The Midlands Hotels

Midlands Hotel Reviews

The Irish bed-and-breakfast still reigns supreme in the Midlands—farmhouses and homes geared to paying guests offer direct contact with local families and the lore of their area. Time was when these kinds of accommodations veered toward the spartan—not anymore. Good beds, decent heating, en suite bathrooms, and the legendary Irish breakfast are now the norm; broadband, 32-inch TVs, and computer games courtesy of the landlady's kids are often part of the bargain.

Although B&Bs may not offer the same kind of privacy as hotels, they still work delightfully well as the ultimate way to meet genuine Irish folk—a bird's-eye view into working families and the organized chaos of a country household.

As commercial progress has blossomed in the Midlands, so, too, have the options in hotels, country houses, and cottage rentals increased. Pretty much every town now has more than one decent hotel—most with health centers and spa facilities.

From June to early September, tourism gets into serious stride, bolstered by the many Irish families using their holiday homes and getaway cottages in the region.

Finding accommodation is never a major problem—except for those weekends when a town is holding an annual music festival.

Tourist offices generally cope bravely with these seasonal influxes and if you arrive without local knowledge or reservations, there's rarely a problem that can't be solved with a few phone calls.

At a rock concert in Abbeyleix a few years ago, we heard that four travelers found temporary lodgings in a convent, but that's another story altogether....

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