Any reviews of Castlemartyr, Fota Island or the Carlton Kinsale?

Faith

Hi all,

We're considering Castlemartyr, Fota Island and the Carlton, Kinsale for potential wedding venues. I'd love to hear from anybody who has had any experience with any of the places, either as wedding guests or for their own wedding? Thanks!

hoodwinked

we were choosing between Fota and the carlton,

we chose the carlton in kinsale, but went to a wedding at fota 3 months later,


are there any specific questions you have?


overall we were very happy with one or two complaints, i think we caught them at a bad time as over the 2 years we booked with them we went through 3 wedding planners,

in saying that though we worked it to our advantage as when one added something into the contract it was not removed,

and the 3rd (and still the current one as far as i know) was the nicest yet most efficient of the three, she was brilliant and really put our day together and even doing things outside of her job just to help us pull some extra's off on the day.


the hotel itself was lovely, and the weather was raining in cork city but as soon as we hit kinsale was clear blue skies, everyone thought it was the most amazing thing but we noticed on pre wedding trips down there that when it was dull in the city the sun was always shining down there.

one of our main priorities was smoking area's and not dividing the wedding party between rooms as it was small enough 50-75 people before the afters, and the Carlton fitted this perfectly as they opened the doors to make the outdoor seating area 'part of the room' after the meal and with the bar and bathrooms all specifically for the function room everyone was kept in the one area for the night.


accommodation for guests was a bit of stickler as they wouldn't reduce the room rates much, but we did book one of the townhouses for the bridal party (my two cousins, my sister and my brother) as it worked out cheaper and meant they could all continue the party like they wanted afterwards so that is an option, they give two free rooms for the parents they did however throw in a third parent room free as my parents are seperated, (which ended up being used by my husbands uncle as he was our priest and they knew this and were cool with it in fairness to them)


as for Fota, the wedding we attended was amazing but we were shepherded from room to room a bit, again though the outside area was very nearby for smokers,

the reason we choose against them was for our small numbers we would have been in the clubhouse and there was again a room to room to room, for the reception meal and afters. and then elderly guests would have a fair walk back to the main hotel late at night where in the carlton it was just upstairs.

Stepping Stone

I haven't been to a wedding in Fota but I did go to one in the Carlton. First impressions were good but it didn't live up to thrm unfortunately. At half four they were still cleaning the bedrooms closest to reception. Reception was full of guests waiting to get rooms.

Dinner was lovely and the staff could not have been nicer. Breakfast was vile and the staff were horrible. They blanked the bride and groom for about twenty mins and when they eventually did get to them gave out to them for being late.

I have heard mixed reviews. Some love it, some hate it. One bride told me that she knows the staff from going to the restaurant and rudeness is just what you get. The difference in staff was definitely age. Waiting and bar staff at the reception were young, probably students. Breakfast staff were middle aged.

Honestly, never heard Fota getting a bad review.

CorkClaire82

I was at a wedding in Fota a few years ago and really enjoyed it. I loved the food, it really has stuck in my mind food wise which I think is fairly unusual for weddings. I liked it too 'cause they have enough space that you don't have to put tables on the dance floor (I think the wedding I was at had 220 or something) and there was none of that shuffling of tables after the meal. The service was impeccable as well. It didn't bother us the moving between rooms, to be honest I didn't really notice it. I know others have said that they don't like where the drinks reception is but again, I didn't really notice and I'd wonder how many people do take these things in when delicious canapes and bubbly drinks are being offered up

I've never been to Carlton or Castlemartyr so I can't comment on either of these but I really liked Fota.

annoyedgal

Went to a wedding in the carlton few years back and like previous poster said was waiting till dinner Bell to get into room as was still being cleaned. Left a very bad impression. Staff not friendly at all and room smelled bad when we finally got there. I mentioned the delay and smell upon check out but the lady could not have cared less.
On positive side views are beautiful and grounds are lovely.

A2LUE42

CorkClaire82 wrote: »

I was at a wedding in Fota a few years ago and really enjoyed it. I loved the food, it really has stuck in my mind food wise which I think is fairly unusual for weddings. I liked it too 'cause they have enough space that you don't have to put tables on the dance floor (I think the wedding I was at had 220 or something) and there was none of that shuffling of tables after the meal. The service was impeccable as well. It didn't bother us the moving between rooms, to be honest I didn't really notice it. I know others have said that they don't like where the drinks reception is but again, I didn't really notice and I'd wonder how many people do take these things in when delicious canapes and bubbly drinks are being offered up

I've never been to Carlton or Castlemartyr so I can't comment on either of these but I really liked Fota.

Was at a wedding in Fota a couple of years ago, in the clubhouse. It worked really well and the food was memorable for all the right reasons.

Faith

Thanks so far! I have no specific questions, I'm just looking for feedback.

A friend of my mum's said the food at Fota was awful and that they were extremely inflexible on everything. I also felt the function room is a bit dark for a summer's wedding, and I'm concerned that the grounds aren't actually that nice . Castlemartyr seems really spread out, and it's a long walk from reception to the function room! You'd lose half the guests to the bar/gardens/seating areas along the way, I felt. The Carlton seems like it ticks all of our boxes, and is more reasonably priced, but the bar and foyer is quite small.

Everyone seems to have different reports of places!

hoodwinked

Faith wrote: »

Thanks so far! I have no specific questions, I'm just looking for feedback.

A friend of my mum's said the food at Fota was awful and that they were extremely inflexible on everything. I also felt the function room is a bit dark for a summer's wedding, and I'm concerned that the grounds aren't actually that nice . Castlemartyr seems really spread out, and it's a long walk from reception to the function room! You'd lose half the guests to the bar/gardens/seating areas along the way, I felt. The Carlton seems like it ticks all of our boxes, and is more reasonably priced, but the bar and foyer is quite small.

Everyone seems to have different reports of places!

to be honest we heard mostly negative reviews from the carlton before ours too, (things like: they are going bust, and the food is rotten) and we worried like most would) but then we noticed everyone kept adding "a few years ago" and after our wedding everyone was full of praise for the venue, a neighbour of my mum's got married there last summer and the praise i heard was identical, so i have an "up to date" view if you could call it that,

they obviously are working to fix the previous reviews because they were all lovely to us, even the morning after (and the evening after)

the foyer is small, but if it is summer (and the weathers good) they open the doors to the balcony area outside (its also perfect for photo's) which will make it that much bigger (and you can avoid the reception desk)



with Fota i found the food was nice, but pretentious, small portions, stuff that sounded better than it tasted etc.... i am a very plain eater, like at our meal, we had just normal, mash/roasted potato, veg like carrots,brocolli...etc , chicken, ham, fish for desert apple tart and profiteroles..etc the usuals, we asked for more food like what our families would eat as we knew they would be starving rather than stuff that looked good in photos or that was 'posh' and it was well received by the guests. (the only plate with food left on it was mine bizarrely enough i was too nervous/excited to eat and had no appetite) which is something i was warned about at our tasting and i dismissed as i am a food hound usually.

we went back there for our 'free' anniversary dinner, and again it was the nicest steak we have ever eaten we are going back again this year as paying customers, i recommend you go for lunch/dinner there if you are worried and taste the food for yourself as everyone has different tastes, maybe try the others too to get a vibe for the places and you get fancy lunch/dinners out!


no matter where you choose the one thing i recommend is you feel comfortable with the person you will be communicating with as when things get stressful you'll need the calm professional independent advice.

Stepping Stone

I was at the Carlton last November. I can definitely say that it was atrocious as recently as that. Honestly, you walk into a drinks reception with suitcases and are forced to keep them with you while you wait for your room. The cleaning staff are in and out of the double doors directly opposite reception. I would give it some serious thought before booking it.