Let's put it clearly : Either you'll fall in love with this place, either you'll wonder how you end…read moreup in this secluded place. My rating shows that I may have made my choice ! Let's start with a little history : the place has always been a youth hostel, used by the An Oige association, but was abandoned during several years. A congregation of people (mainly hiking/hillclimbing enthousiats) re-conquered it and finally re-opened it in 2013, still as a YH, but with a more... old-school way of running it. It won't be like your hotel-like YH in center San Francisco. The cons : the place has no drinkable water (but you'll find 5l jugs of still water in the house), it's still needing a lot of refurbishing to seem perfectly clean (especially the plumbing system...) and, as it may be seen as a bad thing for some, it's far from everything. Like 3km from the nearest bus stop, 10km from the nearest shop in Recess, and 20km from Clifden. But hey, you're here for the adventure, aren't you ? The pros : Being absolutely lost, the location is great. You'll find yourself on the foot of Ben Lettery, one of the Connemara Bens (and the easiest to climb... If the weather is OK), in the middle of lakes, sheeps, forests, and sheeps. The place is run by a rotating crew of really nice people, in a kind of a laid-back way. Relaxing in the living room, drinking a beer, chatting with people watching the scenery... Isn't it life ? It feels like your grandma's house in the countryside... It may be a bit dusty, and may not have all of modern amenities, but it's cosy, comforting, and inviting you for more.

Much love for this place... Much love indeed! This was the perfect place to stay for my active…read moreweekend away; was near the coast in Connemara, close to amazing hiking trails like Diamind Hill, Maamturks, 12 Bens plus the scenery makes for amazing cycles and beautiful drives. This place was recommended by a friend who stayed recently and it did not disappoint, it pitches itself as luxury budget accommodation and it was just that, cheap at just €50 for double room en-suite per night and had all the comforts and cleanliness I look for in a hotel but with our active itinerary we wanted to be close to the action yet not in a hostel! Owner Mike and the staff really make this place special, warmly welcome and throughout our stay, were lovely and genuine. They offered great advice on local hiking trails plus some tips on cycling routes which I'm so glad they did, Alan's recommendation on a route for cycling of the Connemara Loop ended in such a scenic trail with lakes and mountain back drops. There is an on site restaurant and bar too which is; 1. Great Value 2. Amazingly Tasty and Portioned well 3. Cosy place to unwind after activities Will be coming back here for sure and already gave this place a mention to a colleague wanting to see the best of Connemara this summer. Keep up the great work folks, see ye again soon :-)

This place was a godsend. Tried and failed twice to pitch my tent in the rainy, marshy part of…read moreConnemara. Gave up and made my way here. Turned out to have the best food in Ireland, awesome people (staff and guests), and was super affordable. This is the best hostel I have stayed at in a long time!

This hostel has an adjoined pub, and it is THE place to be on Achill. During the day it's a chilled…read moreout pub, with some lovely food around a tenner (pizza's & grub) and in the evening it turns into party central. All locals and visitors in the area gather here for a good aul (trad) session. Bring your own instrument, or use one of the many instruments in the pub. Anyone can join in! If you are not particularly musically talented, no worries, just sit back, relax and drink a few pints. Prepare to wake up next day with a massive hangover, as this place does lock ins till the wee hours. Great craic!

We chose this hostel based on the great reviews and it's proximity to the Cliffs of Moher. We…read morearrived at night via car. We had a private room and it had all the amenities we needed. It shares a parking lot with its sister location Doolin Inn. Breakfast was included in our stay and was pretty good. The staff here is absolutely amazing. They were so sweet to us and even when I had called to ask about a first aid kit they came across the street to bring it to me. The beds were very comfy and the water very refreshing. I highly recommend this location to young travelers.

Doolin Hostel is located fairly well... as central as you could possibly be in Doolin. Either…read moreside of the hostel, down the street you can find pub/restaurants. And you can walk down to the coast in about 10-15 minutes. It is rather easy to spot, as it stands out on a little hill and it is a yellow building. If you are bringing a group, on a coach, beware that it will be very difficult to get the coach up the drive into the car park and it could be very difficult to get the coach turned around. If you are driving a car, you shouldn't have any difficulty, just watch out for the walkers in the road. The website looked nice and it was fairly easy to organize things with the staff. I arranged, for an extra €3 per person, a continental breakfast for our group. However, was a little disappointed that it consisted of bread, juice, and milk. The staff member that helped us check in was really nice and tried to give us ideas of what the students could do. The rooms were ok, but really cold. There was one little radiator between the bunk bed and the double bed, but didn't seem to be on and there were no extra blankets. I was meant to have a single, but ended up with 2 bunk beds, a double bed, and another twin bed. The bathroom in my room was quite small... the toilet on one end, sink in the middle, and shower head on the other end. The problem was that the shower control consisted of a push button, but it only runs for a minute, and then you have to push it again. This can be a problem if you have shampoo in your hair and it is running into your eyes and you can't find the button... There is free wifi in the lobby area and that was nice, although there was our group and another group there and the lounge just didn't seem large enough for everyone to be watching t.v., on their computer, or sitting in front of the small fire. The kitchen area is very nice and very large so if you want to cook a dinner instead of going out, you have the facilities... the only problem is finding a store where you can get items to cook. The hostel does have stock some groceries for purchase, but not a huge variety. At night there is no staff around and not sure if there is a way to contact the staff if there is an emergency. I say this because the other group that was staying in the hostel (probably about 14-15 year olds) were wreaking havoc and their leader (who I think was in the room next to me) was having an epic telephone call in which she was yelling about the whole thing... and it may have been helpful to have a staff member from the hostel to help calm the situation down. Overall, for a hostel I would say that it is fairly standard, more to toward the basic side, but if you are on a budget and you aren't going to spend much time in the hostel or just passing through, then it may be for you. If you are looking for a more relaxing place to stay with a few more amenities, you may want to continue your search.

For a hostel, this place is top notch. Very clean, staff friendly and helpful. And the location…read more.. well, it couldn't be more convenient. Train station is one block away plus in the middle of all the city centre action.

My friend and I came to Galway for one night and I have to say it was probably one of my favourite…read moreparts of my whole trip. The hostel was located about a 2 minute walk from the bus station, so we were able to find it very quickly. It's also located right across from Eyre Square and a short walk from Market St, Merchant St, and all the fun shopping/bar areas. Brian checked us in and we got set up in an 8-bed room. He was really informative and let us know that there was dinner and a pub crawl happening at the hostel that night, and also gave us a map and pointed out all the great things to do around Galway. He also helped us book a tour to the Cliffs of Moher the following day. Our room was great. The beds were pretty comfortable, there were storage lockers underneath our beds, and outlets right next to our beds. The set up was great and made for travellers! The bathrooms and showers were also super clean (the cleanest by far throughout our whole trip!), which was pretty exciting for us. For €10, we also participated in the pub crawl that evening and had an amazing time. Megan, who was the tour leader was so much fun and took us to some great spots. Overall, this hostel was amazing and one of the best I've stayed in. If I'm ever back in Galway, I'd happily stay here again.

Two nights here and they were fabulous. I chose one of the private rooms with an en-suite bathroom…read more Not that I'm too good for sharing - I did stay in a capsule hotel in Zurich not too many years ago - but I did not feel up to it for this trip. Also, the price difference wasn't enough to make it worth it. My room was clean, quiet, large enough and very pleasant. Bathroom was clean and the shower was fully enclosed. Plenty of hot water. Other than hanging out in the "cafe" a bit to write some Yelp reviews one evening, I did not use the restaurant. I also didn't use their parking as there is free street parking all around Galway as long as the signs don't show restricted. I did use my Dublin Leap card to ride the bus in Galway - the outbound stop is directly in front of the hostel. They have a laundry facility and I ran one load. No worries other than it's a bit slow. I would absolutely stay here again. Next time, I'll book direct and save a bit. [Review 1928 of 2024 - 110 in Republic of Ireland - 22950 overall]

This hostel had a decent size room for my friend and I. The beach is only a short walk away & other…read moretouristy destinations like pubs, clubs, and shops are only a 6 minute drive away or a 20-25 minute walk.

Located 20 minutes from Shannon Airport, Rowan Tree Hostel is the cutest little hostel located in…read morethe cutest little town! This is probably the cleanest and tidiest place I've EVER stayed whilst traveling! Great access to the city centre... maybe a two minute walk down the road? Beautiful grounds and a restaurant on site. Ennis is a lovely little place to visit. This place is almost too nice to be considered a hostel.... it was honestly so lovely! Give this place a visit and make sure to visit Ennis! Great for live music.

I really don't understand why this hostel has received such great reviews. When traveling, a few…read morethings are very important; good WiFi and clean washrooms. This hostel had neither. WiFi is only available in the kitchen and lobby. As soon as you go into another area of the hostel, the WiFi cuts off. I even tried going to the living room next to the lobby, and I lost the WiFi connection. Washrooms were plain weird. You had one huge washroom in a room for 8 people, and there were no curtains or anything to keep the water from leaving the shower area. So basically, after you showered you were walking around on a wet floor trying not to fall. Also, you have to bring your own towel or pay to use one. Breakfast was average. You got toast, a couple of fruit options, jam, butter, 2 choices of cereal and coffee/tea.

If you are looking for a great pub on Inishmore, Aran Islands, County Galway, Ireland. I highly…read morerecommend Tigh Joe Mac. It is located near the Kilronan Pier. Great Pub to watch sporting events and enjoy a great pint of Guinness. Having gone to this pub three times it is consistently good. This establishment rates five stars and more! It should be noted I am originally from Dublin Ireland and lived in the United States for over thirty years and served in the United States Marines all over the world. I definitely know a great pub from all my life experiences and travels all over the world. I definitely will return in the near future! A must visit if you are looking for great pints of Guinness.You definitely won't be disappointed!

Stopped in for just one pint. No food that I saw but they do serve packaged snacks and take out…read morespirits. More of a local establishment with many/most Irish speaking patrons including Irish talk radio. Traditional low table seats. I would not recommend bringing children/family since it's more of a bar scene. FYI: As of this review, the Yelp location is about 1/4 mile incorrect.