The only hotel on the island of Coll has triumphed again in the Scottish Hotel of the Year Awards, winning distinctions for its food and service.
 
Julie Oliphant, who owns and runs the Coll Hotel (www.collhotel.com) with her husband Kevin, won a chef’s real food medaille d’or (gold medal) and the hotel took a hospitality gold medal at a presentation ceremony in Edinburgh.
 
Daughter Laura Oliphant received the awards from Tourism Minister Jim Mather at the event which was attended by some 400 of Scotland’s leading hoteliers and their staff.
 
“These latest accolades highlight two of the reasons why the Coll Hotel is so popular with guests from all over the world,” Julie Oliphant said. “Our food is based on the best local produce and we go out of our way throughout the year to deliver outstanding customer service.”
 
The hotel was voted Scotland’s Islands Hotel of the Year in 2008 and 2009.

An award-winning hotel has come up with the ideal solution for hard-up holidaymakers - free accommodation.

The only snag at the Coll Hotel in the Hebrides is that they have to take and pitch their own tent.
Voted Scottish Islands Hotel of the Year in 2008 and 2009, it is offering free ‘wild’ camping on its land above the coast looking over to the Treshnish Isles, Staffa, Iona and the Mull of Kintyre.
Campers can tuck into hearty meals in the hotel’s restaurant or bar at the foot of the hill, and have packed lunches provided for excursions around the island which is famous for its bird and sea life.
Diners will be offered free showers in the hotel.
Julie Oliphant, who owns and runs the hotel with husband Kevin, said: “Free lodging and the ready availability of award-winning hotel food is a great combination which will attract adventurous people to experience a memorable break amid the island’s stunning scenery.”

Coll is served by regular air and ferry services from Oban
To make a reservation at the Coll Hotel or for more information call 01879-230334 or email info@collhotel.com.

Award-winning Coll Hotel co-owner and chef Julie Oliphant opened up her kitchen to share some of the ingredients of her success when she held an adults' cookery class.

For the first time in the 25 years that she and husband Kevin have owned the island's only hotel, she ran three days of tuition for a group of 12 guests - most from the Glasgow area but two had flown up specially from Hertfordshire. Not surprisingly, some of the lessons focused on how to prepare and serve Coll's splendid seafood.

 "The food was fabulous and to see how it's created and get Julie's recipes made it all the more special," said Sheena and Douglas Patrick from Bridge of Weir who got the group of friends together for a mid-winter break.

"We had a ball on Coll," they added. "It was all so much fun - cooking, walking, eating and drinking! This was a great wee holiday."

The Coll Hotel has been voted Scotland's Islands Hotel of the Year for the past two years in succession and won the 2009 Real Food award for the Highlands and Islands region.

Julie holds regular cookery sessions for children at the island's primary school but this was the first time she had agreed to coach guests. She commented: "It was marvellous to show our visitors the joys of cooking local produce and watching them enjoy the food they themselves had helped prepare."

Scotland’s Islands Hotel of the Year has developed the art of winning awards and praise from critics. Now it’s helping teach art as well.

The Coll Hotel, which won the award in 2008 and 2009 and was also voted best National Hotel Restaurant earlier this year, is offering short break packages including an ‘island painting experience’ with Coll’s resident artist, Kip Poulson.
Art classes cost £30 for half-a-day or £50 a day
Cartridge paper and boards are supplied but artists should bring their preferred materials and brushes. Tuition in most media is provided

A single room with breakfast at the Coll Hotel is from £45 per night with a double or twin room from £80. "These painting experiences are tailored to the wishes of guests, whether as pure recreation, for the beginner or people wanting to brush up on existing skills," said hotel owner Julie Oliphant.
Classes are generally held in the hotel’s gardens overlooking scenic Arinagour Bay or in the artist’s studio.

Coll is reached by scheduled air services or ferries from Oban. For more information or to make a reservation call 01879-230334 or email

An award-winning hotel is offering free shows this Winter - unobstructed stargazing. With no light pollution to affect visibility, the Hebridean islands are some of the best places to watch the stars and planets during the dark Winter months and the Coll Hotel is pushing the boat out for guests who want to admire the Heavens.

The Coll Hotel was voted 2008 Scottish Islands Hotel of the Year. "During the Summer our sky never gets dark. By contrast, long winter evenings provide the perfect opportunity for stargazing," said Julie Oliphant who runs the six-bedroom hotel with husband Kevin. "Coll is many miles away from any street light so there's nothing to cloud the view. On a good Winter's night the sky is so spectacularly filled with stars that it will stop you in your tracks! Guests can catch a meteor shower in the early Winter or see the International Space Station overhead. With Coll's northerly position they may also be lucky enough to see the Northern Lights."

Local astronomy expert Janet Wilson added: "The familiar constellations are there as well as others people may not have been able to admire before. They will recognise Orion, the Plough and Cassiopeia, and in the Winter see the Zodiac constellations from Aquarius to Leo, Sirius low in the South and the Milky Way high in the sky." Astronomy enthuasiasts are recommended to bring binoculars or a telescope. Finding a place to watch the night sky is easy on Coll because the island has low hills from which to observe and no trees or tall buildings to get in the way. The hotel's south-facing garden offers good views of the moon over Arinagour Bay so lunar observation can be done with a hot drink or a dram in hand. Dinner, bed and breakfast at the Coll Hotel during the Winter is from £55 per person per night (based on two sharing). The island is reached by frequent ferry and air services from Oban.