Fairmont St Andrews

Just back from an overnight stay in a deluxe, sea view "double double" room. Overall a very pleasant and enjoyable stay, but quite a few niggles which are disappointing considering the considerable price paid. Pros - very friendly staff throughout (special mention to Edward in reception who was very friendly and efficient at check-in) - warm and inviting atmosphere generally with lovely Christmas decorations - room clean - dog friendly - spacious and luxurious bathroom with gorgeous Le Labo toiletries and a good shower - decent selection at breakfast buffet - nice spa facilities Cons - 4pm check in is too late - cold coffee served at breakfast - bar area too small to accommodate the number of guests - room, food and drinks are extremely overpriced for the standard of offerings (good but not 5* standard) - no arm chairs in the room, just one desk chair - disappointing for a "deluxe" room - no obvious staircase to rooms if you're not a fan of lifts.. - 2 double beds in the room are very small, and the pillows are soft and lumpy - late check out at 2 pm paid for but our room keys stopped working at 12 noon (as we arrived back in dressing gowns from the spa) and we were then called in the room by reception at 1pm, clearly chasing us to check out - ice bucket and champagne flutes requested at check-in but these only appeared 2 hours later after chasing twice.

Booked the Fairmont for a 3 night break between Christmas and New Year. Having grown up in Fife, I knew the hotel and we chose to stay here rather than in St Andrews itself, to enjoy the spa facilities and a touch of luxury. Sadly, the overall experience did not measure up to expectations. Whilst the room whilst incredibly spacious and had the usual facilities, small details let it down. In such a large room we were surprised that there was only one armchair. The pillows were far too soft and this meant neither of us managed to a good nights sleep; there was no offer of a pillow menu as I would expect in a 5* hotel. There was no milk for the Nespresso/Tea on our first night and amenities were not replenished. As other reviewers have commented, we ran out of shower gel and this was not restocked during our room being cleaned. Some mud also came off our walking boots (due to the nature of the weather on the coast paths) and this was not cleaned up during our room make-up. Very poor. The complimentary slippers provided with the bathrobes were falling apart too. The hotel itself is deceptively large, but actually has limited facilities. The main bar was very small for such a large hotel, which meant we often struggled to find a table. When we did, the service was questionable - we could often wait for 10-15 minutes before we were served and the white wine was not sufficiently chilled. We ate at La Cucina on the first night - it lacked any form of ambience, no Christmas decorations or an Italian vibe, and the food was average at best. We ate at some of the top restaurants in St Andrews the other nights and had incredible food for less than a meal at La Cucina. Again, the wine was served luke warm - at over £50 a bottle, I would have expected they would know how to serve it. One of the main attractions had been the spa. However, due to the very large number of families, this was far from relaxing. The pool was often hard to get a timeslot for, we only managed to get a lounger on our final day and whereas we wanted to swim, we could not as there were so many families and children splashing and jumping into the pool. This was far from a relaxing experience. Finally, the other attraction had been the courtesy shuttle into St Andrews. This was useful when we walked into town along the coast path, but the shuttle stopped at 6pm. Whilst that was great for getting into town for dinner, it was not helpful for the return! This felt like a somewhat deliberate ploy to keep you at the hotels restaurants. The minivan only seated 8 (in a massive hotel) and was often fully booked, despite a fleet of Mercedes Vans and BMWs being parked outside. Why they could not have put on an additional vehicle when demand dictated, I am uncertain! I would have expected this in a 5* establishment. Overall, the hotel catered for our requirements, but it was no more than an average 4* hotel. We had been planning to book more Fairmonts in Canada next summer, but will now look elsewhere based on this experience.

Brilliant stay again for Christmas. We upgraded to a suite and it was lovely having the Christmas tree for Santa to deliver his gifts to on Christmas Morning. The room was lovely, bed very comfortable and a large marble and spacious bathroom. Robe and slippers are a nice touch. Breakfast was amazing and huge range of choice. Lots of Christmas activities for the children. Book Santa visit early though as it had sold out when we were there.

Our fourth stay in this impressive hill-top hotel overlooking St.Andrews. Whilst the hotel appears like a 5-star establishment and claims to be, it is sadly lacking in numerous respects. Housekeeping - areas in the bathroom such as towel rails and sink supports which were covered in a think layer of dust, i.e. never cleaned for months. I checked behind the bedside unit to see if any of my items had fallen back and was greeted with a skirting board with copious quantities of fluff and detritus present, again - never cleaned. Breakfast - Sadly, a mere shadow of its former self. The 'salad' bar was a pathetic display of pickled items or hummus which seemed weeks old. There was no fresh salad on display and the little fruit which was evident looked woeful. The cook station only did fried eggs, so diners were invited to order from the a la carte menu. I wanted an omelette. The problem is...a la carte only does eggs, so the diner has to second guess when their order is going to appear to be able to enjoy bacon or any other accompaniments which are only available from the hot food counter and hope you get to enjoy them together... We stayed at the Hilton Amsterdam recently and also Hyatt Grand in Berlin and the breakfasts there were truly magnificent - for instance, both had a choice of three colours of fresh, tiny carrots every day as well as seven cheeses and other salad items - but they were five star hotels in every respect, not just a strap line on the marketing blurb. I could go on, the stay was restful and the hotel was basically fine, but the whole place needs a damned good spruce up and a firm hand to bring things up to genuine 5-star standards, Doubtful if we will return, frankly.

One of very few hotels that manages to get everything right. Friendly, caring staff, fabulous breakfast buffet, gorgeous rooms with the best bathrooms and crisp white linens. The atmosphere is warm and welcoming from the moment the doormen greet you and children are warmly welcomed. All the staff say hello and it just feels like a happy place. It’s a master class in good management and we loved it.