Two Irish resorts have been named among the top ten in the world by a leading online travel magazine.
Conde Nast Traveler, a site that focuses on luxury travel and lifestyle, has published its Reader’s Choice Award winners for 2019.
The site received an incredible 600,000 votes as readers named their favourite glamourous resorts from all over the world.
Ireland was well represented in the top ten with a fifth place finish for Adare Manor in Co. Limerick, and Co Clare’s Dromoland Castle Hotel & Country Estate reaching number seven.
Adare Manor is described as being a mix of old and new and having an old-school, aristocratic vibe.
Conde Nast Traveler wrote: “Adare is a delicious mix of old and new. Barely 30 minutes from Ireland’s Shannon Airport, it is one of the closest country manors to reach on seasonal, nonstop flights from the U.S. for romantic getaway (It’s also an easy two hour drive from Dublin in winter).
“While retaining an old-school, aristocratic vibe, Adare’s fanciful gargoyles, genuinely warm staff, grand and intimate spaces, and super-comfortable rooms make it somewhere uniquely and unabashedly the Ireland of right now—with golf and falconry to boot.
“Also of note here: 365 leaded windows, 52 ornate chimneys, four towers, and seven stone pillars, symbolizing the days, weeks, and seasons in a year, and the number of days in a week.”
Seventh place Dromoland Castle Hotel & Country Estate was said to take visitors ‘back in time’.
The site said; “After a $23 million renovation, this historic Irish castle hotel has been upgraded for today’s traveler without losing the charm that’s helped make it such an iconic place to stay, particularly among American visitors.
“You’ll feel like you’re traveling back in time as you make the drive from the estate gates down a winding lane, past forest thickets and a vast lake, to catch the first glimpse of stone towers and turrets.
“While the estate has been the ancestral home of the royal-blooded O’Brien family since the 16th century, the current castle dates back to the early 1800s, and has been restored and expanded several times in that time before becoming a hotel in the 1960s.
“Guest rooms are traditional and comfortable (and most have both a shower and a tub)—but you’re not just here to lounge about. Make time to enjoy the 18-hole championship golf course, or a falconry walk, before you head off to explore the Cliffs and the Burren.”
Ireland was arguably only beaten by Kenya, where there were also two resorts in the top ten. Richard’s River Camp was number six, while Sirikoi Lodge was voted the number one resort in the world.
Conde Nast Traveler’s top ten resorts in the world 2019
1 – Sirikoi Lodge, Kenya
2 – L’Horizon resort & Spa, Palm Springs, CA, USA
3 – Chindeni Bushcamp, Zambia
4 – InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula Resort, Vietnam
5 – Adare Manor, Co. Limerick, Ireland
6 – Richard’s River Camp, Kenya
7 – Dromoland Castle Hotel & Country Estate, Co Clare, Ireland
8 – Delpar Farm, Ólafsfjörður, Iceland
9 – Naladhu Private Island, Maldives
10 – andBeyond Nxabega Okavango Tented Camp, Botswana
For more information visit Conde Nast Traveler.
Written by Michael Kehoe @michaelcalling
