National media such as the BBC, the Scotsman and the Heraldscotland report about the Machrie Hotel and Golf Links going into administration. The Machrie Hotel on Islay is currently closed with 15 of the 18 employees having been made redundant, the Golf Links are open. Three members of the remaining staff are looking after the running affairs and maintenance of the Golf Links. Blair Nimmo and Tony Friar of KPMG have been appointed joint administrators of Machrie Hotel & Golf Links Ltd. According to an article in the Heraldscotland however there is hope too and that is what I want to share with you:

Blair Nimmo said yesterday: “Both the hotel and golf course have excellent reputations and are regarded as destination venues for visitors to Islay. Despite this, Machrie Hotel & Golf Links has unfortunately, like many other companies in the tourism and hospitality sector, been impacted from tightening consumer spending and troubled economic conditions. "Taking Islay’s prominence as a tourist hot spot into account with its high number of whisky distilleries and other attractions, we are optimistic a buyer will be found for this quite excellent facility."

Islay councillor Robin Currie said: "It is a huge blow to Islay, and not just for the tourists. It must be the biggest hotel on the island and locals use it for so many of their functions. So we are all hoping that a new buyer can be found before the tourist season begins. It relies on golfing packages and there probably just wasn’t the money about." He said Islay had also suffered last summer from CalMac withdrawing Islay’s second vessel to cover for a breakdown elsewhere in the network. "Islay certainly can’t do without the Machrie and the accommodation it offers," he said.

Tag: machrie tourism golf