Historic Ballintaggart House, on the market for €5.2m, has stunning views over Dingle Bay 

It was a bespoke wedding venue until shortly before the pandemic arrived

Ballintaggart House

BALLINTAGGART House, an historic Dingle Property which operated successfully as a wedding venue, is on the market, along with a dozen holiday homes, for €5.2m.

The house, thought to have been built by Richard Boyle, the Earl of Cork, and lived in for a period by Desmond FitzGerald, father of the late Taoiseach Garret, is a 1440 sq m, 28-bed, 28-bathroom detached property, which operated as a hostel in the 1990s, and as a bespoke wedding venue from 2008 until the end of 2019, when it was run by the Cluskey family.

Ballintaggart House

Built more than 300 years ago as a hunting lodge for the Earl of Cork, along with a gate lodge, the house, which also operated as a soup kitchen for a period, has spectacular views over Dingle Bay.

The nearby 12-unit holiday home complex, run as Dingle Manor Holiday Homes, continues to operate, with weekly rents of €1500-€1600 during peak summer season, according to auctioneer Michael Kennedy.

Holiday home complex

The entire estate, just outside Dingle town, is on c15.5 acres. Mr Kennedy said there is an option to purchase the main manor house and 6.2 acres, including the field in front of it, as an individual lot for €1.3m.

Main reception hall 

In fact he already has an offer from a potential Irish buyer of €1.2m for the manor and 6.2 acres, as well as an offer of €5m from a Dublin-based consortium for the entire lot, with buyers looking to operate it as a tourism enterprise. 

Mr Kennedy, who is selling on behalf of vendor Dingle Dynamic Ltd, has also had interest from the UK and the USA in the estate.

The agent said while the holiday homes were given a makeover last year, the main house and adjoining courtyard accommodation need investment. The courtyard accommodation to the rear was originally stables which were converted into 22 ensuite bedrooms when Ballintaggart House was operating as a hostel. The main house has six ensuite bedrooms, two large reception rooms, a large kitchen area, store room, bar area and public toilets. There is also a large campsite, with circa 16 bays, adjacent to the property. The gate lodge had an open plan kitchen/dining area, a toilet/shower and loft bedroom.

Mr Kennedy said given the fantastic location, Ballintaggart House has “great potential moving forward as either a private residence (which it was until the ‘90s) or as an exclusive guest house with a wedding venue and campsite business potential”.

“This is truly a unique opportunity to purchase an iconic period home and estate in this bustling tourism town of Dingle, along with beautifully finished 12x3-bed holiday houses,” Mr Kennedy said.

More info: Michael Kennedy Auctioneers 0871716657 or email: [e-mail]