Check out: Three luxury escapes

From your own house, to the big house... for a weekend or so, anyway

Carton House: even the name infers grandeur

Carton House

Love a little period drama? Over the last decade or two, being a guest of honour in a historic Irish estate has never been easier in Ireland, thanks to a growing trend of manor-to-hotel makeovers, from Castlemartyr Resort in East Cork to super-exclusive Ballyfin in Co. Laois.