Are there any manor house wedding venues in Ireland that are not a bit ****?!

joeymaccy

OK so, apologies for my totally sweeping generalisation but I’ve been hunting high and low for a manor house venue for my wedding only to find that each house, while is lovely in its own regards, is always not quite right. Take Bellinter House for example; lovely house but the dining room is in a dungeon downstairs and also, you have to book out all 34 room @€;180 a pop. I don’t want to do the marquee thing either.
I don’t think I’m being a diva, I’m just looking for a manor house with a) a nice garden for having drinks outside and b) a room big enough to accommodate about 120 people. Any suggestions?

Borderfox

Whats the budget per head. Balyna house is quite nice

CavanGal

I don't know how these hotels work as regards booking with have you checked Tankardstown in Slane and Clonabreany House near Crossakiel?

Moonbeam

Ballyseede is amazing.
There are not many bedrooms though.

joeymaccy

Hi Guys, thanks for the suggestions. I'd push the boat out for the right venue - €100 - 120 a head. Keep the ideas coming!!
I've been to a wedding in Tankardstown - it's really nice but can only accommodate 80 for dinner

joeymaccy

Has anyone heard of the rectory in Cork?

Sleepy

No idea on pricing but it's a stunning place and can seemingly handle your numbers: http://www.powerscourt.ie/weddings

pwurple

We got married in Kinsale, Cork here:

http://www.ballinacurra.com/

Place is fab, the guy Des is a bit painful to deal with. You do have to book all the bedrooms. They have a big dining room. If you don't want your guests to pay whatever he charges, just subsidise it, like we did. So, his price for guests for a room was 150, we went through it in advance and paid 30 euro of it on our own bill. Guests were charged 120.


Huntington Castle in Carlow is stunning. Dining room is a bit dark, which you said you don't like, but the gardens are amazing. So could do an outdoor thing.

http://www.huntingtoncastle.com/


I'm unsure whether you want accommodation or not, but Fota House in cork is just the house for hire. No rooms to sleep in, people stay in the nearby hotel. The website doesn't do it justice. It is a lovely spot. I've been to weddings there, very elegant. Gardens are lovely.

http://www.fotahouse.com/

Balmed Out

joeymaccy wrote: »

Has anyone heard of the rectory in Cork?

Yeah, quite possible the best food you will get at a wedding in Ireland and a gorgeous location to boot. In fact now that youve mentioned it if the weathers good for the wk end im gonna go for lunch in Glandore, really nice spot.
Downs - think max is 120 or 140 ppl, accomodation isnt onsite (though marine hotel is a few minutes walk down the road). I didnt enquire as we have too big a crowd but I would imagine its expensive.
One other thing is the room is sort of divided up, you might think it wouldnt work but it does.

Every time I get a wedding invite I cross my fingers hoping it'll be the rectory!

joeymaccy

Hi BalmedOut, thanks for your message. I’ve got a bee in my bonnet about the split up room thing. For the speeches, I’d really like to have everyone in the one room so the split room mightn’t work.. Thanks for the info though. I think I’ll still check it out.
Cheers,

Penny Dreadful

joeymaccy wrote: »

Hi Guys, thanks for the suggestions. I'd push the boat out for the right venue - €100 - 120 a head. Keep the ideas coming!!
I've been to a wedding in Tankardstown - it's really nice but can only accommodate 80 for dinner

They have added a function room onto the building now. I had looked at having my wedding there but they were only starting to build it and I wasn't sure it would be finished in time. They expect to be able to cater for 150 or so I think.
It is a really nice venue and the people I dealt with when I was thinking of having it there were really lovely.

Balmed Out

If your heading to west cork could check out the following places too:

Blairscove - far west, not been but meant to be ver good. Think the max is 100.

Why are you going for a manor house? I looked at them as well as regular hotels but not sure why you would specifically choose one. If its a privacy thing then plenty of hotels are geared so much towards weddings that pretty much all their business is weddings. Fern hill in clonakilty and the innishannon hotel have nice gardens, dunmore house hotel has no gardens but does have an outdoor area with a spectacular view of inchydoney. Those 3 would have restraunt / bar services for locals but 90 % of guests are probably for weddings.

Sleepy

The problem you're always going to have with a manor house is accommodation. There have been very, very few houses built in Ireland with over 50 bedrooms.

fuddy1

Am biased but i love Leixlip Manor. Am getting married there this year. Its been around in some form since 1774. The drawing room is beautiful. Green, cream and gold colour scheme. High ceilings with floor to ceiling windows and drapes. Big open fireplaces and candles everywhere. its on 27 acres with walled victorian gardens. Can sit up to 120 guests i think. 29 bedrooms in total and not bad prices for guests. It only hosts weddings so its all yours with no exclusive use fee like the likes of killashee house has.
They've been really nice to deal with so far.
Dont mean to sound like an advertisment for the place but i really do love it.....cant wait til november!

Sleepy

We were looking at Leixlip Manor alright. Loved the place but couldn't get the guest list down to 120.

sweetie

All manor houses will stuggle with those numbers. Have you considered Step house in Borris, Co Carlow or Rathsallagh or the Millhouse Slane. Whilst not quite a Manor the step house is a lovely boutique hotel and has nice garden and function room. The latter two have permanent marquees which are very nice and better than the average rented marquee. I fear you will need to compromise somewhere!

campo

Have you tried Ballyvolane House in Cork

joeymaccy

thanks for all the suggestions; I'm going to check Leixlip Manor out this weekend!

Sleepy

Moy Valley could be an option for the best of both worlds if you have bigger numbers: you can have your drinks reception in the old manor house and saunter across the courtyard to the meal/reception in a bright and modern hotel. Was at a friends wedding there recently and thought it was a nice idea: get the show of the old house for the arrival and photos and all the convenience of a modern building (bathrooms, large function room, smoking balconies etc.)

Borderfox

Clonabreany is really nice but its a marquee beside the main house with accomodation across the road

Penny Dreadful

Not pushing the venue just because its where I'm having my wedding but consider The Station House Hotel.

I liked it because it has lovely grounds for guests to enjoy themselves outside when the weather is like this. The food is great (actually that was one of the biggest factors for us), the hotel can deal with a good number of guests and has houses too that people can use. I think it can cater for up to 180 people (although how I don't really know) but we're looking at 120-130 on the day and they can sit that many comfortably.

joeymaccy

Hi Campo, Ballyvolane looks like the type of thing I'm after in terms of the gardens - it's got a great quirky festival vibe going on. I'm not sure about the marquee dinner room. it looks a bit pokey from the photos..? Have you been to Ballyvolane yourself?

campo wrote: »

Have you tried Ballyvolane House in Cork

ABajaninCork

Balmed Out wrote: »

If your heading to west cork could check out the following places too:

Blairscove - far west, not been but meant to be ver good. Think the max is 100.

Why are you going for a manor house? I looked at them as well as regular hotels but not sure why you would specifically choose one. If its a privacy thing then plenty of hotels are geared so much towards weddings that pretty much all their business is weddings. Fern hill in clonakilty and the innishannon hotel have nice gardens, dunmore house hotel has no gardens but does have an outdoor area with a spectacular view of inchydoney. Those 3 would have restraunt / bar services for locals but 90 % of guests are probably for weddings.

I'd agree with this. Look for a hotel that does only one wedding a day. Innishannon is lovely, I've been to weddings there, and has gorgeous grounds.

If you're looking to book a manor house, then expect to pay a lot. They will usually ask that all the rooms are booked, especially in peak wedding season.

pwurple

I thought Ballyvolane was restricted to 75? Give them a ring I'd say and ask.

PCPhoto

finnstown house, lucan, dublin

is an option - has grounds, gardens and accomodation for your group (we're having our wedding there and it can accomodate upto 200 for a meal and I think they have approx 80-90rooms (so thats about 180ish people sorted for accomodation)

moco

If you're willing to venture over the border...

http://www.manorhousecountryhotel.com/home.htm

Ms Mustard

joeymaccy wrote: »

Has anyone heard of the rectory in Cork?

Yes, going there for a wedding in July if you can wait that long for feedback.

okiss

I would have a look at the Annebrook House Hotel in Mullingar. They do one wedding a day.
One of my family members had there wedding there and they spoke very highly of the staff. The food was lovely and you did not have to book very expensive accommodation in order to have the venue. The accommodation also includes Apart-hotel Rooms.
There website address is http://www.annebrook.ie.

AngelaB

Borderfox wrote: »

Clonabreany is really nice but its a marquee beside the main house with accomodation across the road

Tinakilty House Wicklow is a lovely venue for a Wedding unsure of numbers they can take . For smaller more intimate weddings the newly opened Old Rectory Centre in Donard is a beautiful place www.theoldrectorydonard.com

Gatica

fuddy1 wrote: »

It only hosts weddings so its all yours with no exclusive use fee like the likes of killashee house has.

Did you mean Kilshane House by any chance?

If you're looking for a stunning venue, Kilshane House would definitely be at the top of my list but they do charge an insanely high exclusivity fee - we couldn't afford it nor did I wanna give them the money for technically "nothing", as that's what it seems like to me.
Castle Durrow is another stunning venue. It's more like a country house than a castle. I loved it so much, and a fab garden. Didn't have our date and the other dates worked out too expensive for us.

Ballymagarvey Village is really lovely.
The Village at Lyons is a stunning location.
Rathsallagh House as someone suggested is a proper country manor. I didn't like it when I saw it though because of the layout. The same went for Leixlip Manor, for me personally. I wanted an open room where I could see one end to the other. Leixlip and Rathsallagh both have a kind of 90 degree angle in the layout.

Cashel House Hotel in Connemara was another pretty country house but their limit is 120, i.e. at a squeeze.
Mount Falcon has fabulous grounds and a country house feel to it. They do require all rooms to be booked though.(not unlike many of the other venues listed above).
SummerHill House Hotel is pretty, but I didn't like the coordinator there.
Killashee house is also nice, but they can do two weddings a day - one in the old house and one in the main hotel.

The others to check out would be Castle Oaks House Hotel, Springfort Hall Country House, Brooklodge, Tulfarris.

Best of luck!

Seanchai

joeymaccy wrote: »

Are there any manor house wedding venues in Ireland that are not a bit ****?!

Lough Rynn, of course. Here, here, here and here.

/end thread.

newport2

Got married last year in Castle Durrow, can't recommend it highly enough!

Borderfox

I have some pictures of Clonabreany House, Castle Durrow, Balyna House and Tulfarris up here http://keithjackphotography.zenfolio.com/blog

Theboinkmaster

joeymaccy wrote: »

Hi Guys, thanks for the suggestions. I'd push the boat out for the right venue - €100 - 120 a head. Keep the ideas coming!!
I've been to a wedding in Tankardstown - it's really nice but can only accommodate 80 for dinner

That's not true - ring them again, im sure they can cater for more in the main house as we had our wedding there last year. Tankardstown is awesome.

LJL

im also looking for a manor house for a wedding venue and recently visited tankardstown house and they now have an orangery that can cater 220 i think. it is AMAZING! but expensive. i havent heard any reports on the food yet either so if anyone has been to a big wedding there is the food good? its worth a visit as the website doesnt do it justice.

the step house hotel in borris, carlow is absolutely gorgeous and there is extra accommodation across the road. steak was a choice on the menu and it was the best wedding food i ever had. its hard to get the food right for a large wedding but if this venue was closer to home i would definitely be booking it.

Borderfox

Clonabreany worked out really well for the last wedding, food was perfect and with good weather there was loads of variety for shots. The Manager was really friendly and couldnt do enough for the couple and myself

Theboinkmaster

LJL wrote: »

im also looking for a manor house for a wedding venue and recently visited tankardstown house and they now have an orangery that can cater 220 i think. it is AMAZING! but expensive. i havent heard any reports on the food yet either so if anyone has been to a big wedding there is the food good? its worth a visit as the website doesnt do it justice.

We had our wedding there. It is expensive but worth every penny IMO, the food isn't like typical wedding food its like what you'd get in a good restaurant, they cook the steak to order etc. Definitely go check them out.

Gatica

btw, Mount Falcon won chef of the year for Connacht again this year.

niallb

campo wrote: »

Have you tried Ballyvolane House in Cork

I was there last weekend for a family event, and it was brilliant.
Not sure if it would handle your numbers, but worth getting in touch.

Fabulous gardens with even a small football pitch. The house is great, food was top class and the people really helpful. The family live in the house, so it's got a real homely feel to it too.

Nead21

LJL wrote: »

the step house hotel in borris, carlow is absolutely gorgeous and there is extra accommodation across the road. steak was a choice on the menu and it was the best wedding food i ever had. its hard to get the food right for a large wedding but if this venue was closer to home i would definitely be booking it.

I'm getting married there in 6 weeks. I loved it as soon as i walked in and have heard nothing but excellent reports about the place since we booked it.

ongarboy

Moonbeam wrote: »

Ballyseede is amazing.
There are not many bedrooms though.

i would second this. My sister got married there 6 years ago and another sister is getting married there this summer such was the positive experience the first time around. Others have raved about it too for their weddings. I think it holds up to 150 reception guests. There is something very intimate about it and the attention is friendly and personal. It is a castle type manor (but not as large scale as Dromoland/Ashford etc) set on wooded parklands with a big drive up from the main road. It is about 2 miles outside Tralee so loads of alternative accommodation for guests nearby.

gowayouttadat

joeymaccy wrote: »

Has anyone heard of the rectory in Cork?

we got married there 3 weeks ago. It was absolutely, totally and utterly amazing.
The girls are so helpful, they bent over backwards for us in the preparations. I could send an email asking something on a saturday night and they'd have replied by 8am on Sunday morning. They took all the pressure out of organising it.
The venue itself it fabulous. We had our wedding ceremony outside overlooking the sea. Everyone who came thought it was out of this world.
The food was divine and worth every penny.

I honestly couldn't recommend them highly enough.

I can send you some pictures by email if you'd like to see for yourself.

amdublin

Liffey Valley House

boogaloop

Re The Rectory, can you share (by pm) the approx cost per head please?

thanks a mill

susankfarrell

I'm having the same problem for about 150 guests, have you chosen anywhere yet. Given this will be the most expensive meal of my life I want to ensure that all the guests have perfect food! Any reveiws?

Gatica

Had our wedding at Mount Falcon in Ballina. Had bout 110 ppl but it fits up to 170 or so. Couldn't recommend them highly enough. Everything went really smoothly, small things fell between the cracks as our coordinator was leaving on holidays and another took over. But soon as I noticed anything that needed changing it was done without question. They were very professional, and we had an absolutely amazing day.
Most guests commented to us very quickly bout how amazing the food was. It all came out 5***** restaurant quality even with the large numbers. Just as our tasting. Any questions, let me know

susankfarrell

Mount Falcon looks FAB. I hadn't planned to go that far as we live in Dublin however after your recommendation we are taking a trip over in a couple of weeks (our first free weekend) to view it. Can't wait now and the food looks great and well recommended. Thanks so much for your reply. :-) Will let you know how we get on.

liliq

We're getting married in Boyne Hill House near Navan in a couple of weeks?
Room for dinner sits over 130, 45 rooms in total, I think they ask that 25 be filled. The layout for afters is a bit unusual, but I think it's great.
Lovely gardens, courtyard for a few drinks outside if the weather permits, excellent value for both food (paticularly think this after going to the tasting) and rooms, quite easy to get to.
(I'm a bit in love with the place! haha)

mikeanywhere

There is also Middleton Park House by Castletown Geoghan. Ive shot a few weddings there and its a great location.