Does anyone know anything about the Sheraton near the castle. We are using points, so the price can't be beat! Wondering if anyone has stayed there and what they thought about it. Have checked the trip advisor, etc but would like to hear more.

Its modern, bland looking beyond belief, has a concert hall and two theatres across the road, an independent cinema 100 yards away, a chain cinema 200 yards away, some rooms have views of the castle and there's a VERY big TV just outside it.

The Sheraton is pretty much as Alan says. Not much charm. Whatever is wrong with the Caledonian?

>>Whatever is wrong with the Caledonian?<<

Nothing -- the Sheraton question was from a different person.

My comment was that I feel much the same about the Sheraton as Alan does and don't understand why O P hasn't booked the Caledonian yet.

OP has the Caledonian booked - have had it for some time, but reading a few of the reviews on various (sites) even after refurbishment, I had some doubts. So I checked out other places, included those mentioned here. Also heard about the Balmoral here and checked it out as well.

For anyone else out there booking rooms, one benefit of the Caledonian is that they do offer more than one bed (double) to a room so it works for a family - Balmoral looks awesome and indicates availability at this time (they did not before) but one or two of us would be on the cot.

I'd say Nira is out for us - the others as well, and Scotsman is packed. We're set for the Caledonian but we feel very tempted by the reputation and location of the Balmoral.

For soods, can you save those points for another trip? If not, check out the Sheraton's rooms. Whether they appeal to you will depend on your taste - we tend to like things very traditional (not so common any more) so this directs our hotel choices quite a bit.

>>but one or two of us would be on the cot.<<

Did you get the word 'cot' from the Balmoral website (or did they call it something else and you just substituted 'cot' in your post)? If the Balmoral mentions a 'cot', you may be a bit surprised when you checked in. A "cot" in the UK is a baby crib.

Oh boy - it's good I checked. They say "rollaway bed" - I always think these are one and the same. Clearly, they are not. Thank you again JanisJ.

The rooms look ok. I agree about wanting more character. But for free....not so bad! I also don't think we'll spend much time in the hotel room, especially with our eyes open! Just wondering if anyone knew if it was clean with decent services. (We'll be staying in plenty of B&B's and guesthouses in England and in the highlands.)

Hmm...I am not sure about services at that hotel Soods as I haven't seen the reviews, but I bet someone else here would know. One thing, ensure it is conveniently located, as Janis, Alan and Ak have all posted very good comments regarding topography and time to sites.