If you are considering a trip to Ireland and need a place to stay, I would highly suggest Ard Ri House in Cashel. We are here for 13 days and are having a great experience. The rooms are en suite (private bath), have plenty of space, and some in-room amenities (e.g., hair dryer … One less thing to pack, electric tea kettle with coffee and tea, etc.)
Cashel is also ‘centrally’ located in the southern part of the country. The other reason that I choose this area is that we were going to have a ‘home base’ and travel. Cashel has a series of motorways (i.e., interstates @ 70mph), national (I.e., US highways @ 62mph) and regional (I.e., state highways @ 48mph, although we think they are a bit wicked at that speed) roads all intersecting south of town. Also … Shannon Airport is 55 miles, Cork is about an hour, Waterford was a little over an hour, etc. It is allowing us to nest in a single place and go from here. Plus, on days like today, we are comfortable with staying ‘in’ to catch up on some sleep and relax before heading out again tomorrow.
Besides the rooms, there is also a nice sitting area … And for those that can’t leave the TV behind, a small one in each room as well as a larger one in the sitting area.
I would be negligent if I didn’t mention the breakfast. There is a breakfast bar each morning with cereals, juices, fruit, stewed rhubarb (my favorite), breads and cheeses.
You can also order a full hot meal, such as the traditional Irish breakfast with egg, sausage, ham, tomato, white and black pudding. We had a baked apple crumble this morning, with warm custard. Absolutely decadent!
Finally,the owners, Eileen and Donal, have been wonderful hosts. They greet you each morning with a smile (followed by that pot of coffee or tea). Eileen sat with us the second night and gave us some ideas of where to go, what to expect and helped answer some driving questions (I.e., what do the yellow grids on the road mean?) We couldn’t have found a better place in all of Ireland.
Location via Google Maps: