Caledonian Inn

Group of 5 at dinner last Saturday night- very busy. 4 of the meals were sufficient and of good quality, but the barramundi dish was meagre, very thin tail portion of about 100 grams at the most. Waitress invited feedback, so I mentioned the above, & she said she will tell the chef. The waitress didn’t return to report any response from the chef, so when I went to the counter to pay the account in full I enquired about the chefs reply. The same waitress responded with a wry smile that he’ll “make it up next time…” Not good enough, because there won’t be a next time.

We waited several minutes whilst the barman was engrossed in his phone. My husband had to leave the bar and find the entrance to the opposite bar to draw his attention. He was completely unapologetic.

Over all experience was terrible, I don’t think they know what hospitality means, we where advised by trip advisor to return the next day for a refund, we where swore at then told to leave town and never come back, seriously this was not called for.

The Caledonian Inn is an iconic local pub, with a great bar and beer garden offering genuine “country pub” hospitality and ambience (an open fire in the bar on a cold night😊). Last October, I stayed here - in one of the “ye olde” pub bedrooms above the pub; they offer more modern accommodations as well. This was a pleasant experience. The room, although small, had clean and comfortable bedding. The shared bathroom facilities were clean and modern. They have a common room and an outdoor sitting area; during my visit, these were quiet. The hotel is well located in the Main Street, and a short walk from the beach. If you’re staying in Robe, this is a good place to visit, whether to patronize for a drink or for overnight accommodation. During my stay, they recommended I have breakfast at the adjacent Drift Cafe - this was a good recommendation: I had a nice breakfast, including an excellent coffee! Well worth your consideration

Like many visitors to Australia, we were really looking forward to experiencing an iconic road trip along ‘The Great Ocean Road’. We’d planned our last stop (before arriving in Adelaide) to be in Robe, and having checked availability and reviews, decided upon the Caledonian Inn. We did have concerns about previous reviews mentioning the ‘pub noise’ and bathrooms being shared by pub customers, but after calling and speaking with Henry, he sympathised and offered us one of their self contained cottages. He later confirmed the one night booking by email. We’d booked 2 months ahead of the trip, to ensure that everything was in place. A few weeks later we receive a call from Henry. It’s now dawned on ‘the owners’ that we’d booked a single night stay on a Saturday night, which happened to fall on a long weekend. They now had a bit of a dilemma, try and hold on to the little respect and positive reputation that they had and honour the booking, or leave us stranded, and go for the possibility of more money. They didn’t have to think too long. Henry apologised, but our booking was now cancelled. Now closer to our trip, with availability shrinking, it was a case of ‘phoning around’. Hopefully we’ve now found somewhere to stay, but no thanks to ‘the owners’. If you ever decide on a ‘Great Ocean Road’ trip, you’ll know that it’s recommended that you book your overnight stays in sequence and in advance. One hiccup in the sequence, especially if late in the day, can ruin the whole trip. The owners of the Caledonian Inn will be fully aware of this, but clearly, they put profit way above reputation and their customers. Who knows, pub noise and shared bathrooms apart, it may have been a good stopover, so if you’re happy to take the risk of having accommodation cancelled at the last minute, give it a go. I ( obviously) wouldn’t recommend it.