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Hotel Class: 
5 Stars - 2 Reviews and 552 Opinions
Cong, Western Ireland, Ireland
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Mooise
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If you can afford it Ashford castle is well worth a visit. Fantastic food and charming staff and not to mention the spectacular setting. This is the perfect place to stay if you want to explore connemara(Cong is often known as the gateway to Connemara) and is still only a half hour away from Galway city. The hotel itself is beautiful. Be prepared for bats at some times of the year!
The hotel is located in the village of Cong. the village has gone into somewhat of a decline in recent years with the addtion of a flourescent wimpy burger among others! However if you take time to explore you will discover how beautiful it is. Go for a walk by the chalet(lake beach) down to the pigeon hole(caves) or just wander arounf the gardens of Ashford(theres a charge ...but try going in the back gate or approaching for m the abbey and you should find a way in for free!)
Unique Quality: The Castle has 2 restaurants, one a la carte and one table d'hote. There is a gym(but no pool) ,beauty rooms and a gift shop. Also well worth a visit is the school of Falconry,the only one of its kind in Ireland...very nice people working there.
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This really is five star luxury. James Bond actor Brosnan hired the whole place out for his wedding !
The Castle setting is very impressive with the lake behind and a 9-hole golf course in front.
One one of the holes Gary Player made it in two shots - and when you look at the severe dog-leg you realise quite what an achievemnent it was.
Just look at the website to see the quality of the place. If you ask, and you are a resident, they will also give you a tour of the place including the most expensive suite (wow!)
Unique Quality: Very relaxing location nice walking and sports including Salmon fishing right in front of the hotel.
Ashford Castle
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Ashford Castle was started in the 13th century and has had several additions over the years. Benjamin Guinness (grandson of Arthur Guinness of stout fame) owned it in the 1850s and did much to to turn the grounds into a garden. Ashford Castle is now a luxury hotel. They don't let tourists in to wander about, but the website below gives you a tour.
This trip lasts about an hour and a half. If I recall correctly there are two or three sailings daily, during the summer season. I can't remember the exact cost but I don't think it was expensive.
The trip provides a unique view of Ashford Castle from Loch Corrib. The boat then takes you to an island where you can see the ruins of two of the oldest churches in Ireland . There is also the grave and headstone of St Patrick's nephew.
The boat is large enough to walk around and has a bar. The Captain and crew are helpful and very knowledgable of the history.
We adored the Ashford Castle. We went there on our honeymoon and it was our favorite place in Ireland. We ate in the formal dining room and the dinner was delicious.....but so stuffy! Very quiet. The decor is amazing, views are spectacular. Drinks at the Dungeon Bar are a must. We went falconing at the falconry with James and that was the coolest thing we did the entire trip. We will be back!
We recently spent two nights at Ashford Castle as part of a 12 day tour of Ireland. While the grounds, staff, service and food were outstanding, we were disappointed in our room. This was also echoed by the two other couples with us. Our room was smaller than the other castle and hotels we stayed in, and the furnishing looked very tired. The bedspread was very worn, and the furniture was not of the same standards as the other hotels. We were also disappointed that were was not an iron in our room and the window screens were torn. We did not receive the amenities that we received at the other 5-star hotels we stayed in.
We stayed at Ashford Castle one night during our eight day driving tour of the west of Ireland. It is an amazing and beautiful place situated on the shores of Lough Corrib.Our room was a lake view standard room, which was extremely spacious with a very comfortable king bed and large bathroom with separate spa tub and shower. We did not eat in the restaurant because of the coat and tie requirement , but we did have a meal in our room which was excellent. The boat trip from the castle of Lake Corrib and Inchagoill Island ( given by Patrick Luskin ) was great fun and very informative. For "The Quiet Man" fans the castle and the nearby village of Cong is Mecca, for it was filmed here in 1951.
I booked this hotel for myself and a friend during a week-long vacation through Ireland. We wanted a day of pampering during our driving tour of the country. Ashford certainly provided! Upon a personalized check-in, we were taken to our room. I had requested two beds, and the room we were shown only had one. We were promptly moved to a different room -- this one was twice the size of the first, and the view was three times better! Try to get a room facing the lake for the best views, otherwise you may overlook the parking lot. The staff was wonderful and never acted pretentious or uppity. Dinner and breakfast were delicious in the main dining room. The beds were heavenly and turn-down service included great little chocolates. Even better, the freebies in the bathroom were all Moulton Brown! Our day spa appointments were fabulous...I had the best facial ever! Seriously. Though this place is expensive, it is more than worth it for as long as you can afford to stay...there is golf, horseback riding, falconry, boat trips, shopping, hikes, plenty to keep you interested for more than just a day or two in the country.
Great location to see the most beautiful part of Ireland. Staff very friendly, greeted us by name upon entering. Great restaurant service and reasonable prices. Beautiful hotel, worth spending time in. Will definitely return.
A view of Ashford castle after leaving the jetty.
The boat takes you out to a small island, at one time St Patrick lived here. There is a small derelict church and an ancient graveyard
The boat - big enough to walk around inside.
The island is quite overgrown, although there are paths and the crew were very good at handling wheelchairs.
St Patrick's chuch
The grave stone is said to be of St Patrick's navigator, who was also his nephew.
Ashford Castle
Ashford Castle
Ashford Castle
Ashford Castle from the ferry
Hi!
I'm planning a trip to Ireland and England, and while in Ireland we wanted to go to Ashford castle and spend a night or two there. Is it feasable to drive there from Dublin? How long would that drive be?
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!!
Ashford castle is in the town of CONG, that is north of the city of Gaylway and driving there from Dublin might take about half a day.
Yes, it is feasable to drive from Dublin, it will take about three hours. The route will take you on a good direct road to Galway, then you turn north on the outskirts following signs for Cong, as suggested by previous poster. For route check www.aaireland.com and click on route planning, putting in Dublin as your start point and Cong as your destination. Enjoy your trip, AM
You do realize you will be driving on a different side of the road to US. Depends where you are hiring the car but Dublin is a very busy city particularly at peak hour.
Thanks a lot!!! I wasn't sure if the driving took too long so that the drive would not be worth staying only 1 night....
And yes, I realize we'll be driving on the left...thanks for the reminder!
Well why dont you stay overnight. Galway is very nice and 6 hours driving does not give you a lot of time to enjoy the day.
I think it would be well worth staying a night.
Although a 3 hour drive may not sound too long in terms of distances in other countries, driving in the UK and Ireland can be very tiring: one has to be so much more alert because many roads are not straight and there is much traffic (and potential traffic congestion, especially in and around Dublin).
There is much lovely scenery around this area too, so giving yourself time to enjoy it is well worth doing (and maybe popping into Galway for a wander on the way there or back?).
these 3 hours sound very short to me anyway, but maybe the roads had been improoved since my last time there.
In any case : From Cong you should drive to Clifden and follow the coastroad to Galway from there: Thats the Connemara, some of the most beautiful landscapes in Ireland.Also from Clifden to Westport is a great excursion with a wonderful landscape !
Michael, there is a new Dublin>Athlone motorway section now (and it will eventually be longer, I think). Only the first section was completed when I visited, but even then it only me took 3.5 hours or so from ferry to Galway.
Since the new section of the Dublin/Galway route opened in Dec 2009, cutting out bottlenecks like Loughrea the drivetime from city to city is officially 2 hours 15 min!
Very relaxing location nice walking and sports including Salmon fishing right in front of the hotel.
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Address: Cong, Western Ireland, Ireland
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