The Best Hotels Near Courthouse, by the Record
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A thousand countryside acres in County Monaghan, a family that traces itself back to Attila the Hun, and the oldest plumbed bath in Ireland: Castle Leslie Estate sets its stall out early. The castle rooms skip the minibar and the telly on purpose, nudging you toward the Blue Room's lake views instead. The Lodge runs more contemporary but still has roll-top tubs. Horses, gardens, a spa, and a quiet library keep the weekend full.
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The old locomotive workshop is now a carriage house of guest rooms, which tells you everything about how this family-owned boutique hotel came to be. Set in the Boyne Valley village of Kilmessan, it's under an hour from Dublin and works equally well for a city escape or a longer stay. The main house keeps its period bones while the interiors lean into contemporary country-house comfort, and the Signal Restaurant pulls ingredients from the valley on most nights.
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A five-room guesthouse in the County Down hills where the beds are handmade and dressed in silk cashmere, and dinner is candlelit with produce from the property's own walled kitchen garden. The couple behind it met in Swiss finance, which explains the combination of Irish hospitality and very precise attention to detail. Small enough that you'll probably end up chatting with the owners, which, in this case, is a genuine draw.
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The Mountains of Mourne rise right outside the windows, which is reason enough to book a room at this grand Victorian hotel on the County Down coast. It has been around forever, and a recent renovation refreshed the lobby and guest rooms without stripping the old bones. Four restaurants keep you fed without venturing out, though the golf courses and coastal walks will pull you outside regardless.
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A Palladian mansion set on 1,100 acres of Kildare parkland, Carton House is a Fairmont-managed country house hotel where the original library has been converted entirely into a whiskey room, which tells you something about the priorities here. Staterooms come with William Morris-style wallpapers and gold-upholstered beds; the newer wing runs more contemporary. A Michelin-starred restaurant, a gastropub, and a wine room round out the estate.
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A Georgian mansion on seven hundred acres along the River Liffey, The K Club is a country house hotel that has quietly dropped the stuffiness without losing the grandeur. Rooms mix antique furnishings with real comfort, the views are unmistakably Irish, and thirty-six Arnold Palmer-designed holes make it a serious golf destination. Those with no interest in golf will find the spa a convincing alternative argument.