Cally Palace Hotel & Golf Course

We have visited over many years, when in family ownership now Bespoke, saddened to read that it has been put on the market. Bought as a a bundle of three, the other two nearer the ferry, oyster festival, skiff racing we understand desire to focus on revenues there…however, Cally is unique and ought to remain part of their portfolio.

Our recent visit was a joy, a much needed break after busy parish and hospital duties and my wife’s hospitalisation. The staff could not have been more helpful and engaging. We were allowed the run of the house without being fussed over, staff on hand whenever needed, day two we felt we owned the place and perhaps that is Cally’s secret. It provides a venue where folk can enjoy grander days beyond our imagining, an antidote to synthetic or over restored hotels.

Swim, Sauna and jacuzzi before leisurely breakfast…drives to Kirkcudbright, Threave Castle and Gardens, book town of Wigton….through the remnants of ancient rain forests just north of the hotel…so much to see and do before returning to the swimming pool and cocktails before supper. The bar staff helpfully creating cocktails for my wife.

Chef is an artist, each dish prepared with skill and care, their mother must be very proud.

Cally is an oasis of changelessness in a world of fast change …long may it be there for us and all the other appreciative customers.

Lovely 1 mile drive in to the hotel which is grand in appearance. Arrived 10 mins before check in time of 3pm and asked to sit in lounge. Room key given 5 mins later. Odd, why not at reception desk?
Deluxe room on second floor was huge. Bedroom area and bathroom so spacious, but tired looking. Table scratched. Why was the walk in shower so small when so much space in the bathroom? The bed was bad. I suffer from a bad back, and the pain I have was increased severely after sleeping on it for the 2 nights.
Service by the staff was mixed. Good in the bar, and not so good in the dining room. Asked for ice to put in my water and was told “right away” by the waitress. Same girl passed by our table several times, and eventually had to ask another waitress, who immediately brought it to the table. Also, no salt in the small shaker on the table. Why not checked before service? The food was very good, and the chef did an excellent job on everything we chose to eat at dinner. Breakfast buffet was very good.
The public areas and grounds are impressive. That said, it’s clear the building is in bad need of some tlc. Paint flaking off window frames, scuff marks on doors and walls, all needing attention.
It’s advertised as 4 star, maybe because of the spa and golf course, neither of which we used.
It’s owned by Bespoke Hotel group.
Serious money needs to be spent on interior and exterior painting/ refurbishment to revitalize what is a beautiful old manor house.

Had a great stay at the Cally Palace for my mum's 80th. The staff couldn't have been nicer and were particularly great in helping us get the room decorated etc to make the day special. Special shout to Annie, Arron and the food & beverage manager (sorry I can't recall his name!) as they all went above and beyond.

The grounds and old house are lovely with the swimming pool area in particular being very nice.

I played the golf course and it was in decent condition despite the poor weather around our visit. One thing I would note to future guests is that there's no pro shop etc so bring all your own gear. Also don't hire the clubs, they were only a fiver but they've a cheek charging that. The set I was given didn't have a driver!

As previous reviews have mentioned the rooms, and other aspects of the hotel, are in need of an upgrade/modernisation but I think this could be underway albeit at a slow pace.

Finally, a big plus is that the hotel is dog friendly! We didn't have ours with us but it made us happy to see other people's pups about the place.

The initial drive up to the hotel was very impressive with the grounds being well tended+ manicured. Our welcome from the receptionist who's first language was not English was quite sharp.
The interior of the entrance had a beautiful flower display and an amazing entrance.
On walking to our room past the swimming pool which looked and turned out to be lovely, we passed wicker chairs which were broken and had holes in them .Removal of these broken chairs would cost nil and improve the impression of the hotel.
Our room 115 was massive, clean + with a lovely balcony which was well used as our stay was during a spring heatwave! The views were very impressive, but again simple things like lifting a blown down cushion from a balcony would improve impressions and cost nothing.
The public rooms were very impressive in keeping with the age + stature of the building. It would have been good if the paintings had been named so you knew who you were looking at.
We ate dinner
on the first night and the quality of the food was very good as was the friendliness of all staff we encountered especially the barman who had been with the hotel for 30 years.
Breakfast was good but with no apparent dietary exceptions and I missed my usual greek / lactose free yogurt with my fruit. Certain items in hot buffet was very dried out, possibly as the hotel was not too busy and there was not a big turnover of food.
Overall we thoroughly enjoyed our 2 day break in an impressive country house which retained the history of its past grandeur .There were impressive grounds and walks. Attention to small details would make a big difference to the view of the hotel to others.

This is the third time we have had the pleasure of staying at the Cally Palace. It is a lovely hotel, so quiet and relaxing. With spacious rooms and enormous comfortable beds. We eat in the hotel and enjoy the buffet breakfast. There is a pool, jacuzzi and sauna available and a snooker and pool table. The location is ideal

Really gone down hill since last stay a year or more ago. So run down and shabby. Very few staff service unbelievably slow. You are left to make your own bed as room cleaning making up has been abolished, Very young and inexperienced staff in restaurant. . Don t bother I will nit be coming back. .

Every member of staff very polite and welcoming.Spotless bedroom and bathroom.
Fresh flowers in sitting rooms

The rooms are far bigger than average. Slightly out dated but huge beds, comfortable etc. Ours had 2 desks in it and a balcony.

Pool is brilliant as is the sauna and hot tub. Shame no ice machine or cold shower next to the sauna but these are minor things.

Love the paintings, the snooker table etc. It has an old world feel about the place.. think of titanic style but not quite as opulent.

Breakfast is good and had haggis, and a wide selection.

So if you like red carpet, high stunning ceilings, big comfortable rooms.... yes this place is worth it.

This was our second stay - this time for four nights. Once again every staff member was welcoming, friendly and helpful. Our room was spotless and on request was cleaned and replenished daily. We used the swimming pool each day which was an added bonus to our stay. Breakfast was varied, plentiful and delicious; waiting staff always friendly and efficient. We will definitely be returning.

Had a lovely weekend at this Hotel for Valentine's day. Beautiful hotel, very clean and the staff couldn't have been better. Thanks to the whole team at the Cally Palace!

Hotel is down a single track road through the woods, close to the lovely village of Gatehouse of fleet which is well worth a visit.
The hotel is a grand affair, with huge reception rooms and huge bedrooms. It is very well kept and full of history. The pool area needs some TLC but perfectly usable, with a new hot tub just fitted.
Bedrooms are massive, very clean and were very warm, had to open the windows to cool the rooms we had to cooldown. 3 rooms booked, 2 with walk in showers were the accessible room and the deluxe double. The other types of room only have a bath/shower combo. The showers were hot and strong flow. The deluxe double was on 3rd floor but had a lift to it, not all rooms can be accessed by the lift so be careful if stairs are a problem.
Found the rooms quiet and comfortable, tea/coffee making facilities in the rooms.
Reception has a dozen steps to the ground floor, a ramp is at the rear of the hotel, round to the right, a few hundred meters walk.
If dinning with your pet, you can eat in the conservatory with your dog, dinner is table service, for breakfast you go to the buffet and walk the 50 meters back with your food. The conservatory was lovely and warm in the winter.
Breakfast is worth it, Dinner was not, some was overcooked rubbery, some burnt and the rest had no flavour, huge disappointment.
The staff were mainly great, a couple went above and beyond, most very friendly and helpful with a couple having a bad day, but in no way rude.
Highly recommend the hotel for staying and breakfast, give dinner a miss and go to the village for far better quality, we will definitely be back to see what its like in the summer.

Beautiful old hotel with super helpful staff, excellent food and brilliant facilities. We used the hotel pool, jacuzzi and sauna each day and had fluffy robes provided. Such a lovely atmosphere and the log fires each night - fantastic. We ate out a couple of nights and wished we had stayed at hotel, lovely food and amazing breakfast. Our room was HUGE and really warm (no 43) Couldn’t ask for more, reading other reviews I would say some people have just been unlucky! Highly recommend

Thank you so much to everyone at Cally Palace for looking after us so well on our Christmas break. We stayed for the 4 night Christmas break and everything was superb. The food was delicious (and plentiful), the staff were brilliant, there was so much to do. Even the weather was great so we could get a couple of rounds of golf in! Definitely recommend 💖

We have just left The Cally Palace after a wonderful 4 night stay over Christmas. We loved everything! The food was delicious, great pool, huge room and the whole place is kept so clean. The staff were all so helpful and friendly too! Thank you to Steven, both Barry's, Dave, Margaret, Ebony, Peter and Pam who all worked so hard to give all the guests an amazing Christmas! We have already recommended The Cally Palace to friends!

Came here for a birthday celebration. The two rooms we had were lovely. The pool was fab. We did however have issues with the barman who is believed to be a manager in the evening, extremely rude to myself and my family and totally uncalled for with rude inappropriate remarks. He said it was his ‘sense of humour’ after we brought it up with reception. I had a look at other reviews to see if anyone else has had issues with this same man and there are quite a few, he did ruin our evening sadly!

All the staff smiled. And were very friendly. The location was beautiful and peaceful. Ideally located to explore Dumfries & Galloway. Food was excellent (freshly cooked meals). Pool, sauna, hot tub, gym. Red squirrels and deer on the golf course at dawn.
Very large bedroom.
Just beautiful.

Overall very disappointing. It is in a lovely location, the swimming pool is fine apart from clumps of grass walked in from the golf course. The food is not inspired but not bad, though items on the main menu were sometimes not available. Apart from that our three night stay was not good. Booked a ‘delux’ room in the old house. The lift was not working, so climbed the stairs with our suitcases. There was a hoover, left in the middle of the room which was a surprise, however the worst thing was that the window in our room was covered by, and I don't exaggerate, hundreds of houseflies. After a liberal application of fly spray by housekeeping the room was still unusable. After a delay an alternative was found on the ground floor. We very nearly left after the first night.
The whole place is in need of investment. Lift and sauna broken, fixtures and fittings worn, areas of one of the main lounges cordoned off due to water coming through the ceiling. Staff in the dining room were casual, bordering on rude. The dining room is very large, on the first night, with only four couples in the room, they were 'Not sure if we can seat you"! It was a Faulty Towers experience writ large. The one exception was the lady in the bar who was very competent and highly professional.

It was well below the standard you might reasonably expect from a four start hotel at this price point.

It looks grand from the outside and certain aspects of the interior still are, but it's all downhill after that!
We asked for an accessible room and were given a room up several flights of stairs. The lift was out of order. The lounge areas on the first floor only have one toilet/baby change and it's at the furthest end of the building.
We called several days before arrival to ask about facilities and were told the part we wanted to use was out of order.
It was functioning when we arrived, but we didn't bring swimwear after being wrongly informed.
To say our room was dated is an understatement, the furniture and fittings must be from the 1930's! There are no plug points for electronics.
We were in a family group and several points were raised over food quality. We had to pre order food 6 days in advance, probably to make sure 3663 had stock, and some of it wasn't available on the night!
I left my main course of risotto as it tasted of being over salted.
My wife and I didn't have breakfast.
On arrival Dave and the lovely young lady serving the bar ( sorry I can't remember your name ) were extremely chatty, polite and helpful.
The barman at night was bad mannered to the point of being downright rude. Overall, not a good experience and we won't return.

The hotel is in a lovely setting and looks nice from the outside.
The receptionist on arrival was helpful and took care of our requests.
The pool is nice and the jacuzzi hot. Towels were provided as we were using facilities prior to check in.
We were advised that the sauna wasn't working before our arrival but once inside the pool area, we found it was.
The hotel is tired and needs a good overhaul. Squeaky floor boards. The bedroom doors were loud when closing. Could hear people in their rooms opposite.
Bar staff not always pleasant.
Some waiting staff were good, others not so. It all seemed a bit disjointed and not at all what we were expecting for our weekend away.
We were asked to preorder our meals prior to arriving at the hotel, then advised on the evening that there was no cheesecake! That's not acceptable considering we were the first in the dining area for dinner service. The meals were nice but very overpriced imo.
The rooms were large and clean but, again tired. Only one usable plug socket next to the door and not near the mirror at the desk to be able to use straighteners. No usb sockets. Complimentary white company toiletries available for use.
Breakfast was buffet style although there was a menu you could ask for other items at an extra cost.

One of those old mansions that used to be converted to training centres or hotels once the previous owner could no longer afford it.
We enjoyed our stay, in a very large room with a small balcony overlooking part of the garden. Well enough equipped, although an in-room iron/board would have come in useful.
Breakfasts were plentiful, including a to-order section, and good.
Friendly and accommodating staff team.
Overall an nice relaxing experience.

For the price, I would rather stay here than in a boring corporate hotel.