The Grand Hotel - Shetland

Alex B.

Stayed in a good room with a great view of the harbour area. Staff are amazingly good and helpful with lots of local knowledge and very happy to share tips about the locality. Breakfasts are particularly good with great portions and well cooked

James W.

Quaint and quirky. Bedroom and bathroom windows did not shut properly and doors to the bathroom and an airing cupboard constantly rattled in the draft.
On the plus side a super friendly and helpful couple of hosts and great company, plus a super comfy bed and a charming old building right in the very centre of the town and close to all the local bus routes.

H2609AJandyp

Lets get the elephant in the room out the way first. Hotels in Shetland and especially Lerwick are crazy expensive at peak times and the Grand is no different. You will pay up to double what you would pay on the mainland, so do your crying when you book. The hotel itself is a beautiful old and iconic building in the heart of Lerwick, on commercial street, with a large free car park at the back. As such the decor is a bit dated but we loved our room, with a comfortable bed and a lovely view over the harbour and to Bressy. The bathroom was clean and functional, though at my age i could do without the full length mirror opposite the shower. The best thing was the staff and the owner, who despite being run off their feet went over and beyond to help us. Thanks to Mickey and Janet for looking after us in the mornings, with friendly service and a breakfast to die for. However I can't thank Mickey and especially Harvey enough for sourcing us tickets for one of the halls for Up Helly Aa. He did this for no profit and it made our stay, for my 60th birthday the most memorable it could be.

Anita H.

This hotel appears to have gone out of business.

No one answers their phone, text or messaging - many calls and messages over several months and various times of day.

I had to change reservations from the 2024 Wool Week to the 2025 Wool Week. I was told that this was done. However, since then I have been unable to confirm the dates. Repeated attempts to contact them are unsuccessful.

I would recommend finding alternative accommodations as this one does not appear to exist.

Ann C.

A room with a lovely view. They are refurbishing. The room had a new bed and heater. We appreciated the large towels and plenty of tea/coffee. Servicing of the room was excellent. We had a mixed experience at breakfast. Chef was friendly and helpful, but portions large and too much toast. The other breakfast staff were not attentive and could not order tea. Some areas of the hotel would benefit from a coat of paint.

Camil B.

The Grand Hotel was a lovely place to stay in Lerwick and I’d definitely recommend it for anyone who is staying in Lerwick. The hotel is right in the middle of town and very close to the bus stops, so it’s easy to access other sights of the city. The staff were SO kind to us and honestly the best part of our stay. We booked 2 twin beds, with a pretty cute view out of our window. The light in our room’s bathroom took a bit to flicker on, and the sink had very little water coming out from the hot side; the shower also had very low water pressure. The beds were relatively comfortable. Breakfast was served from about 6 to 10am, with a lot of options to choose from. The pub in the hotel had a lot of options as well, with reasonably priced drinks, and was nice to sit in. The ambience of the hotel was very retro but in a good way and I liked it a lot. Overall I’d give my stay an 8.5/10 .

Dave B.

Great service and excellent location with free parking. Mickey and Janet were fantastic, very kind, friendly and helpful to all guests offering suggestions of places to visit and things to see and do. The breakfast was brilliant, freshly cooked and great quality. Excellent choice on offer and all cooked to order. The manager Harvey was very helpful. Lots of excellent local shops and cafe’s etc close to the hotel on the street where they were also filming a new episode of Shetland.

B7012IGab

What a dump of a hotel. Dirty, damp and more like a run down hostel with ridiculous prices-£276 for one night! We arrived and two scruffy looking staff in the bar area were having a chat and it felt like their chat was more important than paying customers. The check in consisted of “hold on I’ll go and get my computer”. We waited and finally the woman checking us in was holding a ring binder folder for us to sign. The hotel was probably last decorated in the 1980s. The decor is ripped, paint peeling, smelly, old dirty carpets. Seriously horrible. We were taken to our room and refused to stay: damp on ceiling, ripped wallpaper etc etc. Awful. We were offered a refund but decided to see if we could find somewhere else to stay. Unfortunately for us there were no other options so we had to stay. The woman told us “it may not be to everyone’s taste but this is 130 year old beautiful building and you just can’t see the upgrades we’ve done such as electrics. This is island life and it’s expensive to run. It’s clean and warm.” Judge for yourself if our room looks clean by the photos I’ve taken. It’s a disgrace. Stains on bedding, carpet threadbare, dirty bathroom . I felt sick staying in such a dump. If I was a single female I would have preferred to sleep in my car as I wouldn’t have felt safe. What an awful experience. Shameful and an embarrassment to the Shetland Isles. The shower was dismal, dirty shower head and broken shower dial. Seriously cringe worthy. Breakfast was served by a lovely man called Mickey who cooked us a delicious full Scottish and really looked after us. He deserves 5 stars and good on him for delivery such a good service and breakfast in such a dismal hotel. The dining room is grand but again let down by filthy windows and peeling decor. Well done Mickey and thank-you! I read the other terrible reviews on the hotel last night and they are accurate. The damage caused to tourism is profound when unscrupulous owners think this is any where near acceptable. Mickey deserves the £276 per night for his salary.