Theresa's Mixed Nuts: Dromoland Castle - Storybook Perfect

Monday, March 2, 2020

Dromoland Castle - Storybook Perfect

One of the things that I loved about Ireland is how they make it super easy for tourists to navigate the country. The major highways have street signs that direct you to upcoming castles on your route. If time permitted, as we were going from one stop on our itinerary to another, we'd take a chance and take a little detour to check out some castles or abbeys that we would have missed otherwise. I saw Dromoland Castle on one of the signs, and it just sounded kind of fun. So, we veered off course not knowing what we were going to come across. Would it be a broken down shell of a castle or something much more grand? To our delight, it was the latter.

Dromoland Castle

Dromoland Castle is a functioning 5 star luxury hotel that looks like it was plucked right out of a Disney storybook and plopped down in County Clare, Ireland. While we weren't guests, the gate attendant told us that is was perfectly fine to drive up the winding lane, park our car, then walk the grounds.

Dromoland Castle

Dromoland Castle

Since we weren't paying guests, I didn't want to go inside of the castle, but we did have a lovely time walking around it, exploring its perfectly manicured lawns.

Dromoland Castle

Dromoland Castle

Dromoland Castle

Dromoland Castle


The current castle's construction was finished in 1835 and has housed 8 generations of the O'Brien family. However, the oldest building constructed on the property dates back to around the 15th or early 16th century and housed other Gaelic families dating back to the 16th century.

Dromoland Castle

Dromoland Castle

Dromoland Castle

Quite a few notable guests have booked a stay at Dromoland Castle, including Muhammad Ali, Nelson Mandela, Jack Nicholson, Johnny Cash, Bono and Bill Clinton. I was shocked to learn that when President George W. Bush stayed at Dromoland for less than 24 hours, his guard of police, military and private security was around 7,000! Something tells me we would not have been free to tour the grounds that day.


I did check room prices, and it looks like in the off-season you can get rooms fairly cheap at around $200 per night. During the busy season though, rooms can go for over $1,000 USD! For that kind of money, I'll gladly return to The Waters Country House and spend the savings on some authentic Irish wool sweaters or blankets. (Though I'd gladly stay in the off-season just to experience spending a night in a castle!)

Dromoland Castle

If you're road tripping it through Ireland, make a little time to go off course for some unplanned stops. We never would have stumbled upon this gorgeous castle if we would have stuck to our planned route 100%. And what a shame it would have been to miss it.


Have you ever spent the night in a castle? Would you like to?


10 comments:

  1. A night in a castle sounds fun.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Such a beautiful place to visit!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'd keep my prisoners in that tower, very practical! It also looks decent sized, not too big, not too small, love the entrance with lil' battlements! I wonder if their roofs are leaking given that they're flat.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love castles, that's so cool. I love the pictures.

    ReplyDelete
  5. When I turned 20, my boyfriend at the time and I went to Monovasia (SP?) which is an island near Sparta. It's a fully functional castle that you can stay overnight in. We almost did, but my dad's voice was in the back of my mind and I chickened out. It was lovely though! This looks just as gorgeous. Isn't Europe such a culture shock compared to the US? Our detours take us to overpriced parking lots.. lol

    ReplyDelete
  6. Wow. Sure looks like an amazing spot. I guess that is what $1000 a night gets you. 7000? Damn, he was really over compensating, huh? Bet the castle loved it. They must have made a bundle. I guess it would be good to have those golf carts to explore too. Never know where off the beaten path shall take you.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I like that they are so friendly to tourists. The bike photo, the door, and the image with your girls in front of the castle are my favorites. I haven't been to a real castle. We do have a sort of castle here called Jocyln Castle, but it's fairly small in comparison to the ones you saw. At least it's something.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Wow, that's a beautiful castle. I love that they turned it into a hotel. I'd stay there in a heartbeat! That's crazy how much detail came with the former president!! Talk about an expensive entourage to feed! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  9. What a beautiful castle! I think it'd be cool to check out the inside. The lawn is pretty immaculate so I imagine the inside is as well.

    ReplyDelete
  10. such a beautiful architecture.. Happy to stay there but I suppose it must be expensive! Lucky you to visit this lovely place, Theresa..

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for your comments! I appreciate every one of them :) Except promotional posts with added links. Those will be deleted.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...