2 Best Hotels in Clifden, Connemara and County Mayo

An old town house in the lower, quieter part of Clifden has been extended and converted into a comfortable guesthouse with private parking. The town's bars and restaurants are only two minutes' walk away, yet there can be sheep grazing on a grassy enclosure across the road. Rooms are a good size, with hotel-like features including adjustable radiators, swagged floral curtains, and efficient showers. Help yourself to tea and coffee in the residents' lounge, a good place to compare notes with fellow travelers. The breakfast room has a pine floor and white damask cloths, and the homemade bread is accompanied by homemade jams.

Nineteenth-century time travelers would feel right at home in this three-story, town-center Georgian house, Clifden's oldest building (1820) that once housed the harbormaster. The ancestral portraits, mounted fish, Victorian engravings, and cosseting fabrics all lend a frozen-in-amber allure. It's made all the more homey by touches like model boats and, alas, a few too many animal-skin rugs. A roaring turf fire in the living room greets you as you enter the burnished breakfast room, while the nearby terrace has been gloriously sheathed in glass for a conservatory feel. The peaceful setting by the harbor quay ensures a good night's sleep and the guest rooms are unusually spacious; those in the main house are imaginatively decorated with deep-color walls and wonderful period accents; all but two have sea views. There's also a new wing with seven studio rooms with balconies overlooking the harbor.