Cubbon House

Cubbon House is number 48 in the terrace facing the water along Loch Promenade, and Paul and Lisa Russett have been running it for over a decade. It is a plain, well-kept seaside guest house of a kind that is getting rare.

The rooms sit on the upper floors and are reached by stairs, and parking on this stretch is on the street. What matters on arrival is which side your room faces, because the front ones look straight over the promenade railings to the water.

Blue carpet and the welcome tray

Inside it is cream walls, dark blue patterned carpet and pine furniture, kept spotless. Each room has a tray with a kettle, mugs, tea and coffee sachets, biscuits and bottled water, plus a small refrigerator, a radio, an alarm clock and a flat-screen television on a bracket. There is a wardrobe, a clothes rack and a luggage stand, with towels and toiletries put out in the bathroom.

Twins, doubles, and the rooms on the front

Bedrooms come as twins and doubles, several of them with sea views, and each has its own bathroom with a bath or a shower. One front room has a cushioned window seat built into the sill, the best place in the house to sit with a coffee. Curtains are heavy and cream, headboards padded, and the beds are made up in white with a grey runner.

Watching the boat come in

From the front windows you can see the Steam Packet vessel come alongside the pier, and the whole sweep of the bay with the town climbing the far side. The beach is across the road, and the rest of Douglas is a walk along the front or a turn into the streets behind.

Who stays at number 48

Couples and friends who want a comfortable bed on the seafront and expect to be out all day, and anyone crossing on the boat who wants to land and settle. Ask for a room at the front if the view is the point.