Belleek Castle

Belleek Castle is a hotel in Ballina, County Mayo in the west of Ireland, build on the site of a former manor and thirteenth century castle. The current building was built between 1825 and 1831 in a neo-Gothic style. The 4-star hotel has 10 rooms with views of the forest, Belleek Woods, owned by Coillte. The hotel contains a museum in its basement, including Grace O'Malley's bed and the largest private collection of fossils and armoury in Europe, and a bar made from wood salvaged from a sunken Armada ship.

History

The hotel is built on the site of a 13th-century tower house castle. The castle was the ancestral home of the Earls of Arran, before passing to the Baronets of Belleek Manor. The current building was built by Sir Francis Knox-Gore, 1st Baronet. The building stayed in the family until 1942 when rising costs made them sell. Between 1942 and 1961, the lands changed hands multiple times, eventually ending up in the possession of Mayo County Council in 1961. It was eventually bought by Marshall Doran, a retired sailor, raconteur and adventurer he bought Belleek Castle in 1961 and set about making it into a home for himself and his family and his extensive collection of medieval treasures.

Facilities

The hotel has ten rooms, each unique as well as the aforementioned bar, a café and restaurant.

See also

• Ballina
• Coillte
• Hotels in Ireland
• Manor House