“What a disappointment! A huge let-down.”
Our party of four were so looking forward to our holiday in Connemara, never having been to the area. Whilst Connemara as an area was beautiful and as interesting as they all said in the guidebooks etc. our experience in this hotel put a dampener on everything. From the very first moment, it was clear there was something wrong with the hotel. It looked very run-down, nothing like what it said on the Internet guide, and it was very cold. It seemed that the central heating had broken down, but even after it was supposedly repaired, the supply of hot water and central heating was very hit-and-miss, and we (the guests) had to keep the log fire in the lounge topped up all the time.
The Bar was closed (supposedly due to not having a licence) so we had to bring in our own drinks, and no evening meals were available despite what was said in their adverts so we had to go out every night to eat. The leisure facilities were also shut down and unavailable, supposedly because it was out of season (in mid-May? Oh come on!).
In the past (up to 2008), it appears to have been awarded certificates for exceptional service and provision of facilities but sadly, it has been allowed to be rundown (possibly due to taking a hit in the severe Irish recession?
Just about the only good feature of this hotel were the excellent and substantial breakfasts!