Fodor's Expert Review Moy House

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.