Kerry is the best county for hotels in Ireland with six making top 20 list

Six Kerry hotels have made it into a list of the top 20 hotels in Ireland — the highest performing county.

Hotel search website Trivago.ie used its aggregate online user ratings to give recognition to the best hotels in Ireland, both nationally and regionally, for its inaugural Trivago.ie Top Hotel Awards.

They were ranked using the Trivago rating index, combining over 190m online ratings from over 30 websites worldwide.

Despite Kerry’s strong showing, it was Harvey’s Point near Donegal Town that topped the pile as the best-rated hotel on the island of Ireland.

Located beside Lough Eske, the four-star country hotel took the top spot with a rating of 96.44.

Harvey’s Point near Donegal Town

It was followed by the Killarney Park Hotel with a rating of 95.56 and Heaton’s Guesthouse in Dingle, a B&B with a rating of 95.53.

The top 50 comprise a variety of accommodation options. B&Bs were the top-awarded accommodation option this year, with 22 in the top 50.

Six Dublin hotels feature in the top 50 accommodation providers. Kerry is the county with the most entries in the top 50, at 11, with six in the top 10.

Munster was the top-performing region, boasting 20 hotels in the top 50, while 12 Leinster properties made the grade.

Clare has four hotels in the top 50, followed by Cork City with three, and Limerick and Waterford both with one each.

David Lintott of Trivago said the awards aim to judge all accommodation fairly, whether they be luxury hotels in Dublin or B&Bs in rural Ireland.

A room at the Killarney Park Hotel

“It is really pleasing to see such a range of accommodation in our top 50, and it is fascinating that B&Bs are rated as highly as four- and five-star hotels.

“It appears that holidaymakers in Ireland are attracted to the family-run nature and personalised service of B&Bs.”

He added: “Congratulations to Dublin, the city with the most hotels in the top 50. However, hoteliers around the country should be encouraged that the capital doesn’t dominate the list — with travellers enjoying their time spent in properties geographically spread throughout Ireland.”

Deirdre McGlone of Harvey’s Point said all the staff at the hotel take a great sense of pride and joy when the guests write favourably about their stay.