The Caledonian Hilton Edinburgh is an absolutely beautiful hotel. It offers all the luxury of the Hilton brand; yet it still retains the fine personality of the grand dame it has been since it was first built over a hundred years ago in 1903. (It wasn't acquired by Hilton until 2000.) Called "the Caley" by local residents, this hotel is steeped in history. Always opulent it has been the host to both movie stars and dignitaries. I found it interesting to learn that American cowboy Roy Rogers once rode his horse Trigger down the grand staircase! Now that's a trip, isn't it?

What was our room like? It felt like a suite with its own small foyer. The room itself was huge with 14 foot high ceilings and tons of floor space. We opened the heavy green curtains on the windows to take in the view of Edinburgh Castle perched on the hill above us. As the sinking sun turned the sky pink, we opened the bottle of wine the Hilton had left for us on a table as a welcome gift and ate sugar topped oranges. Our son was happy with the roll-away bed that was already prepared for him near a desk in our room. After walking through the freezing cold streets outside, I loved standing under a hot shower. The sound from the television in the bedroom was piped into speakers in the bathroom. There was also a separate tub. Water bottles were waiting for us on the nightstands after turn-down. There's a full service health club plus a pool and jacuzzi open until 8 PM.

How was the location? This is in the heart of where a tourist would want to be in Edinburgh. In the morning we had no problem taking a brisk walk up Princes Street to get to the castle where Mary Queen of Scots gave birth to the first monarch who would rule both Scotland and England. My son loved how close we were to a small festival taking place in the middle of a park as the city geared up for Hogmany. While the restaurant in the hotel is famous, we chose to eat elsewhere. A pub directly across the street from the hotel's main entrance accepted children in the mornings and offered a very nice breakfast. The only time we used a cab was to get from the airport. The train station was even close.

Bottom line? If your budget will withstand some splurging, you'll be very comfortable at the Caledonian. With incredible service in a stunning setting, I'd have to put this five star hotel in my "top five list" for best hotels I've ever personally visited.

The Caledonian (or Caley as the locals call it) is a landmark red sandstone hotel on the west end of Princes Street in Edinburgh's New Town. It is now run by Hilton. Because of its status, and the rumour that Sean Connery likes to stay there when he is in town, we had to give it a try.

Booking the hotel can be done on the Internet, which makes it very convenient. It also gives you the opportunity to compare prices. By paying in advance we were able to get a reasonable, but not cheap, rate. The price was lower than the Scotsman, the Balmoral, the Sheraton Grand, other luxury hotels in Edinburgh.

The exterior of this hotel (built at the beginning of the 20th century) is very grand, reflecting its origins as a Victorian railway hotel.

When you walk into the hotel, you will note that the photos showing previous guests includes one of Sir Sean. When you walk in you will also notice the staff are very attentive and helpful as one would expect from a this type of hotel and from a chain like the Hilton.

Luxury, however, is on a European standard. Our room had two double beds, a desk, table, and sitting chairs. It was not a lot of room for four people. Storage for luggage and clothes was available in two large armoire like cupboards. The bathroom was roomy and scrupulously clean but like so many hotel bathrooms did not have a lot of counter or shelf space. Extras included terry bathrobes and slippers and shortbreads with the tea, coffee, and hot chocolate.

The Caley is an old building so there were creaks and the heated towel rack never got warm. On the other hand, we were at the end of a long, long hallway on the top floor and the room was very quiet.

The best thing about our room was the view out the windows which looked out to Edinburgh Castle and over the Princes Street Gardens.

The hotel has a number of restaurants, bars and places to eat. Breakfast was not included. We tried the Chisholm restaurant where continental or Scottish breakfast was offered. The Scottish breakfast was the biggest buffet I've ever seen with the usual choices of sausages, eggs, toast, cereals but also pancakes, waffles, sparking wine and juice, and even whisky for your porridge.