I recently returned from an eight night visit to Ireland, my first trip to this country. During our trip, we stayed in four hotels and visited seven others. This is my site inspection report. As with all of my reports, these are my subjective opinions. Others will (and should) feel otherwise! As a TA, it's impossible to evaluate service, so this is more of a reflection on the physical attributes of these properties.

Location

The Merrion is the best choice if you want to be in the center of Dublin, a small, charming city with beautiful rows of Georgian mansions, shops, and Irish pubs. Comprised of four traditional mansions and a new Garden Wing, The Merrionis a traditional hotel with a strong sense of place. (It reminded me of The Goring, a very traditional hotel in London.) While neither offers the "latest and greatest" in terms of contemporary fixtures and furnishings, this misses the point. I enjoyed the feeling of staying in a traditional Dublin mansion with its high ceilinged ground floor, able to step out the front door into the heart of Dublin.

Room

The Merrion is the best choice if you want to be in the center of Dublin, a small, charming city with beautiful rows of Georgian mansions, shops, and Irish pubs. Comprised of four traditional mansions and a new Garden Wing, The We spent two nights in a Deluxe Room in the Main Building, a bit over 400 square feet. The room feels spacious with a King bed off to one side facing the front windows, a large sitting and working area on the other end of the room. Most rooms in the hotel have a step-in shower (but not all), so be sure to make this request if a separate shower is important to you. Our bathroom had a single vanity next to the toilet. I was especially interested in seeing the Garden Wing which houses the lead-in Standard and Superior Rooms. Standard rooms have a city view while Superior rooms overlook the garden courtyard of the hotel. I actually preferred the Standard rooms because Superior rooms, though larger in area, seemed a bit narrow. Standard rooms, more square in their dimensions, felt roomier to me with more usable space. Again, if space is a primary consideration for you, you will definitely want the Deluxe category.