Matt Strefford cooks for the guests in Moy House (see photo and review on blog), so the only way to be absolutely certain of getting a table is to book a room, though if guests are eating elsewhere then non-residents can be accommodated.
There are many other distinguished destinations in Ireland where, in order to ensure that you get to stay when you want to, you need to be booked well in advance. Planning that 2018 trip? The time to make reservations is: Now!
Breac House
Our editor Elizabeth Field, on a speedily-planned tour of County Donegal, unfortunately received the response from Breac House which will become familiar to many hopeful travellers:
“Our apologies, but the house is fully booked on that date.”
Catherine and Niall have created something special up on Horn Head, in the farthest northerly part of County Donegal. The house is a peach in every way – setting; design; architecture; furnishings – and everything pays tribute to the magical creativity of the place and the people who live here.
breac.house
Inis Meain Suites
By mid-September of this year, Ruari and Marie-Therese’s Inis Meain suites were already 80% booked for 2018, and 50% of those guests are returning visitors. So, the window of opportunity to get a suite and enjoy dinner at this magical destination is narrow: don’t delay.
inismeain.com
Castlewood House, Dingle
Here’s a great story about Castlewood: the telephone rings, and a voice asks if Daisy Ridley, star of Star Wars, which is about to shoot on the Dingle peninsula, could be accommodated in Brian and Helen Heaton’s house at the Wood, just outside the town.
The answer, of course, is predictable: “We’re sorry to let Daisy down, but we’re full.”
So, don’t be A Complete Daisy: if you want to stay in this sparkling house, and enjoy one of the finest breakfasts on the planet, book well in advance, especially if you want to stay during the Dingle Food Festival.
castlewooddingle.com
Kelly’s Resort Hotel
It sounds like a rural myth, but it’s true. We stayed at Kelly’s Resort Hotel, in Rosslare, County Wexford, a few years back, in the middle of a sunny July. At the time, their occupancy level was at 99.7%.
99.7%
It didn’t surprise us, at all. Many years before, we had got chatting to a 16-year-old who had travelled down the east coast from Belfast.
“First time at Kelly’s?” we asked.
“It’s actually my 16th time” he replied.
That’s what we call repeat business, and it’s why you need to book Kelly’s Resort Hotel a year in advance.
kellys.ie
The Tannery Townhouse
2017 has been the year of the Waterford Greenway and, for many people cycling the Greenway, their overnight destination is a room at the Tannery Townhouse (and dinner in The Tannery, of course). This means that it can be very, very difficult to get a room, unless you book well in advance.
All your fellow guests at breakfast will be wearing lycra.
tannery.ie
