Hotel review: Galway’s original five-star looks great but falls short in some areas

Galway's original five-star has warm staff and eclectic interiors, but small oversights let the overall impression down

G Hotel Lakeside Junior Suite

The g Hotel.

Wellpark, Old Dublin Road, Galway

Our rating: 7.5/10 

Location

On a sunny day, the 25-minute walk from Eyre Square out to Wellpark retail park where the hotel is situated, feels glorious. Worth bearing in mind if you’re driving, a journey that should take 10 minutes can easily stretch to 20 or 30 because of the city’s chronic traffic.

• 7/10

Style and design

The hotel’s exterior could easily be mistaken for office space, but the moment you hit the front steps, that shifts quickly. A doorman and a hot pink carpet await, and it’s hard not to let your eyes wander when checking in. Originally designed by milliner Philip Treacy, his flamboyant, maximalist designs were toned down during a 2023 refresh. The result is a more refined version of the five-star’s original character. Still distinctive and bold, just without the optical illusion-esque zebra print carpets.

Its signature lounges all have their own distinct styles. The Grand Salon, with its soft creams and muted greys, is the gentlest on the senses, but the tumbling bubble-style light installation and flowers suspended from the ceiling stop it from feeling bland. The Pink Room, with its blush velvet and tasselled armchairs, is surely where every girls’ weekend ends up posing over €16 cocktails, while The Blue Room, with its leather seating and timber panelling, feels like it’s made for late-night whiskey.

The Grand Salon in The g Hotel

• 9/10

Service

Warm, enthusiastic and engaged. From check-in to check-out, staff are eager to help without being overbearing.

• 8.5/10

Guest rooms

Our Junior Suite is generous and bright, with floor-to-ceiling windows offering a gorgeous view of Lough Atalia. The twin beds look fabulously comfortable, and later, when we return after dinner, turndown service sees a lavender sprig, chamomile tea and a warming Korean eye mask left on each pillow to lull us off. The bathroom, with a freestanding Deep Soak Villeroy & Boch tub and double-headed walk-in shower, is the star of the show, though the old-fashioned TV offering satellite channels and radio looks a bit out of place.

• 8.5/10

In-room perks

A particularly sweet touch for our mother- daughter stay comes in the form of conversation cards left beside a handwritten note encouraging us to reconnect and share a laugh during our stay. (I later learn that they offer other themed ones, depending on the occasion.)

On the bed, treats are left in two illustrated Taste of Ireland gift bags (Tayto and Border cookies), and fresh milk for our tea is delivered swiftly to the room after a call down to reception.

• 9/10

On the menu

Guests typically have two dining options: casual dining in the Grand Salon or a more elevated tasting menu in GEO. Unfortunately, GEO is closed during our stay. Instead, we are offered the Grand Salon menu in the GEO restaurant, where a musician is playing live jazz.

Smoked salmon with pickled cucumber atop a crispy potato rösti to start and a rich, glossy chocolate mousse dessert to finish don’t look out of place in the fine dining space, and portions are more generous than expected.

Breakfast the following morning is made-to-order, with lots of classics given a twist. French toast, for example, is offered with mushrooms and a parmesan-herb crème fraîche, while our eggs Benedict arrives on a croissant style bun. There is also a new Bloody Mary trolley service, with a barman preparing one to your liking tableside.

Many five-star, even four-star hotels, now combine à la carte dishes with buffets, and the offering here does feel lacking by comparison. On a previous stay, pastries and fruit arrived on elegant birdcage-style tiered stands while you waited for your hot breakfast — a lovely compromise.

The bar at The g Hotel

• 7/10

Activities and amenities

The true mark of a great five-star hotel is whether you could happily spend an entire weekend on site without ever leaving the property. This is where The g falls short.

There are no real outdoor spaces to wander through and there’s no swimming pool – unless you count the thermal pool in the spa, which isn’t free to access for all guests. The spa and thermal suite are lovely, but during our visit, more than one of its features was out of order. The gym is undergoing refurbishment and guests can, instead, avail of complimentary access to the FlyeFit gym in the same complex, though this wasn't explained to us during our stay.

The thermal Suite at The g Hotel

• 6/10

The bill

From €399 B&B.

Room to improve?

It’s the little things. A dirty tissue on the floor of the public toilets remained in the same place a day later. The dinner menu presented to us was crumpled with staining. The body wash in the spa shower had been incorrectly refilled with conditioner.

Accessibility? Public areas are step-free, and there are three fully accessible guest rooms.

Family-friendly? Children’s menus, colouring sheets and games are available.

Dog-friendly? Assistance dogs only.

EV chargers? Yes, though they are independently operated. Guests must bring their own charging cable and additional fees apply.

• The Hotel Examiner was a guest of The g Hotel.
• theghotel.ie