Kilkea Golf Resort On Offer

Clubhouse

Kilkea Castle, Countyu Kildare, one of Ireland's best known historic hotels, together with its golf resort.

When the owner Arnosford Ltd placed it on the market last year the asking price was €16m. Now the receiver Jim Hamilton of BDO is asking for €6m.

Sitting on 140 acres the sale includes its 18 hole golf course and clubhouse as well as 27 of the 33 lodges. With its scenic castle backdrop, the hotel catered for up to 160 weddings a year at its peak attracting business from Dublin as well as the nearby towns of Castledermot, Athy and Carlow.

Paul Collins of agents CB Richard Ellis points out that it is conveniently located between junctions three and four of the M9 motorway linking the capital to Waterford and also linking to the M7 and Kildare's major towns.

A four star hotel, its accommodation includes 36 en suite bedrooms, a dining room, bar, two function rooms, a leisure centre with a 15m swimming pool and a fully equipped gym.

Of the 27 lodges included in the sale, nine have been completed each with three en suite bedrooms. Some of the others are substantially completed while others are at various stages of construction.

Other properties on the estate and included in the sale include a 27-bedroom staff block, an attractive stone cut gate lodge and an extensive disused nightclub and bar.

Arnosford was headed by American Dave Conway and had a lease agreement with another company Leoville which operated the hotel before it separately went into liquidation.

The 18 hole championship parkland golf course facilities include a three-storey purpose built clubhouse which includes a restaurant, bar, pro shop, snooker room and meeting rooms. The golf course was also very popular having approximately 135 members when it closed down from a peak of 290.

Originally built in 1180 by Norman warrior Hugh de Lacy, the castle is one of the largest inhabited castles in Ireland.