The Place
Being so conveniently close to Shannon airport – a ten-minute drive away – this could have settled for being a commercial hotel. But the kindness and warm hospitality of Niall Ennis and his wife, Gillian, have made this old manor house into a place to remember for those staying for either their first or last night in Ireland.
In gardens, woodland, and pasture Carrygerry, built in the 18th century with a gable end and a remarkable courtyard entered through an archway, was a private house until as recently as the 1980s. Gillian is passionate about her house and she has filled it with antiques and pretty things. The two cosy sitting rooms, either side of the front door, are delightful places to pass away the time, with blazing fires, deep sofas, striped cushions, oriental carpets, and rich, dark colours. The house really seems to come alive in the evenings, when it positively glows in candle-light. In the former coach house in the courtyard is a bar; some bedrooms are there, too. At the end of a flight or a long drive, this is a comfortable, welcoming traveller’s rest.