Top spots to staycation
Back in boom times, special offers were like flowers in the desert. Now, you can take your pick… especially if you travel Sunday through Thursday.
It’s not just dinner and overnight accommodation that are being bundled, either. Kids’ clubs, discounts to nearby attractions, swimming lessons, movie nights and more are all on offer in an attempt to woo families away for a summer staycation.
Here are 10 specials to get you started… now, all we need is some sunshine.
It can take a long time to save for a short break. And once you get there, entertaining the troops isn’t easy on the wallet, either — a family ticket to Fota Wildlife Park costs €44, for example. The beach front Garryvoe Hotel at Castlemartyr has come up with a package bundling both. Three nights’ B&B with one evening meal, a family day ticket to Fota (complete with a packed lunch), and free admission to Jungle World in Midleton are all included. The price is €285 per adult, provided you book from Sunday through Wednesday, and based on two kids under 12 sharing the room.
* Details: 01-2958900; irishcountryhotels.com.
Seeking self-catering deals? Trident has more than its fair share. Two weeks are available for the price of one on a range of properties from Jun 30 to Jul 14, with sample prices from €655 at Forest Haven in Dunmore East to €730 for two weeks in Waterville Holiday Homes, Co Kerry. Watch out for the company’s ‘Crazy Price Week’ beginning Aug 25, too. A 30% discount on published prices is available at locations like Tralee, Dingle and Liscannor — from €287 plus extras. Dream Ireland is also offering 100 holidays every week this summer for €475. Some sleep up to eight people.
* Details: tridentholidayhomes.ie; dreamireland.com/100holidays.
So you’ve managed to block off a week that suits Mum, Dad, the school holidays, the childminder, the grand-parents and the local kennels. But where to spend it? Select Hotels is one solution. It’s a collection of over 20 properties all over Ireland — ranging from Acton’s in Kinsale to the Falls Hotel in Ennistymon — and it currently has a special family offer of €109 per room, per night. Better still, if you stay four nights, the fifth comes free. Kids get milk and cookies on arrival, there’s a discount on spa treatments for Mum, and two kids under 12 sharing the room get to stay and have breakfast for free.
* Details: 1850-200560; selecthotels.ie
There’s value in this short break offer from the Sligo Park Hotel. For €518 in total, two adults and two kids get four nights’ B&B, dinner on two nights (for everybody, not just the adults), and there are pool games, a family treasure hunt, supervised movie nights, forest walks and weekend entertainment during school holidays thrown in. Family-friendly attractions nearby include Eagles Flying, the birds of prey centre at Ballymote, surfing at Strandhill, the woodland walks around Lough Gill, and the stunning Gleniff Horseshoe loop.
* Details: 071-9190400; sligoparkhotel.com; discoverireland.ie/sligo.
Galway is a super spot for a family break — combining the raw countryside of Connemara with a rugged coastline and big city festivals, restaurants and shops. A family holiday package at the Connemara Coast Hotel packages five nights for €1,099, including breakfast every day and dinner on three evenings — provided you book Sunday to Thursday. Add-ons are free swimming lessons for kids, a free kids’ club, live music, a Connemara treasure hunt with prizes and discounts to Galway attractions (the city is a 10-minute drive away). If you’d like to extend your holiday with a trip to Inishbofin, the Inishbofin House Hotel has a summer midweek special: three nights’ B&B with dinner on two evenings from €499, based on two adults and two kids.
* Details: connamaracoast.ie; inishbofinhouse.com.
Heading on holidays after the arrival of a new baby is about as relaxing as heading on Hell Week with the US Navy Seals. The good folk at Liss Ard Estate near Skibbereen have come up with a package to make things a tad easier. Based on a five-night stay in a superior room, it includes a baby welcome pack on arrival, a bottle warmer and steriliser, a changing mat and cot, a romantic three-course dinner complete with two hours’ babysitting, and a 55-minute massage for mum. The total price is €705, or €352.50pp for two adults sharing (naturally, baby goes free).
* Details: 028-40000; lissardestate.com
A four-night family break at the Ferrycarrig Hotel costs €480. Five nights costs €550. Breakfast, full access to the health and fitness suite and Crazy Clubbers kids’ club (a Mini-Olympics, Teddy Bears’ Picnic and Scavenger Hunt are on offer), and special admission rates to nearby attractions like The Irish National Heritage Park and Johnstown Castle all feature. It’s a lovely setting too, on the bank of the River Slaney near to Ferrycarrig Tower.
* Details: 053-9120999; ferrycarrighotel.ie.
€360 will buy you three nights self-catering for four people at Kiltale Holiday Homes, a short drive from Dublin in Co Meath. So far, so standard. What might pique parents’ interest, however, is the fact that the holiday homes are set on a working farm — with Connemara ponies, lambs, ducks, geese, and both young donkeys and goats. There’s a small playground too, but most promising is the farm camp running daily for kids aged 4-12. It’s run by two primary school teachers, includes nature walks, flower arranging, donkey and pony rides, baking, gardening and a surprise for the kids on the last day… for an extra €75 per week.
*Details: 046-9436679; meathselfcatering.com.
Like Kilkenny and Galway, Westport is one of those enclaves that seems somehow immune to recession — unfairly bathed in sunlight, rammed with visitors and hopping away with festivals. Oh well, if you can’t beat ‘em… Knockranny House Hotel has a special offer packaging two nights’ B&B for two adults and two kids (under the age of 10) with complimentary bike and helmet hire and a packed lunch. The idea is to take the bikes onto the Great Western Greenway, the fab 42km trail stretching to Achill Island — the package costs €180 per adult in July, and there’s free use of the spa’s vitality pool thermal and fitness suite.
* Details: 01-2958900; manorhousehotels.com.
The Ritz Carlton at Powerscourt is one of the most expensive hotels in Ireland… unless you avail of this fab family special. Five nights are available for the price of three from Jul 1 to Aug 31, from €320 per night. That’s a total of €960, but there’s a lot of bang for that buck — five-star accommodation and facilities, a daily breakfast buffet, and free camper beds for kids under 12 (breakfast is free for kids under five, and €9.50 for kids aged 5-12). There are clever add-ons for the little ones too — you can get a tent, sleeping bag, torch and supper hamper for €40, for example, or a princess costume, nail painting and private afternoon tea for the same price.
* Details: 01-2748888; ritzcarlton.com/powerscourt.
NB: All prices correct going to press, but remain subject to availability.
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