Hotel Review: Holiday Inn Killarney
Once we decided we should spend the night closer to where our Ring of Kerry tour started, instead of taking advantage of a free second night at the Radisson Blu Limerick, I zeroed in on the Holiday Inn Killarney or one of the TripAdvisor ranked B&B’s nearby.
The prices were the same, roughly €60 a night, and I do love the charm and authenticity of a B&B, but in the end I was enticed by getting a stay towards their Big Win promo and knowing the room, internet, etc would probably be decent. I also liked the idea of a giant parking lot vs a narrow driveway to navigate when we arrived, since I still wasn’t sure how well I’d do at driving.
The location was fantastic, less than a mile walk from downtown, even closer to our day tour departure point, and not far from Ross Castle either. The Google Map directions I had printed out were wrong, but we found the hotel easily enough, arriving around 8PM.
My Platinum IHG status was recognized at check in, although no better rooms were available. Still, we were given a room towards the end of the hall, near the corner which would hopefully be quieter. We also had free internet.
The room was clean, nothing special but perfectly fine. And we finally had double beds!
AND we had a real shower curtain. Hurrah!!
The coffee/tea options weren’t quite as nice as the Radisson Blu, but definitely worked.
I couldn’t find the hairdryer, so I called down. I had totally missed the drawer in the desk labeled “Hairdryer.” 🙂 It did turn out to be empty, but they sent someone up with one in about 20 minutes.
What killed me was the internet. Technically the room does offer in-room internet. Through the TV only. The screen indicates it’s possible to connect your laptop via an ethernet cord.
But there was no cord in the room nor any place to attach it. So we wound up down in the lobby with the painfully slow complimentary wifi access.
The other downside to the hotel was the thin walls. The night before we’d been woken by our next door neighbors. This night I barely slept because I could hear voices on both sides of the room as well as above and below AND in the hall.
My guess is it’s not as bad during the week. The hotel was definitely lively on the Saturday night were there. Which brings me to the dining options, which I quite liked! We originally headed down to Saddler’s Pub on the main floor to grab some food.
Live music started at 9PM and the place was already pretty full. It had a typical pub menu at typical prices. After waiting about 15 minutes for someone to take our order (we had asked whether we ordered at the bar or our table) we were super hungry and tired.
So we headed upstairs to the Library Point Restaurant which was more expensive, but hopefully faster. It turned out reservations would have been a good idea! We were impressed however at how hard they worked to accommodate us, and not 10 minutes later we had a small table in a corner and menus in our hands!
We had the option of 2 courses for €19.95 or 3 for €25. We both went for two. I went with the crispy bacon salad, which wound up being a mound of crispy bacon on a lettuce leaf. YES!
And we both ordered the Roast Chicken Supreme with herb & bacon stuffing and mushroom sauce. That was astonishingly good. The chicken was incredibly moist and everything tasted better than I would have assumed for a typical restaurant in a mid-level hotel.
The next morning we returned again to the restaurant for the €10 Irish breakfast buffet to make sure we had a full meal before our tour. That was less inspiring. It had a decent amount of options — cereal, pastries, porridge in addition to the melon medley and Irish Breakfast selections but the taste was pretty average.
Check out was friendly and quick. The service overall, with the exception of the crowded pub, was fantastic. The room was average and the thin walls slightly problematic. But if you can plan ahead for a less busy time or bring earplugs, the price point at the Holiday Inn Killarney is excellent. Next time I think I’ll try the B&Bs though 🙂
Nice review. I hate paper thin walls so I’ll keep it in mind when I’m in this area.
Thanks !