The Shetland Hotel

Space in room

We stayed here for 5 nights when touring the Shetlands on a group holiday. Overall it was very good, with some caveats.
Good points:
- the room was huge, it would have been very big just as a room but we stayed in a suite and it was genuinely enormous (it was clearly just two rooms knocked into one)
- plenty of storage space in the room
- decent shower; I like an over-bath one which this was, and plenty of (very) hot water
- staff lovely and extremely helpful with issues some of our tour group (not us) had during our stay
- help yourself tea (various varieties)/coffee/bisuits/toiletries/towels/toilet rolls in reception in lieu of room cleaning, unless you asked for the room to be cleaned, which suited us fine
- very nice breakfast with plenty of fruit available on the continental buffet, cooked and porridge made to order (and you could even specify whether you wanted porridge made with milk, water or a mixture)
- excellent dinners from our group’s set menu
- we were at the back of the hotel and there was very little external noise
- good location right opposite the ferry terminal and a short walk (10-15 mins) into central Lerwick, with the co-op only a few minutes’ walk away

Not so good points
- despite the huge room, only a standard double sized bed, which is quite unusual these days
- no fridge in the room despite there being an obvious cupboard space for one under the kettle area
- small single use plastic bottles of shower gel/shampoo (although there were small bars of soap too)
- the lift broke down at the beginning of our stay, and then remained broken, not a problem for us but there were several people in our group of about 30 with mobility issues, for whom it was a problem as there are quite a lot of stairs.
- decor really needs redoing throughout! Our room had a 1980s premier inn decor feel, whilst our corridor had blood red wallpaper, peeling in places, which gave a somewhat “cheesy horror movie” feel! The stairs, reception and restaurant were better but still a bit dated.
- gluten free and vegetarian options available for dinner, presumably breakfast too, but no signs at all of other dietary needs eg dairy free options etc
- quite a lot of internal noise such as from the room next door and the corridor
- it would have been nice to have more lighting in the room eg above the kettle area, which was the darkest part of the room, and a central light in the lounge part of the suite would have helped.

Overall we enjoyed our stay very much and would happily stay here again.

Just back from here , first of all , yes the hotel is dated but the bedrooms are clean , and comfortable. Bathroom is spotless and fresh towels always available. I liked the idea of replenishing your own supplies from reception. Food is very good, breakfast is hot and tasty . Dinners are excellent and great gf selection, very reasonable prices. Staff are very efficient but friendly too . Didn’t get everyone’s names but Julie , Valerie and Stephen are lovely. Would definitely recommend, but you do need a car to get around.

Everything

Location and facilities

Frokost og personale.

We stayed here for three nights our room was clean but had peeling wallpaper dated furniture.
Bed was comfortable with four posts in each corner (no top ) .
Shower over bath was very good and clean .
All corridors were a deep red like walking through hell !!
Lift was broken so had to use stairs whole time .
Meal in restaurant was ok had a bit of a wait due to large coach party in and staff did tell us about wait which was ok .
Breakfast was a bit limited but cooked food very good .
Staff were very helpful and friendly especially Valerie and bar gentleman in evening .
Hotel is a good 20 mins away from town centre.
For tea/coffee in room you can help yourself to more items from reception as towels if you did not request room service daily .

Location to ferry port

Nothing.

A sad place. Firstly though the staff were helpful and I hope they get jobs elsewhere so they can work in pleasant surroundings, this must be so demoralising for them. This hotel is really a place for short-term workers to use pre and post ferry ( ie oil workers etc) - as I think it was built for. Our shower stopped after 20 mins , there is a socket marked - ‘do not put a heater in’ and worked only when the ceiling light was on - dangerous!! (!), the lift stops a floor short, the beds were very uncomfortable, the decor is ORIGINAL ‘70’s ( I recognise it), the hairdryer was out of the ark ..and the fire hose is marked ‘ do not use’ !? There was no fridge and no safe in the room …. There is no residents lounge - a few chairs near the bar in the restaurant doesn’t count. Overall the place is dreadful - no atmosphere, very poor looking, minimum amenities, evening meals stodgy, breakfast just OK ( but what can go wrong with museli and /bacon? Use it as a place to put your head down for 1 night or so if you must, but don’t stay as part of a holiday. We left early.

O café da manhã é excelente, e os funcionários são muito atenciosos e gentis. A localização também é ótima, em frente ao terminal da balsa de Aberdeen.

Staff were very helpful, worked hard and put things right when we had problems. Right by the ferry terminal. Good breakfast. Quiet. Good parking. Good location for accessing the rest of mainland Shetland.

The location was good to walk into Lerwick

From the check in stage you are made to feel very welcome. Staff were very friendly and professional at all times and always on hand if you needed anything. The rooms are a bit dated but VERY clean with a well stocked tea and coffee tray.

Shower was hot and powerful.

Food was excellent and plentiful with the main dish being served nice and hot.

Breakfast is amazing with lots of choice

You will leave the hotel with a great nights sleep, hot shower and full stomach.

Friendly staff in restaurant and bar. Spacious room with plenty of storage. Good breakfast

We stayed at The Shetland Hotel for six days in May and primarily booked it for accessiblity needs. We could not have chosen better. The room was very clean, the beds extremely conmfortable, the service was excellent and the food was delicious. I chose from the vegetarian menu and the choices were fantastic. Perfectly cooked and not the general run of the mill most establishments offer. Actually I would say it was the best vegetarian food I have ever tasted. The staff- where shall I begin. Abvolutely fantastic, nothing ever too much trouble. I can't remember all of their names but each and everyone were amazing and friendly. The manager, Jane and Valerie, were so lovely and I became very fond of them. They were super helpful, frendly and always ready to chat if we wanted. I am very critical when I need to be but I can say that The Shetlandf Hotel was the best hotel I have ever stayed at factoring the staff, the rooms, the food, the service. If I was to recommend anything I would say an EV car charging point would be a valuable asset. Shetland was very low on EV car charging points and those that were there were not working. Thank you Jane, Valerie and the rest of The Stetland Hotel staff. You are the best! Sarah and David