Lough Rynn Castle Hotel

To not give a positive review of the staff would be absolutely shameful. As beautiful as the Castle is, the experience is topped by the staff which provides for you a very warm welcome.
Daniel — with a friendly smile and a helping hand, we were first greeted by Daniel. He helped with our luggage and gave us a brief yet informative tour as we walked about.
Christopher — we like to call him, «the boss,» without any negative connotation associated to it. He got things done in a flash and always with a happy smile.
Neal — the Irishman turned Jerseyman now Irishman again was quite the friendly server with a wealth of information. A strong mind with a soft heart, Neal shared a few moments with us which will be remembered for a long time.
Sonia — a new addition to the family, Sonia was as friendly as an experienced server. We met her for a very brief moment, but she ended up being the talk of the night… also in a good way.
Gary — effortlessly charming. His service to us was very on point and exceeded all our expectations as he took his time to imprint a pleasant memory to our experience.
Victoria — no cure can stop her infectious smile at the reception desk.
«Is there anything else I can help you with,» is the motto of the staff. The place looks great but the people were amazing.

This was a wonderful place. The room was small but clean and comfortable. There was help to carry your bags in. There was a bar and restaurant. We did eat in the restaurant. At first it didn’t look like it was going to happen. They had a cancellation. For € 80 my wife and I had rib eye, steamed veggies, mashed potatoes, chips, (fries), homemade bread, sorbet to cleanse the pallet, small finger desserts, and a huge pot of coffee or tea. It was wonderful. The service was the best. Breakfast was a huge, full Irish breakfast. You were stuffed when you left. They made sure there was food I could eat with my dietary limitations. There was no shortage. Staying in a castle and eating like a king, it is the way to go!

I stay at the castle 3 or 4 times a year when in nearby Carrick on Shannon.
I’m lucky enough to travel to every continent for work & this is my favorite hotel in the world… and here’s why:
I was delayed in LHR by a couple of hours and Brianna, from reception, called me to make sure that I was on my way. I arrived a little after the kitchen was due to closed — which they kept open for my arrival.
Upon my arrival the staff all called me by my first name and Brianna took my baggage to my room so that I could get dinner.
All throughout my stay everyone called me by my first name & the customer service was exceptional. Zoltan, the manager in the restaurant, checked on me every night to make sure that I was taken care of each evening for dinner.
The ladies were always extremely helpful for breakfast and opened before the advertised 8:00am start so that I could get to work on time.
Both the breakfast & dinner menus are excellent. I eat a Paleo diet and the staff were very accommodating, replacing rice & potatoes with root vegetables on request.
I agree that there is no workout facility so plan on doing Tabata workouts, running or bring your TRX stuff.
There is also very limited wireless (due to the thick stone walls) in the hotel — only available in the bar, reception & the main drawing room. But I think that this is great as it forces you to take time out. I had to have some conference calls on my last visit & the staff got me into one of the meetings rooms, without charge, so that I could have them.
I love this place & when the weather is good the gardens & walk around the grounds are a beautiful complement to the best customer service & grand rooms.
I feel at home and look forward to visiting Lough Rynn Castle every year!

My mediocre rating is more to do with the value for money than the actual service. Lough Rynn Castle AKA that place where Brian O’Driscoll got married is a series of period buildings in a secluded estate which is conventiently not too far off the N4. While it can be lovely to stay in historic buildings there are also downsides. The original castle is not a very large building and so the hotel’s 43 rooms are spread throughout a number of buildings, some of which are connected by corridors and some are not. There is, as yet, no pool, leisure centre or spa in the hotel, so services are limited. That is certainly not reflected in the price which was 175 for a regular room for one night.
The rooms themselves are a lovely mix of old style and modernity, but there are some little things that might get on your wick. Our room was unconnected to the main hotel, which is contrary to what my friend was told when she booked the room. The was an electricity box in our room with elicted quite a loud hum, and our room looked out on the beautiful view of a building site (which will presumably be a pool some day)! The function room was in a modern building which is quite unobtrusive, but is a bit of a walk from the reception and lounge areas at the front of the hotel (although that probably depends on how high your heels are and how much you’ve had to drink/​need to pee!).
Pluses had to be the service, the food and the grounds. All of the serice staff were super friendly and accomodating. We were checking in for a wedding and had come straight from the church. The guy showing us to our room took pity on us in our high heels and drove us the 50 metres in a golf buggy! He even offered to let my friend drive after she expressed as her fervent wish — she chickened out unfortunately! The food is really good and both the dinner and the breakfast were excellent. If you have time take a walk in the beautiful walled gardens and take in the views of the lakes. There’s also a nature trail which I didn’t venture on due to lack of suitable shoes. A lovely place but a bit overpriced.