Known as one of Ireland’s finest four-star de luxe hotel and destination spa establishments, Knockranny House Hotel and Spa in Westport, County Mayo, is the perfect luxury getaway for those who like to combine fine dining with total relaxation.
Recently included in both the Bridgestone 100 Best Places to Stay in Ireland 2011 and in the Bridgestone 100 Best Restaurants in Ireland 2011, Knockranny House Hotel owners Adrian and Geraldine Noonan pride themselves on their winning combination of warm and welcoming service, excellent cuisine, and beautiful facilities.
Arriving at Knockranny House Hotel on the outskirts of Westport, you are immediately struck by the stunning views of Croagh Patrick from the front of the hotel, and indeed from the hotel’s dining room.
Knockranny’s luxurious bedrooms are bright, spacious, and elegantly decorated in warm colour schemes. Our suite was tucked away in a quiet corner of the hotel, a haven of calm with every comfort provided.
For our evening meal we took advantage of Knockranny’s wonderful culinary reputation by dining in the hotel’s renowned La Fougère Restaurant. Awarded Best Restaurant in Connacht and Best Chef in Connacht at this year’s Food & Wine Magazine Awards, as well as Best Hotel Restaurant in Ireland at the 2010 Irish Restaurant Awards, and having received two AA Rosettes for culinary excellence, La Fougère Restaurant has a fast growing reputation for fine dining and the superb quality of its cuisine and wine list.
Diners can choose from such meticulously prepared delights as pan fried sea bass with fennel and orange salad, samphire, and crab wonton; slow cooked rib of pork with crackling, maple and pepper glaze, sauerkraut, and green apple; or roast sirloin of dry aged beef, cured and smoked hash, carrot and thyme, from head chef Seamus Commons.
Top off your stay with a visit to the hotel’s Spa Salveo, an oasis of calm encompassing a vitality pool with hydrotherapy stations, an expansive thermal spa suite, a fitness suite, serial mud chamber, and dry floatation.
On the Sunday morning of my stay I popped downstairs to the hotel’s Spa Salveo for a Kerstin Florian Corrective Facial. This rejuvenating facial used award-winning Kerstin Florian products to plump, brighten, and hydrate dull and tired skin so that skin is firmer, smoother, and healthier. It includes an instantly effective professional peel to brighten skin and remove impurities.
To celebrate Spa Salveo’s highly acclaimed Reader’s Choice Award at the Irish Tatler Spa Awards 2011, Knockranny House Hotel is offering an amazing celebratory package: the Salveo Glow Irish Tatler Package. Enjoy one night’s bed and breakfast, a sumptuous table d’hôte dinner, complimentary cream tea, and two and a half hours of luxurious spa treatments, from €195 per person.
Visit www.khh.ie for more information on the various great value packages and gourmet food evenings at Knockranny House Hotel & Spa.