Ard na Sidhe Country House

About the Hotel

Ard na Sidhe Country House is an old world Victorian style house, built by Lady Gordon in 1913. The house is located near Killarney in the scenic county of Kerry in the south west of Ireland. The title 'Ard na Sidhe' means the fairy hill and this is located to the rear of the house with passages leading to a large cave.

At Ard na Sidhe Country House an ambience of graceful elegance is combined with the luxury of modern comforts but the hotel also maintains an old world enchantment with its collection of antique furnishings and paintings. The hotel offers deluxe accommodations in our 18 bedrooms, each overlooking the lake or the beautiful countryside.

The hotels grounds and surroundings are very much part of the experience for guests. ... [+] More Take a stroll through our award winning gardens between pathways of Rhododendron and Azeleas to the magic stillness and peace of Caragh Lake. Boating on the lake is available free of charge to our guests.

Guests of Ard-na-Sidhe are welcome to visit our sister hotels The Europe Hotel & Resort and Hotel Dunloe Castle to avail of our complimentary leisure facilities which include- 25m swimming pool, sauna, gymnasium, indoor tennis and horse riding. The Europe Hotel & Resort also offers a luxury spa, ESPA at the Europe with 16 treatment rooms, indoor and outdoor vitality pools and thermal heat experiences.

Accommodation

Accommodations at the luxury Ard na Sidhe Hotel consists of eighteen bedrooms. Ten of the bedrooms are in the main building and eight in the Garden house. The hotels luxury accommodations will provide you with all the comfort you desire. All of the hotels rooms are tastefully furnished in classical style with antique furnishings.

The views from the bedrooms are exquisite. Some of rooms overlook the beautiful countryside, while others gaze across the lake or the hotels gardens.

Dining

You will feel part of the family at Ard-na-Sidhe Country House and enjoy the relaxed atmosphere in our dining room where you can choose a selection of Irish and International specialties from our menu. After dinner you can adjourn to the peat fire and cosy couches where you can sip a brandy and enjoy the peace and quiet.

Gardens

Ard-na-Sidhe Country House was originally built at the turn of the century by Lady Edith Gordon, a keen gardener, traveller and writer, who planted many trees and laid out a number of garden features most of which have long since disappeared except for the rock garden which still contains some of her original plantings including several slow growing conifers and some hybrid rhododendrons.

As far as we are aware no further major planting was carried out until the late 1970s when many rare and unusual trees and shrubs were supplied by Hilliers, the Hampshire nursery firm. In the years since, a great deal of scrub clearance has taken place to make way for new planting which continues today.

Among the major developments is the Tree Fern Glade which provides a suitably sheltered, moist and semi-shady site for several species of tree fern as well as bamboos, rhododendrons and associated plants. Indeed, it is these conditions which ensure that rare and unusual plants thrive here. Around the house meanwhile, beds have been planted with a mixture of fuchsias, azaleas and camellias together with a range of perennial plants such as Dieramas, Geraniums and Lavateras which provide a wealth of colour from spring through early autumn.

The gardens at Ard-na-Sidhe are a haven for special plants which can be viewed at leisure from a series of paths and trails winding down to the Caragh Lake. We hope that you will enjoy the gardens whatever your level of interest. Its setting surrounded by mountains and with a beautiful lake below is unforgettable. Today, Sir Roy Lancaster, continues to supervise our plantings.