A Tale of Two Castles

As part of our travel package for our trip in Ireland, part of our lodging included stays at not one, but two different castles. Now when you think of castles, the first thing that usually comes to mind are those huge hulking fortresses out of the Dark Ages. Well, apparently castles come in all shapes and sizes and the ones we did stay at did come close to those. However, there are a number smaller castles throughout Ireland; and if I had to put them into modern context, they would be equivalent to what we would consider mansions. They all are considered castles though and like I said, we stayed at two of them.

As I mentioned in our previous post, on our first day/night in Ireland we stayed at the wonderfully homey Cabra Castle. Even though we only stayed there one night, it was by far our favorite of the two castles. While you can read about the long and detailed history of the castle on their website, the current incarnation is the second Cabra Castle and was constructed in the early 1800s and was restored, renovated, and converted into a hotel in 1964. 

Cabra Castle

I guess what it comes down to is just the personality and character of the castle and the people that run it--that’s what really made our stay here exceptional. Literally the first thing you notice when you check in is Oscar, this large Irish Wolfhound that is owned by the family that owns the hotel. Then you have the decor and the layout of the castle itself; its everything you would expect a castle mansion to be like. The castle workers/employees were also very personable and were easy to talk to. Oh, and then there was the food, simply amazing. 

Steak with onion rings.

Incredibly yummy Sticky Toffee.

All of these things combined just made our stay at Cabra such a wonderful experience.

After our lone day, night, and morning at Cabra; our next lodging was at Kilronan Caslte for the next two nights. And man, what a difference between the two. 

Kilronan Castle.

Whereas Cabra was homey and comfortable; Kilronan felt a little stuffy and fake. Now don’t get me wrong, Kilronan Castle is not a dump--far from it in fact. Of the two it’s actually more modern as the castle’s restoration and conversion into a hotel began in 2006. And this is where I think part of why we weren’t as hot on Kilronan as we were with Cabra . . . Kilronan felt corporate with staff dressed in suits and business wear with the decor screaming “hotel” more than “castle.” 

While the personality of Kilronan was different, we did have a few amenities that we didn’t have at Cabra; chiefly amoung them being Internet access. Kilronan also boasted a slightly better menu selection for meals and comfier bed, but what they gave us in selection; Cabra had them beat in quality of food and character. Also, as with any high end hotel and restaurant, we always felt the need to whisper while we were eating our meals at Kilronan.

Steak filet with potato cake.

Miniature dessert selection (L-R): strawberry cheesecake, chocolate mousse, cream puff, ice cream.

Overall though, our stay at each castle had its pros and cons and neither was a bad experience. Like I mention in the beginning though it was the personality, character, and warmth of Cabra that we liked, and that won us over.

The day we left, Oscar came outside to wish us goodbye.