Trip Report: Adare Manor (Ireland)

You can’t write anything about Adare Manor without mentioning J.P. McManus, the Irish billionaire that owns it. Everyone at Adare Manor loves him. The story goes that he’s an avid golfer who dreamed of hosting the Ryder Cup. He bought a castle hotel and spent an estimated €100,000,000 on its refurbishment and expansion, which employed 1000 Irish artisans and tradespeople for two years. Adare Manor is immaculate and the attention to detail reminded us of John Hammond’s line from  Jurassic Park… “Spared no expense.” The hotel is beautifully done and in keeping with the 1800s in which it was originally built.

As this was part of a longer trip, we didn’t splurge on a suite. Instead, we comfortably fit two adults and one child into a Deluxe Room. 

Each abode was unique in size, layout and decor, so we reached out ahead of time to the Director of Rooms and he assigned us one of the larger rooms in the new wing. The room didn’t have the garden view we were hoping for, but there was a large entryway and walk-in closet (which fit our son’s twin rollaway bed)! Our spacious bedroom had a separate turreted dining area with a table suitable for three or four people. The bathroom was also oversized with lots of Irish green marble as well as a fine inlay marble floor, a separate deep soaking tub and a walk-in shower. 

We loved the Deluxe Room’s “new traditional” decor and the fact that all the room amenities were controlled by an iPad. It was also nice to have complimentary snacks and beverages replenished daily.

Our service experience began via email as we set up numerous activities in advance of arrival. The concierges replied within 24 hours and executed everything flawlessly. 

Once we arrived, we found all the staff members very formally attired (fitting of a manor hotel) but there wasn’t a stodgy person in the bunch. Everyone was personable and friendly. When the local hurling team was in the widely celebrated Munster Hurling Championship, staff members invited us to watch it in the Carriage House and took time to explain to us how the game was played and how they ultimately won. Well done Limerick!

At checkout the Adare Manor front office staff nailed our final invoice with zero need for correction. This has become a personal pet peeve of ours, so we were happy when they accounted for all the Virtuoso amenities including complimentary breakfast and afternoon tea without any prompting on our part.

There was so much to do at Adare Manor. The on-site activities were all private and carefully curated.

Here’s what we did:

- Toured the Adare Manor grounds via horse and carriage with a guide (and a glass of  champagne).

- Met, held and flew several of Adare Manor’s birds of prey.

- Learned how to fly fish and caught trout on one of the golf course lakes. Thank you ghillie! 

- Shot clay pigeons with beautifully maintained Browning shotguns.

- Experienced archery at its finest with recurve bows and arrows, and an apple as a target.

- Rode Pashley bikes around the grounds with a picnic by the River Maigue.

- Drove 90 minutes with a guide to the Cliffs of Moher, Ireland’s most famous natural site.

- Swam in the indoor pool designed to blend in with the estate woodland.

Here’s what we didn’t do, but sounded like fun:

- Golf the Tom Fazio course that is hosting the Ryder Cup in 2027.

- Watch a movie in the private cinema.

- Walk the woodland fairy garden.

- Play padel sports in the indoor racquet facility.

There were two dinner restaurants at Adare Manor, the Michelin-starred Oak Room and the Carriage House. Since this was a family trip with our son, we kept to the Carriage House and found the food there to be quite good! We loved the porch-like setting and the floor to ceiling windows that looked out over the putting green and surrounding landscape. We also walked 10 minutes into the quintessential Irish village of Adare and had dinner at one of the pubs.

Breakfast and Afternoon Tea were served in the famous Gallery… rumored to be the 2nd longest room in Ireland. The offerings here were as good as you would expect with Michelin chefs on premises, including the Children’s Tea.

Our only negative experience at Adare Manor was mine. I had a massage booked on the last day at 9:00am. The Spa OPENED at 9:00am so I stopped by the day before to ask if they would be there 10 minutes early for me to change. The Spa Manager advised me to just arrive in my robe. So the next morning, I walked to the Spa the only way I knew how… right through the Great Hall (lobby)… in nothing but a robe. I’ll spare you the details but it was every bit as uncomfortable as you can imagine. In hindsight, I should have pushed back on the Spa Manager. As for the massage? It was good, but nothing spectacular. 

As a final word of caution, when you are booking Adare Manor, the booking engine may offer you a multi-bedroom Manor Lodge or Cottage. They are competitively priced and the descriptions mention “self catering” as the units have little kitchens. I called when we were first looking at Adare Manor and the phone representative was very honest with me. The Lodges/Cottages are not as luxurious and do not have full access to the Manor. At a minimum, guests aren’t allowed to have breakfast in the Gallery, and I have since read TripAdvisor reviews from Manor Lodge guests saying they felt like second class citizens. So stick to Adare Manor proper, even if that means you’re getting a smaller room.

Overall though, Adare Manor is an amazing property and one we highly recommend! This is especially true if you enjoy outdoor pursuits.