Dowans Hotel & Restaurant

My experience at the Dowans Hotel in Aberlour was truly luxurious. The property itself feels like a lovely vintage castle, surrounded by beautiful views of nature that make the stay even more special. The service was exceptional—prompt, attentive, and consistently courteous. The staff were very polite and made sure every need was taken care of. They even curated special dishes on request, adding a thoughtful, personal touch. The hotel also has an impressive collection of spirits, especially whiskies, which was a real highlight. Overall, my 4-day stay was comfortable, elegant, and thoroughly luxurious. A fantastic place to relax and enjoy the charm of Aberlour.

We had the most impressive service I've had anywhere, ever, from the entire Dowans Hotel staff. Lauren, Scott and Laura were absolutely amazing. I cannot rate this hotel, the staff, ownership, hospitality, chef, whisky collection and all of the other things high enough. Whatever the highest rating is, triple it. Everyone at this property went above and beyond to help us enjoy our time there.

A beautiful hotel,with an amazing team of people working there. The food is outstanding and is of such wonderful quality. The rooms are comfortable and well appointed. The surroundings are so pretty and lush, you feel relaxed as soon as you walk in the door. If you're a whisky drinker there are 600 or so varieties you can try, maybe not all at once

A fantastic experience with excellent food, attentive staff, and probably one of the largest whisky bars in Scotland. The whisky flights are a highlight and well worth it. Only small mix-up was with our child’s meal (served as a full portion instead of kids’), but otherwise everything was perfect. Highly recommend for both the kitchen and the whisky selection.

Just back from a lovely stay for our anniversary. Service was top notch, rooms are clean and views out the front are brilliant - we loved sitting having a coffee (or cocktail) and watching the world go by. Food for was great too, with big portions for breakfast. We LOVED the focaccia sandwiches at lunch. The staff were all really nice, professional and attentive, even putting extra effort in for a little anniversary surprise at dinner. Thanks for a great stay, We’ll definitely be back!

Restaurant review Recommended by a staff at the whisky distillery. The staff were friendly and we got to sit outside and enjoy the rare Scottish sun, was an amazing lunch. Food was delicious also, we got the mussel starter which were fresh with a very yummy white wine cream sauce and the scallops were cooked well and fresh. The burger and Cuban sandwich for mains was juicy and filled to the brim with pork and ham balanced with a nice pickle. The kids meal was a homemade tempura chicken tender, very nice also.

From the moment we first walked in and were greeted by Scott, we knew this was a special place. We had no reservation and luckily they had one room left for the three nights we needed. The attention to detail was evident within the first few minutes of being there. The room was updated and very clean. Cozy and had a French Press and local ground coffee to make in the room every morning. Every day Lauren and Scott were available for recommendations of places to see. With over 750 bottles of Scotch, they were so helpful with recommending new spirits for my husband to try according to the flavor profile he prefers. The food was exceptional! Everyday we had an amazing breakfast and ended the evening with an exceptional dinner which you would expect to find a Michelin restaurant. The Sea Bass was perfection, Venison, Orzo with seafood. The venison and beef burger have spoiled me for life. My husband commented the black pudding was the best he had ever had. This was an Epic stay on our travels throughout the UK. Thank you to Lauren, Scott and the entire staff for making our stay unforgettable. I look forward to returning soon.

We absolutely loved our two night stay at The Dowans Hotel. What a gorgeous property, inside and out! Food and drinks were excellent the one night we ate there, and when we decided to have a dram of whisky after dinner, the bartender opened the whisky library cabinet and went through a few options and recommendations until we settled on what we wanted to try. The inn provides a very detailed electronic guide of the area, which was incredibly helpful in planning our activities. We walked up Ben Rinnes (highly recommend!), and later that afternoon, walked to the GlenAllachie distillery from the inn (just 1 mile away on a very quiet country road), which was excellent. We walked on the Spey River trail all the way to Craigellachie for dinner and drinks on our 2nd night. The 2 mile walk home felt very safe, and Lauren made sure we had a torch before we set out (she also offered to arrange a taxi). Everyone we spoke with who lived in the area positively gushed over Lauren when they found out we were staying at The Dowans, which said a lot to us. We were so pleased we chose to stay here and would love to return someday!