Glengarriff's Eccles Hotel bought by US Investor

The Eccles is one of Ireland's oldest running hotels operating since 1745.

West Cork's Eccles Hotel in Glengarriff has been acquired by a US hospitality investor for close to €4m.

Regarded as one of the best-known hotels on the Wild Atlantic Way, the long-established business was acquired by Brian Patrick Martin, in what is his first venture in Ireland.

The hotel went on sale with CBRE Hotels in July 2024 on behalf of hoteliers Ray Byrne and Eoin Doyle, guiding at €4m with the expectation it would attract the interest of internal buyers. It is understood the sale achieved close to the €4m guide price. 

The Eccles is one of the oldest hotels in Ireland, operating since 1745. Famous guests who have stayed there include George Bernard Shaw, who stayed in 1910/11 and is reputed to have written extensively during his time here. Also, during the 1920’s William Butler Yeats was a regular visitor to the Eccles. More recently, in July 2017, Pippa Middleton, sister of the Duchess of Cambridge, stayed at the hotel to attend the wedding of her good friend Camilla Campion-Awwad in Glengarriff.

Previous owners have included  Italian businessman Renato Fogliana in the 1970s, local O’Keeffe and Murphy families, the Hanratty family from Dublin, who invested a reported €8m in their purchase and upgrades.

The Eccles Hotel & Spa comprises 59 bedrooms and suites, conference and banqueting facilities and a spa with three treatment rooms. The hotel also includes a restaurant, a bar and wedding facilities. A significant program of refurbishment and investment has recently been undertaken in all bedrooms.

The Eccles occupies a strategic position directly on the renowned Atlantic Way tourist trail stretching along Ireland's western coast, located approximately 90km from Cork city and close to Kenmare in Co Kerry. The area attracts national and international visitors each year seeking outdoor adventures, cultural experiences, and unparalleled natural beauty.

John Hughes, CBRE Hotels Director, said: "The sale of the Eccles Hotel presented a superb opportunity to acquire one of Ireland's oldest hotels located in popular West Cork and is ideally located on the increasingly popular Wild Atlantic Way tourist route. The hotel has been sympathetically refurbished to create a hotel of character and offers the new owners the ability to further grow this long-established business.”