Fort Charlotte Guest House

Up Helly Aa was a bucket list trip for me and my friend. Our stay at Fort Charlotte Guest House was perfect. It was a great location within walking distance to restaurants, bars and shops and all of the festivities for the fire festival. Ryan, one of the owners, was great at answering all of my questions prior to our trip. He obtained tickets for us to attend a Hall party. We had so much fun! Staff were warm and welcoming, making us feel right at home. A special mention to Kelly. She was just lovely. Breakfast was delicious. The rooms were nicely decorated and cozy. My only regret was that I didn’t book longer. I will definitely be back.

Ryan Anita Kelly and Linda made us feel part of the family for up Helly Aa week. The guesthouse is beautifully furnished, clean, warm and right in the centre of town. Having said that, even for up Helly Aa week, it's not noisy at all. We had room 2, overlooking the main street. The bed was very comfortable and we both slept well. Plenty of tea and coffee with fresh milk not little plastic cartons which was nice for us tea drinkers 😉. There is a 'mucky towel' for cleaning boots or luggage wheels which was a good idea to keep the carpets clean. Bathroom had everything you need and was modern and spotlessly clean. Breakfast, pre ordered the night before was freshly cooked and served by Kelly, who was always smiling and always had a great story to tell you. She knows the islands well and always gives good advice on a little cafe or somewhere to go. Parking is very easy and close by, with no traffic wardens so no worries about tickets. The owners live off site so the guests have the place to themselves but they are always contactable and respond quickly. Overall we can't fault this guesthouse, it's probably the nicest place we have stayed.

Fort Charlotte Guest House is excellent: location, quality of accommodation and service. Ryan understands that his job is to meet the needs and wants of his guests. And if you should be fortunate enough to be served breakfast by Kelly, you have won in the lottery of Life!

This bed and breakfast was simply outstanding. The room was of a very high standard having been refurbished recently. I would say it is as good as, or better, than any 4 Star hotel. Modern fittings, nice bed and lovely sheets. The digital shower was a new experience and I now know I like my shower to be 39 deg C! The breakfast was exemplary. Ryan and Kellie were excellent hosts and made us feel most welcome.

My wife and I live in the North Isles of Shetland, on Yell, and visit Lerwick regularly, mainly for shopping. It is years since we have stayed in Lerwick but, due to my wife having to go into hospital for an operation, we had to stay, in order to be certain of getting into hospital at the appointed time. In fact, we had to leave two days early because of horrendous snow conditions and forecast gales, which would impact the inter-island ferry service. We own a tourism-related business in Yell, and have heard all the horror stories of staying in Lerwick hotels, so did some research and discovered Fort Charlotte, which several of our favourite tour guides had recommended. We are so glad that we did. We did not know whether we would be there for two nights or four nights, but Ryan, the owner, was amazingly sympathetic and flexible. He called on two occasions, to find out how the operation went. We ended up staying two nights together, with me staying for one night by myself, while my wife was in hospital. I ended up confirming a fourth night, which I then had to immediately cancel because the hospital had decided to discharge my wife earlier than expected. Ryan had already processed the payment, but promised to refund immediately. You don't find that sort of customer service attitude in hotel groups. Fort Charlotte is perfectly located, on the corner of the main street, and is less than 100 yards walk from the three best restaurants in Shetland. We had Room 2, The Suite, which is on the first floor, with great views along Commercial Street. It had an excellent king bed, with very soothing bed linen. It had two comfortable arm chairs and was immaculately clean, as was the good-size bathroom. Kellie, the housekeeper, was also incredibly helpful. We did not have the opportunity to sample breakfast, but have heard very good reports. We were so impressed by Fort Charlotte that we promised one another we would book in regularly, and have romantic dinners in Lerwick. Very highly recommended.

It was a very pleasant surprise to find accommodation where we felt comfortable, as if we were in our own home. Everything was well designed to make us feel part of Lerwick! The soft beds and well-designed wardrobes provided an excellent environment to recharge your batteries and explore the charms of the Shetland Islands.