Boutique hotels with plenty of character are my favourite type of hotels to stay in, and I much prefer this type of accommodation for any trip I go on to mainstream chains, or bog standard basic. For our recent trip to Glasgow, with PEOPLEMAKEGLASGOW, they arranged for us to stay in Cathedral House Hotel, and it very much fit the bill for somewhere quirky and different while retaining that element of luxury style.

Disclaimer: We received a complimentary one night stay at Cathedral House Hotel, with breakfast and lunch on arrival included.

Cathedral House Hotel is a Glasgow landmark, dating back to 1896. It has been renovated into an 8 unique bedroom Boutique Inn, with a bar and restaurant, and a Drawing Room event space.

Cathedral House Hotel – Location

Being such a traditional Scottish landmark, it’s no surprise that Cathedral House is located in the most historical part of Glasgow, and as the name suggests, right by Glasgow Cathedral and the adjacent Necropolis. Both of these are just across the road, and should be one of the first things you do, as they’re literally on your doorstep.

The Strathclyde University and Glasgow college are both nearby, and you’ll pass them as you walk into the city centre. It’s a short, easy, ten minute walk into the city centre, and as you pass the University you’ll get a glimpse of some of the famous city street art on it’s walls.

So the city centre, and Merchant City are both within walking distance, making it a great place to stay for everything you’d wish to see and do during a weekend break. We did get taxis to and from the station however, as with luggage it would probably take a bit longer, and it’s just a short taxi ride.

Cathedral House Hotel Welcome

Being family run, the welcome at Cathedral House is similar to one you’d get staying with friends. Reception is by the bar and restaurant area, where they will check you in, and offer you a drink or bite to eat if your room isnt ready. Shane and Laura have many years experience in hospitality, and having previously run their own B&B, they took on the project to renovate Cathedral House in 2018.

It’s now been open almost a year, and they’ve done it up beautifully retaining the old style with contemporary decor and detail. All the staff were lovely, and would chat away about the local area, things to do and are happy to give directions or suggestions if you need them.

When we went up to our room, our luggage was waiting for us. It’s worth noting that being such an old traditional building, access to the eight upstairs rooms is by a spiral staircase, with no lift.

8 Unique Rooms

There are 8 different rooms in Cathedral House, each decorated to give a modern, grand, yet cosy feel to them. They come in various sizes depending on the one you book – Grand, Classic, Cosy and Loft. Ours was on the top floor, and was beautiful, with views over Glasgow, the Cathedral and the Necropolis.

There were all the usual amenities, including spacious wardrobe, dressing table, hairdryer, coffee making facilities, tv, free wifi, a gorgeous big tub and a monsoon shower. I especially loved the bathroom and dressing table, with the simple flower details giving it a really homely touch.

We had so much space, which was great when we were rushing about getting ready in the evening, and what I always look for – plenty of plug points and a full length mirror in the wardrobe.

I’m sure it wasn’t just all the wine and cocktails I had at dinner, but I had a really comfy sound sleep that night. You can’t hear a thing it’s so peaceful, and we woke up to the sun shining in Glasgow for our second day of seeing the city.

Cathedral House Hotel Restaurant

I don’t know anyone who isn’t a fan of hotel breakfasts, and this one was a little bit different, but really nice. Rather than a buffet, it’s a lot more personal. The perks of being family run! The main bar and restaurant area downstairs is used for breakfast, as well as lunch, evening dinner and just for drinks for both hotel guests and visitors.

Going down for breakfast we were met with a prepared tray of a choice of pastries – croissants and pan au chocolats, which was brought to our table with the offer of coffee, tea and orange juice. This was followed by a big fruit bowl with yoghurt, and a continental style cheese and ham plate too.

It was really nice to have it all brought to you rather than going up and down at a buffet, and was just that little bit different which is the sort of thing you notice about places like this. It all tasted great too.

We also ate in the restaurant for lunch on the day we arrived, a menu that was traditionally Scottish, and typically pub style meals. We shared the homemade pate to start which came with warm toast and caramelised onion, and I had the burger while Kieran had sausage and mash.

The food was great, and the bar/restuarant area is gorgeous I love the black and white tiles and little fairy lights.

On our last day when we came back to pick up our luggage mid – late afternoon, the bar was full of people having a drink too. It had a lovely atmosphere and I’d very much have liked to stay for a bit and join them if it wasn’t for our trains.

Overall we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Cathedral House Hotel, and I’d certainly choose it over traditional chain hotels. It was lovely to stay in the oldest part of the city, despite being just a 5-10 minute walk from the centre, as it meant we could see the Cathedral and Necropolis easily.

We had no issue getting Ubers when it was raining, the rooms were spotless and luxurious, and the staff were so friendly it’s probably the main thing I took away.

For more information on Cathedral House Hotel and to book visit their website.

Disclaimer: We received a complimentary stay at Cathedral House Hotel as part of our weekend in Glasgow with PEOPLEMAKEGLASGOW. I wasn’t asked to write a blog post specifically on the hotel, but I thought it was too good (and beautiful!) not to.