Kimpton Charlotte Square

We choose the hotel as it is part of the American Express fine hotels group. One always expects a lovely hotel, but every aspect of the hotel impressed us First, the pre-check in communication from the hotel to us was amazing. Holly and Kristy were so engaging that I knew our stay would be great. When we arrived at the hotel, Laurie and IVO were very welcoming and continued to be so during our stay. The breakfast was fantastic and the staff in the dining room was exceptional as well. The hotel itself is beautifully appointed. Our room, a Garden View King, left us wanting for nothing. After 2.5 weeks in Scotland, the Kimpton was a fantastic way to end our vacation

Hotel is very "cute" but not comfortable. The rooms are "unique" but very old. Beds are terrible. We never slept due to noise issues and most of our outlets didn't work. Food was not good. Two positives - hotel is in a great location and staff is very nice.

Our family really enjoyed the well-located Kimpton. Good staff, particularly Gavin the head concierge, Remi, and Miguel at the front desk. Really nice gym with pool, sauna and steam. Happy hour at 5pm is a nice touch (good thing IHG hasn’t eliminated the fun from the Kimpton brand after 10 years.) A few small negatives — not much variety at breakfast for those staying more than a few days and no omelettes to order, a little noisy in the room. Gavin set up clay pigeon shooting (W. Edinburgh Shooting School) which is highly recommended. Also, many dogs add to the good vibe.

outstanding experience. Great hotel in perfect location to enjoy Edinburgh (very convenient to Fringe, Castle, Military Tattoo, restaurants (plus in-house Baba) and Johnnie Walker experience). Front desk amazing - Ruby and Samantha!! Hotel has fun decor; and the pool and gym were a great treat to unwind from touring.

I’ll list here everything that needs improvement. Not because there’s nothing positive, but because the positives are fairly obvious for a five-star hotel and, at this price point, they’re simply expected. Nothing particularly noteworthy. Instead, I would urge the hotel management to carefully review each of these points. The property has strong potential, but it must be run with a true excellence mindset. Right now, it clearly isn’t. My review may sound especially harsh because we had just come from another five-star stay elsewhere in Scotland. Same price range, but in every measurable dimension, the quality was on a completely different level. Positives Breakfast is excellent: abundant, with attentive service and good quality. Some of the staff (not all) stand out for their kindness. The room size is reasonably generous for a city-center hotel. And the interior design choices are original and interesting. Unfortunately, all of this gets drowned out by the long list of shortcomings. Check-in We arrived at 2:00 pm. Official check-in is 3:00 pm. Fair enough, we didn’t complain and sat at the bar to wait, ordering (and paying for) drinks. In any proper five-star, staff would at least try to prioritize the room. Not here: we got the room at 3:05 pm. To add insult, the bar waiter actually came to kick us out of our table just before 3:00 because the area had to close. Pool With two kids, we booked this hotel because it had a pool. Only on arrival did we learn that from August 1st children are allowed in the pool only three one-hour slots per day, one of which overlaps with breakfast and another with lunch… That’s misleading, to say the least. Even setting that aside, the pool itself is underwhelming: small, poorly lit, not especially clean (see photo of the white foam floating on the surface). No loungers, no proper chairs – just two damp fabric benches against the wall. When I raised the foam issue with the manager, the explanation (“just air bubbles”) was frankly implausible. Steam room & sauna Neither was set up correctly. For example, sauna humidity should stay below 20%, here it was well above 30% (see photo). Both facilities are tiny, with usable floor space barely a couple of square meters. Hygiene is questionable: the steam room drain had paper scraps, hair, and debris. Room In the wardrobe cabinet with cups and tray, there were sticky remnants and dried stains of some unidentified substance, with a rancid smell. Thankfully, we had sanitizing wipes with us. Again, something you’d never expect at this level. Bathroom Far too small for a five-star, especially a family room. No proper shower, only a small bathtub (see photo). Simply not acceptable. To their credit, staff offered us a room swap, but the alternative was so cramped that, with both beds open, you could barely move around. The only “upgrade” was having a shower. At a five-star, you shouldn’t have to choose between decent space and a shower. Wi-Fi Coverage is good, but the line drops literally every 10 minutes. Constantly reconnecting is unacceptable in 2025. Decorative cushions It’s 2025. No upscale hotel should still place old, dirty decorative cushions on freshly made and clean beds. Industry best practice has long moved on from this. It’s the kind of thing you’d expect in a cheap roadside inn, not here. Room chairs Again, for this category and price point, stained upholstery is a complete no-go. Everything should be spotless. See photos. Common areas Throughout the day, cleaning equipment and supplies were left lying around the corridors. Not catastrophic for a two-star. For a four- or five-star, totally unacceptable.