Since purchasing the establishment in December 2006, the whole hotel has been extensively refurbished, one of the major projects being the complete refurbishment of all of our hotel bedrooms and bathrooms. With only six rooms at present (n.b. our Gigha suite is a project in hand) during our first phase of renovation one decision that was quickly made was to do away with a simple room numbering 1,2 and 3 etc. and romanticise the hotel wing with the naming of each room.
So how did we arrive at the names? Each one has a wee story. First of all we looked at all the different isles within the inner and outer Hebrides. We hope we do not offend any residents of such isles, but the likes of 'Eigg' and 'Muck' were soon ruled out as potential room names, so how did we arrive at the names chosen?
Perhaps the easiest to explain. Before coming to Ardfern to live, Scotland was a holiday destination only, but it didn't take long to fall in love with the country. In fact we fell in love with the country so much we were married on the Isle of Skye in May 2004. Given that Skye is our largest suite and used by the bride and groom when having their wedding here and honeymooners alike, it was a simple choice to make.
In October 2000 we spent a week in Scotland dividing our holiday between two islands; Arran and Mull. En route from the Lochranza ferry to Claonaig we made our way up to Oban to catch the ferry to Mull. Time was on our side and so on the way we made several turn offs, exploring an area new to us. We remember coming into Ardfern, driving along the road with stunning views of the Loch and Marina. Soon after we arrived at the hotel and pub. We just stopped, stared for a short while, thought what a nice place it looked and proceeded to turn around and continue on our way to Oban. Little did we realise that six years later we would actually be owning the place ! We had very happy memories of Arran so Arran it had to be.
This was named more to do with someone else than rather about ourselves. Tiree is not an island we have had the pleasure of visiting yet, however in the early days of our renovation we were helped no end by one man in particular from the village. We'll mention no names, but he would know who we are talking about. So it's quite simple, he came from Tiree but has now lived in Ardfern for many years, helped us no end and gave us lots of support in our early days and so this is why Tiree was chosen.
Another island we are yet to visit, but we have come close on so many occasions. Having holidayed on Skye many a time, the temptation to catch the ferry from Uig had been hard to resist. One day we will get there, we hope! For us it has that Scottish island mystique. The Gaelic speaking culture, perhaps without sounding condescending a bit of a throw back or insight in how life used to be in the outer reaches of Scotland over the centuries. Uist to us is a romantic name and somewhere we have to explore when the time is right.
Along with the substantial refurbishment, another one of the first things I did was to establish our whisky list. We now have 50 carefully chosen whiskies, many of which come from the Islay. This you can now see was more of my naming decision that Sarah's. Whisky connoisseurs across the globe will argue between different regions i.e. Islay, Speyside, Lowlands etc. as to who makes the best, but in simple recognition of the sheer number of distilleries on one island (also one of the closest major islands to Ardfern) coupled with the fact that I love Bruichladdich, Islay was a simple choice to make.
And finally we come to Iona. Iona is an enchanting, magical, and very special place and we have been there several times. It's not a big island and most people visit to see the Abbey, but there is something awe inspiring about this place. We're not religious folk, and you don't have to be religious to appreciate this little gem. It's worthy without explanation of being the name of one of our rooms.
And so, one day hopefully sooner rather than later we will be explaining why we chose the name Gigha for our seventh room. But that's a project for the future. And for those of you who decide to experience the relaxed, friendly, but professional ambiance of The Galley of Lorne Inn, how many will spot that in the hotel wing there is also a door with the name 'Barra' on it? Is this another room you may ask. Well yes, but we won't be taking any reservations for it. It's our hotel storeroom !
