The Culloden Estate and Spa

This is a hotel with a lot of charm. It is a beautiful historic building which has been augmented by a more modern but well integrated extension and is located on beautiful grounds between Belfast city airport and Bangor. It feels like a peaceful retreat, yet is only located about 10-15 minutes from the airport by car, has a train station right on its own ground going to the airport (short walk from the airport train station to the terminal) and Belfast city centre, as well as a bus stop to the centre just across from the hotel too (trains are twice an our, bus is only once an hour but has more central stops) I stayed for one night only in a deluxe room. Those are well decorated and reasonably spacious rooms in the extension overlooking the gardens (though set up of the building means you can sometimes feel a little exposed to people walking in the gardens). It has a comfortable bed, bathroom with tub and separate shower and feels elegant, comfortable and luxurious in a country house sort of way. The rooms located in the historic buildings (and those with a view of the Lough) are more expensive. Common areas are pretty. They include a main restaurant, comfy bar and reading room, a separate gastro pub on the other side of the garden, and an extensive gym, pool and spa including hammam, sauna with a view, and jacuzzi. I enjoyed the hotel a lot. My only slight disappointment was that my dinner in the bar (restaurant was closed as was the gastropub due to a function) was somewhat disappointing (maybe I should have taken their weekly special or fish of the day, but I was tempted by their pepper steak which proved mediocre - overcooked, sauce uninteresting). By contrast, breakfast was excellent - the buffet is relatively small but good and complemented by a la carte hot dishes. I got a beautiful egg benedict, excellent porridge with optional drop of Irish whisky, half grapefruit, etc. I really liked the spa too despite it being quite busy (lots of external users especially in the morning and evening including lessons in the pool which makes it a bit hard to use the pool. The grounds are lovely to walk in too and include some contemporary sculptures. On my visit, most other guests were Americans and typically from older age groups but this might have to do with the fact that this was neither holiday nor weekend. Overall, I warmly recommend the place.

great but palace suite ( presidential suite ) shower is really poor for the price of the room . room service cancellation in the morning for breakfast , had to call 5 times to get a response, for a rom that is originally valued at 3.5k a night , you would think you would get a dedicated butler like the dorchester and a dedicated member of staff answering your phone calls

Excellent breakfast - many options

Staff was over extended and service was slow. We had dinner at the Cultra Inn and waited a long time to not only place our order but receive it. The same issue occurred in the Lough Bar on two different occasions.

Our experience of the service at Cultra Inn was so bad we left without being able to even place our food order. Rude, slow and inattentive staff compelled us to return to Culloden to eat at Lough Bar instead. The staff in Lough Bar were fantastic and rescued what was left of the evening for our celebration meal. Big thank you to them.

From the moment we arrived, the Culloden made us feel genuinely welcome. The staff are friendly and professional. The hotel itself is spectacular. The grounds are beautifully maintained - take time to talk around! - and the interior of the hotel is elegant. We were lucky to stay in the Blackwood Suite which is stunning - highly recommend if you want to treat yourself. We enjoyed the newly opened Bollinger Bar in the grounds, had a great dinner and breakfast the following morning was delicious. This was my second stay at the Culloden and it is my favourite hotel. Pure luxury and relaxation. Thank you to everyone there.

I made reservations for the spa months ago for a friend and I. I was so embarrassed to walk into the locker room and see that it was filthy! I definitely did not expect that. The floors were nasty, the lockers were dirty inside. I normally don’t complain because I work at a spa but this is unacceptable!

We found advertised online the Grand Easter Buffet at the Stuart Suite within Culloden hotel. The description sounded amazing, so we decided to book! On arrival we were greeted by a young gentleman who took our coats and brought us to our table in this magnificent room! What a fabulous experience! As we approached the starters, we were amazed by the range and quality of the food on offer, followed by a carvery that had to be seen to be believed! My only disappointment was that i hadn’t left enough room to try more than one dessert. The range of sweet treats was second to none! I don’t know how often this style of dining is available, but I would heartily recommend to anyone looking for exceptional food in stunning atmospheric surroundings! Big thanks to the Assistant manager, Joel, for making our visit extra special and to the musician on her harp, providing a wonderful ambiance!

We loved everything about it, could not recommend this hotel enough.

The bar staff need to pay attention to the customer a bit more rather than talking amongst themselves

Always a great experience, but the service in the restaurant this evening was particularly good. Great service, very professional and attentively. Would definitely recommend it.