically allowed, but it's always best to call ahead to confirm.