Despite how often I travel, I very rarely find the opportunity to stay in a B&B. Inverness, for some reason, seemed to have more B&Bs than hotels!
Somewhere between an Airbnb and a hotel, B&Bs- or guest houses- are typically singular houses with each room being rented out to different guests. An on call host is available to check in visitors, cook breakfast and otherwise assist with the needs of their guests.
My first taste of the guest house life was my one night stay at the Inverglen Guest House, and wow was it a good first impression!
The guest house itself is gorgeous- a Victorian stone villa located in a quiet neighborhood just a ten minute walk away from Inverness Railway Station.
Depending on which way you walk from the train station, the walk can be a little challenging with a heavy suitcase- you’ll run into a steep staircase or winding hills depending on which way you walk. Crown Road is your best bet from the trains station!
If you’re not up for the walk, a quick taxi ride is always an option and free parking is available for personal cars.
Check in is quite late at 4pm, so I chose to store my luggage in a locker at the train station and explore the city before I checked in. I was otherwise invited to leave my luggage on the front porch of the house, but while you can take the girl out of New York….I wasn’t leaving my bags unattended no matter how safe the neighborhood is!
Inverglen Guest House has five rooms to choose from- three rooms with king sized beds, a room with two twin beds plus a foldaway bed, and another room with three twin beds.
As I was traveling by myself, I was happy to luxuriate in a king sized room- especially since I was coming from a shared room in a hostel!
The room was huge and comfortable, with plenty of storage and even a slice of sunshine cutting across the room from a large window- a delight after a rainy couple of days!
The bathroom was modern and stocked with complimentary toiletries and fluffy towels- and a heated towel rack. I spent possibly too long taking a luxuriously hot shower before bed.
A hospitality tray was provided and I snacked on some tea and biscuits while flipping through a binder of sightseeing suggestions that was left on my bed.
I spent some time in the common lounge area chatting with the hosts and they helped me order takeaway (sacrilege while traveling, I know, but I didn’t want to climb that staircase again!), which was super kind of them since my phone wouldn’t make calls via wifi.
A hot Scottish breakfast and cold breakfast is provided, and the host will ask your preferences the night before. At a B&B, breakfast had better be good!
Unfortunately, I had to leave bright and early for my tour the following day so I was unable to peruse the breakfast offerings. Instead, my host packed me a breakfast of a sandwich, crisps, a cereal bar, a banana, and an orange juice which was very kind! She even wrote me a sweet little note telling me to enjoy my trip since we’d chatted about my tour the night before. It was cute- I felt like a kid sent on my way to school.
Although I briefly crossed paths with another couple staying in the guest house, it was overall an extremely quiet and comfortable stay!
Easily one of my favorite hotels throughout my trip to Scotland, both in terms of service and style, I’ll be checking back in for my next inevitable visit.
Like you, I don’t tend to stay in BnBs often, unless they’re the only option in town– however, I’ve been staying in more of them in recent travels, as my partner loves a cozy BnB and actively searches for them! Inverglen Guest House looks charming and lovely, and it’s very kind of the owners to give you a meal to-go!
I definitely have to start looking into them more! I really enjoyed my stay here, and it felt a bit more like I was supporting a local family than a hotel chain which is always nice!