4 Best Hotels in County Clare, Galway, and the Aran Islands, Ireland

Built for Sir Augustine Fitzgerald, this enchanting, 18th-century Italianate-style lodge sits amid 15 private acres on an exhilarating, Wuthering Heights–like windswept cliff top that's a three-minute drive from Lahinch. It's a world away from the bustling seaside resort—a peaceful haven, where you are made to feel like you're a guest in a privately owned country house. The use of Liscannor stone is at odds with the velvet sofas, marble fireplaces, and gilt-frame paintings, but the building comes into its own once the ocean comes into the frame, particularly in the dining room. Upstairs, brocade curtains and Oriental rugs complement the guest rooms' Georgian and Victorian polished-mahogany antiques. Some rooms have open fires, some have freestanding cast-iron bathtubs, six have stunning sea views, and two overlook the pretty, sheltered garden. Once you settle in, enjoy a drink at the honesty bar in the elegant drawing room (help yourself, and write it down); in bad weather, curl up with a book in the peaceful library. Staying in one of the six rooms with a view is a worthy splurge. The farm-to-fork dining room is open to nonguests and offers a tasting menu from Tuesday to Saturday, when diners can devour the bay views.

Following its cool and cutting-edge brothers in Dublin and Cork, the Dean has added a splash of design to drab Prospect Hill, offering state-of-the-art facilities and trendy dining to the West. The 100 bedrooms offer quality bedding, rainfall power showers, Netflix-enabled smart TVs, Marshall Amps and retro record players, along with Brooks toiletries. The popular Elephant and Castle Restaurant from Temple Bar in Dublin makes an appearance along with Sophies Rooftop Restaurant, a bar and restaurant with city views. The Dean is in the city center.

Sheltered from noise on a one-way street with views overlooking the River Corrib, the House Hotel is arguably Galway's best-appointed property, just a stone's throw from the best of the city's vibrant restaurant and pub scene and a two-minute walk from the Quays. The intimate boutique style has endured even with a change of ownership in 2017, and rooms are contemporary and smart, with modern en suites and sharp linen. The reception area is a small, popular meeting place with a trendy bar.

If a town the size and scale of Kilkee can have a grande dame property, then the Stella Maris is the place; it's a handsome, charming little hotel close to the sea, with a contemporary country style. It has served the town well ever since it was constructed back in 1853 as a coast-guard regional headquarters so expect to see some old-timers lingering in the lobby or lounge. Now spruced up with a mix of plaid and impressionist art, the Stella Maris also offers excellent views and close proximity to Kilkee's horseshoe-shape beach.