Co Laois's Ballyfin is not only the top Irish hotel in this year's Condé Nast Traveller Readers' Choice Awards but it also nabbed the 13th spot in the Top 50 list.
From wine country hotels with enormous chandeliers and mountain views to an enormous Indian royal palace, the hotels ranked in this year’s Condé Nast Traveller Readers’ Choice Awards are as diverse as they are breathtaking.
Ireland, of course, has its fair share of incredible hotels and we were all very excited when Condé Nast Traveller released details of the top 10 Irish hotels earlier this year.
Top of the list, and in 13th position in the world, is Co Laois’s Ballyfin, the stunning 20-room Georgian home with 614 acres of secluded private gardens.
Though it has fallen compared to last year’s ranking, when it was voted best hotel in the world by readers, the magazine says that if you’ve ever dreamed of summering at a country house: "you couldn’t do much better."
Ballyfin’s top-of-the-line Sir Christopher Coote Suite will set you back €1,360 a night (including breakfast) on the weekends, but you can grab a single room for just €380 in the middle of the week.
The Lodge at Ashford Castle in Co Mayo, known for its stunning views of Lough Corrib, comes in at number 2, while Donegal’s Lough Eske Castle, with its award-winning spa and 157-year-old grandeur, takes the third spot.
While Waterford Castle and the Killarney Park Hotel feature in fifth and sixth place, the Shelbourne on Dublin’s Stephen’s Green nabbed the fourth spot
We’re excited to announce that we have been voted No. 2 in the Top 10 Hotels in Ireland by Condé Nast Traveler! https://t.co/JYhAAHPd5I
— The Lodge at Ashford (@TheLodgeAshford) October 19, 2017
Another four Dublin hotels made the top ten, with the Merrion, Clontarf Castle Hotel, the Westbury and the Intercontinental (formerly the Four Seasons) in Ballsbridge taking the final four spots.
Readers also voted Dublin as the 39th-best city in the world, with the magazine pointing to the capital’s "medieval buildings, live music, stately churches, and of course, Guinness."
Here’s the full list of the magazine’s top 10 Irish hotels:
- Ballyfin, Co. Laois
- The Lodge at Ashford Castle, Co. Mayo
- Lough Eske Castle, Donegal
- The Shelbourne, Dublin
- Waterford Castle, Co. Waterford
- The Killarney Park Hotel, Co. Kerry
- The Merrion, Dublin
- Clontarf Castle Hotel, Dublin
- The Westbury, Dublin
- The InterContinental (formerly the Four Seasons), Dublin
Top of the worldwide list, which was decided by 300,000 readers across the world, is La Réserve Paris, an opulent 40-room hotel just a stone’s throw from the Champs-Élysées.
We are delighted to announce we have been voted No. 3 in the Top Hotels in Ireland by Condé Nast Traveler Reader Choice Awards!@CNTraveler pic.twitter.com/dNVckic0wD
— Lough Eske Castle (@SolisLoughEske) October 17, 2017
Conrgatulations @BallyfinDemesne @theshelbourne @WestburyDublin @TheLodgeAshford @MerrionHotel @ClontarfCastle @InterConHotels https://t.co/9eewfF9IrS
— Waterford Castle (@WaterfordCastle) October 18, 2017
