Ireland offers a myriad of luxury experiences to suit discerning travellers and the choice is ever widening.
Travellers to Belfast can now stay in the recently opened Titanic Hotel, located in the former headquarters of Harland & Wolff, builders of the most famous ship in the world.
The boutique hotel, overlooking the city’s Titanic Quarter, location of the multi-award-winning Titanic Belfast attraction, is an architecturally spectacular and historically important building featuring exquisitely designed and furnished rooms which reflect the legacy of Harland & Wolff’s innovative craftsmanship.
In County Limerick, the fabulous Adare Manor, long a favourite of luxury lovers, has recently undergone major restoration and expansion to enhance its 19th-century Neo-Gothic splendour while incorporating the latest in contemporary technology.
With a new 42-bedroom wing and sumptuous ballroom, redesigned golf course and 842 acres of beautiful parkland, walled gardens and walking trails, the manor is the perfect marriage of grand scale and exquisite detail. Besides sumptuous accommodation it offers an extensive range of pursuits including falconry, archery, clay pigeon shooting, fishing, state-of-the-art spa and cinema.
With the new Crom Castle Experience in County Fermanagh there is the chance to rub shoulders with aristocracy. John Crichton, the 7th Earl of Erne and Baron of Fermanagh is offering his ancestral home to guests wishing to vacation with him.
Nineteenth-century Crom Castle sits in 1,900 acres of beautiful parkland overlooking Lough Erne. As well as elegant accommodation and fine dining, guests can enjoy walks on the estate, boat rides and a tour of the house, all in the company of his lordship.
A different kind of luxury experience is a trip on board the magnificent Belmond Grand Hibernian, which offers three fascinating rail journeys across Ireland — north to the Realm of Giants, west to the Legends and Loughs of Killarney and Connemara, and the Grand Tour of Ireland.
The train’s beautiful cabins mix modern luxury with traditional elegance, the cuisine is exceptional and the ambiance is enlivened by musicians and storytellers.
And in County Kildare, five-star Kilkea Castle, one of the oldest inhabited castles in Ireland, has recently opened its refurbished Baronial Hall, adding a magnificent events space to its sophisticated accommodation, and making it the perfect destination for a luxury break.