* CONTENT OF THE ARTICLE
With just 30 rooms tucked away in a discreet and historic townhouse crammed between shops on the always-busy Princes Street in the heart of Edinburgh’s New Town, 100 Princes Street is a romantic refuge from the bores of modern life.
– Design-wise, this is the bygone Victorian Edinburgh of your dreams with flickering fireplaces, carpets thick as clotted cream, and walls clad in handsome tartan and emerald velvets.
– With magical, rain-misted views over Edinburgh Castle and Princes Street Gardens, the two theatrical signature suites on the high-ceilinged first floor — named after renowned Scottish adventurers Archibald Menzies and Isobel Wylie Hutchison — are lavish lairs worthy of modern-day lairds.
-The location is a 10: You’re right in the action, on the city’s central, modern shopping drag of Princes Street, but triple-glazed windows keep out the racket.
The Rooms
All 30 rooms are individually styled with unique features, so upon booking, feel free to voice preferences — bath or showers, castle views, more space, etc., can all be accommodated.
However, it’s the two signature suites, Archibald and Isobel, that win on atmosphere alone, with Archibald taking top billing with a model clipper ship, gas fireplace, and sea-blue blown-glass apothecary bottles that were purchased before the location for the hotel was even secured. All rooms come with a hearty helping of heritage with tartan bedspreads (and sometimes wallpaper) in five colorways, dreamed up by renowned Edinburgh-based textiles designer Araminta Campbell, who also recently made a bespoke tartan for Balmoral Castle by request of King Charles.
Accessibility and Sustainability
There are two fully adapted bedrooms, and — along with a small lift at the entrance — there is a larger lift at the rear that can accommodate a wheelchair. A ramp can be arranged for the entryway steps to the main door. Regarding sustainability, there are no single-use plastics, recycling bins are provided in guest rooms, and flowers are made of silk to reduce waste.
Food and Drink
The food, spiffed-up classics, is delicious, though slightly inconsistent. For breakfast, it has to be the full Scottish, a protein plate piled with haggis, smoked bacon, and black pudding, or the drop scones with tooth-achingly sweet butterscotch maple syrup. Lunch and dinner offer a taste of the empire (baba ghanoush, koftas with tzatziki, etc.), plus a solid selection of domestic tastes, including a starter of crisped-up haggis bonbons with whisky dip, neeps and tatties (a side dish of mashed potatoes and rutabaga); and a selection of hearty butcher cuts from noted East Lothian butcher John Gilmore. A staple at every Red Carnation hotel, Bea’s cheesecake, the family receipt of Beatrice Tollman, the company’s president and founder, is the highlight of the dessert menu (though the carrot cake in the afternoon tea makes for a close second, as do the warm raisin scones).
House wine comes from the South African boutique vineyard Bouchard Finlayson, also owned by the Tollman family. The vineyard’s dessert Aurum Straw Reisling is worth the splurge, offered in minimal quantities of only around 100 bottles per year.
Named after the old-fashioned Gaelic name for the assisting attendant on highland hunting or fishing expeditions, Ghillie’s Pantry is stocked with whisky for private tastings with in-house expert Dario, who will fling your taste buds all around Scotland, dram by dram. The $200-plus pour of Laphroaig 20-Year-Old Director’s Special is the most expensive. “It’s one of one, and when it’s gone, it’s gone,” says Dario. The intimate, dimly lit setting can also be used as a private dining room seating 12.
Activities and Amenities
About a month before your stay, the team at 100 Princes Street will get in touch to plan your itinerary, offering a small, curated selection of local experiences. Have a behind-the-scenes look at the Araminta Campbell atelier; go for a gin-making experience at the Kingsbarns Distillery in St Andrews; or commission a personalized scent with Imogen Russon-Taylor, founder and nose of perfumery Kingdom Scotland. The one experience not to miss is the whisky tasting in Ghillie’s Pantry.
There is no gym on-site; however, guests can use the Cave Fit gym within the Edinburgh Grand at a charge of around $30 per day, and personal training sessions can be arranged in Princes Street Gardens for an additional cost. There is no spa on-site, but the team is happy to recommend local spas and allows spa treatments in-room, space permitting.
Family-friendly Offerings
The hotel has activity suggestions for families and children (for example, the hotel teamed up with The Potter Trail to create a unique experience exclusively for their guests). The Wallace also has a children’s menu and wee bathrobes for the bairns in the marble guest bathrooms.
