Oh my goodness, where to begin on how absolutely magical this experience was? The building is fantastic and so are the hosts. If anything, this listing is doesn’t give you ENOUGH of an idea of how incredible the castle is. Just magnificent. There is a binder in the dining room with a history of the castle and renovation information. I HIGHLY recommend you read it or at least the info about each room and the gems within. We read it cover to cover and learned so much. The entire place was renovated using period-accurate techniques. Even the wood to rebuild some parts is salvaged from 200-year old buildings. All the stained glass is done by hand and hand leaded in Europe, some of it very old. You can tell the renovation was done with an attention to detail usually left to places you can’t actually stay in but can only observe. I mean, the craftsmanship is phenomenal. Going up on the battlements at sunrise is a real treat and worth the early wake up. It is so serene.
This place is like if Blarney Castle was fully renovated. Going to Blarney after this was like seeing the larger skeleton of Grantstown.
Besides electricity and running water of course, the one other major modern upgrade is HEATED FLOORS. No damp or cold feeling in this castle at all. And additionally all the beds have heated mattress covers.
My recommendation for luggage: unless you are in one of the first two bedrooms, keep your suitcase on the ground floor unless you have a small carry on size one. Getting anything bigger up all those spiral stairs is difficult.
Just absolutely incredible. The highlight of the 9 places we stayed in Ireland. Our only regret is we were only there one day. Don’t make the same mistake we did and definitely book more than one night. You won’t regret it. We were all devastated to leave and hope to be back.