It’s ‘something of a mystery tour’ getting to this ‘fine-looking’ pale-pink Georgian house, ‘but utterly worth it’, says a Guide inspector.

‘Utter comfort – a fire lit after breakfast in the drawing room, drinks from the bar when needed.’ An endorsement from a regular visitor, following another stay at this family-run hotel.

With a seven-a-side soccer pitch, glamping tents, Bertha’s Revenge Gin distilled in a converted cattle shed, and breakfast served until noon, this is no run-of-the-mill hotel.

‘We were charmed by the hotel and its attentive staff.’ Guide regulars declared John Edward Joyce’s country house hotel ‘in a class of its own’ in 2019, with praise for the man himself: ‘Mr Joyce has a gift for hospitality.’

Bobbie Smith is the welcoming heart and soul of this B&B in a former 19th-century rectory, which she runs with her daughter. It’s a ‘hidden gem’, say readers, with ‘tasteful and fine decor and furniture’, ‘exemplary comfort and service’.

Small wonder visitors linger at this inviting, creeper-covered Georgian mansion on the Clew Bay shoreline.

A tree’s length from medieval Carlingford, this pretty Georgian house sits in mature walled gardens.

Off the beaten track, four generations of Verity Butterfield’s family have lived in this ‘impressive’ Georgian house, with ‘divine’ views down rolling meadow to a spring-fed lough.

Much loved by a loyal following, this ‘very special’, creeper-clad pink Georgian country house is a beacon of hospitality in wild Connemara.

Far from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, this rambling property next to the River Varty claims to be Ireland’s oldest coaching inn.

On the shores of Lough Eske, a traditional hotel run with old-fashioned care by the Gysling family.

In ‘a spectacular position’, cradled by a mountain range, this Victorian fishing lodge is a remote and peaceful place.

In a town on the Ring of Kerry, Andrew and Kate Cooke’s ‘buzzing’ destination restaurant and ‘quirky, boutique-style’ bedrooms provide ‘a brilliant base for a boat trip to the Skellig Islands’.

A ten-minute walk along a quiet path from Donegal, Theresa and Albert Morrow’s modern rustic B&B within a working farm provides ‘great value’.

‘A real discovery.’ In a ‘first-rate setting’ on the Beara peninsula, this good-value hotel on the water’s edge overlooks a harbour brimming with fishing boats and big ships.