A Co Clare B&B has been ranked among the top 20 guesthouses in the world and in Europe's top 10 in the latest Tripadvisor Travellers' Choice Awards.
Daly’s House in Doolin was the best-rated B&B in Ireland, the eighth best in Europe and the 19th best worldwide in the awards.
This is the second year running the Doolin B&B has claimed Ireland’s top spot.
Susan Daly, owner of the B&B, said it was fantastic to see their business being recognised by guests. She said the B&B, which has been open for 35 years, relied on word-of-mouth for bookings and publicity for many years.
“Our relationship with other B&Bs has also been very important for referrals. But over the last number of years a lot of this has moved online so that visibility is very important,” she said. “We do rely on people to do those online reviews to help keep that visibility. But it’s a mixture of that with repeat guests.”
Last year, with restrictions on international travel during the pandemic, all bookings came from the Irish market, says Ms Daly. The B&B is not yet fully booked for this summer but Ms Daly says there has been plenty of domestic interest while bookings are starting to come in for later in the year from the US.
Rockcrest House in Kenmare was ranked second best in Ireland and secured the 11th spot in the European rankings.
Number one
The Toulson Court B&B in Scarborough on the east coast of England was named the number one rated B&B in the world in the poll.
Greenmount House in Dingle, Co Kerry claimed the top spot for the most romantic place to stay in Ireland, while Heaton's Guesthouse, also in Dingle, was voted the best small hotel to stay in.
Heaton’s Guesthouse was also voted sixth in the European small hotels category while Castlewood House in Dingle claimed the 7th spot and Greenmount House the 10th spot on the European list.
Voters’ overall choice for best hotel to stay in in Ireland went to the Killarney Park in Co Kerry followed by The Morrison in Dublin, Manor West Hotel in Tralee and Ashford Castle in Cong.
The annual Tripadvisor awards are calculated using online reviews which guests can voluntarily leave following their stays. This year’s awards were based on reviews left between January 2020 and last December, a time when international travel almost ground to a halt because of Covid-19.
Internationally, Hotel Colline de France, a French Chateau in Gramado, southern Brazil, was named the best rated hotel in the world for 2021, while the Luxury Villa Excelsior Parco in Capri, Italy was named the best rated small hotel.
