To say my stay at the Fermain Valley Hotel was an eventful one is an understatement. Prior to our arrival the hotel contacted us to arrange airport pick ups and any other needs we had. We arranged an airport pickup and drop off, plus a drop off at a funeral on the second morning, the purpose of our visit. This all went according to plan, the driver was great, very helpful. We even got a lift into town on the first day as the buses were off due to school drop offs (3-4pm at School time the buses can apparently switch to being school buses without warning, download the bus app for live updates to check), we did manage to get a bus back.
Room 45, in the upper garden building, was spacious, a view of the main road, which wasn't too noisy, the beds were comfortable, and so were the chairs, the tv was a good size, needing two remotes to operate due to the sky tv, didn't watch much tv, but it worked well when we did. There were ample plug sockets in various parts of the room. A reasonable amount of storage space for our short stay.
The breakfast on the first morning was decent, the cooked breakfast was made freshly, the only disappointment was the black pudding was overcooked (literally my only complaint about the whole stay). The second morning saw a power outage across the section of the island, so cooked breakfast was off the menu, we accepted their apologies with the understanding that there really was nothing they could do about it and ate from the selection of cold options instead, there was plenty of choice. Fruits, cereals, breads, pastries, cold meats and cheeses (didn't try the last two options).
I asked for a packet of hot chocolate at reception, they said they'd bring it to my room, when someone arrived ~5 minutes later, they had a full cup of hot chocolate powder on a tray, as a hot chocolate lover this was like a Christmas present to me (knowing it would only go to waste, I bagged it up and took what was left home with me).
We went for a swim in the pool, we picked up our towels and headed down he stairs, the pool is small but you can get some lengths in in it, the changing room was equipped with a shower with shampoo and shower gel and a toilet.
The highlight of the hotel is definitely the Valley, there are many walking routes to follow, one even takes you all the way into the town. This is not a hotel for the lesser mobile, as there are steep hills all around it, you could ask the hotel to take you down to the beach in the minibus, if it's available. Personally, I enjoyed the challenge of walking up and down the hill to the beach.
All the staff were encountered were very friendly and helpful.
The WiFi was good, accessible throughout the hotel, decent speed, obviously the Internet did go down during the power cut, but the hotel was prepared with print outs of everything they needed.
It's the little things that stood out for me, the toiletries, including a razor, toothbrush and paste, flannels (which i did use), slippers, bathrobes, shampoo, shower gel, soap, etc. The puffins on the bed, were a nice touch. The island's airline magazine in the draw, the hotel's magazine on the table. The personal letter explaining everything on the desk. The options of teas and coffees and even milk type in the room, plus the biscuits.
We picked this hotel because it was literally the only option with two available rooms, to attend a funeral of my uncle who lived on the island, at short notice (less than two weeks notice). Thankfully that only option turned out to be not only a very good decision, but just happened to be a favourite spot of my uncle's, which helped give comfort to his widowed wife, bringing back happy memories in a time of sadness. I don't normally say thank you to the hotel staff in my reviews, but they were so brilliant, I have to thank them for everything they did for us during our stay. My family really enjoyed our stay, in difficult circumstances, even the power cut on pur fonal day didn't dampen our feelings of gratitude towards the hotel.