Fia Lodge is the absolute perfect place for the peace and tranquility that we were craving. We arrived much later than expected and did a self check in which was very easy, Catherine always responded quickly to the few queries we had. Catherine had stocked up on some basics for the morning but also lot's of goodies and had prepared the fire for us, it was so welcome as we arrived in the dark and rain. The house is just beautiful with the most amazing views, there was plenty of towels for us and the bed linen felt luxurious as did the mattresses, I've not slept so well in ages. The living space was perfect and so comfortable. We really did feel at home.
The views are spectacular and we literally spent our time there watching the clouds and colours of the mountains change. The huge windows make it wonderful. I've never taken so many photo's of one view.. The surroundings and nature are a pure joy. There was a hare that skipped through the garden most days.
We went out most days, it's a great location for really exploring Kerry and had most evenings at 'home' cooking there. The kitchen facilities are home from home and the dishwasher was well used :) I used some of Catherines cook books, there are some lovely traditional Irish recipes in there, we cooked a lovely crab dish.
The nearest grocery shop is Glenbeigh, it's a Centra located at a garage and the front is deceiving as you think it's going to be like a convenience store but it's actually big inside and very well stocked with everything. Killorglin is also great for lovely independent shops and the smoked fishery, salmon was amazing. We planned our days out, did a big shop the day after we arrived then just added fresh local produce as we went about our days. Killarney has a fantastic fish monger with live local fresh crab and lobster. I went out walking most mornings whilst my man had much needed sleep, I loved it. The local walk down to the river then turn left and walk up through the woods back towards the house is beautiful, once you reach the top you can see for miles to some of the lakes (take a camera). The walk through the Reeks (we parked at Cronin's yard) was wonderful, we had all 4 seasons in one day including hail but mostly sunshine.
All in all it was a fantastic holiday made perfect by Fia Lodge and Catherine.