WE'RE rather spoiled by the fact that we live in Ireland, writes Englishmum.
When people come to visit, it’s hard to know exactly what to know what to do with them; it’s a bit like offering people a tour of your back garden: quite difficult to make it interesting when you see it every day.
Recently my dad visited, and in our quest for new things to do, we decided to visit Bellinter House in County Meath. This beautiful Palladian mansion, just an hour from central Dublin, makes for a handy bolt-hole and a great base from which to visit the many amazing and mystical places that County Meath has to offer.
The ancient Hill of Tara is well worth a visit (adult tickets €3, senior/group: €2.00, child/student €1.00, family: €8.00) although ultimately might be slightly disappointing to children as it is, in essence, just an enormous hill.
A ramble up to the top is well worth it, though: it is said that you can see over a quarter of Ireland from its highest point. Also a short drive away is the stunning Megalithic burial mound at Newgrange, dating back to 3200BC. The Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre is well managed and interesting. The simulation of the Winter Solstice in the chamber is atmospheric and a little spooky, although possibly not for the claustrophobic! The lovely castle town of Trim is also nearby, and for the shopaholic, there are plenty of good shops in Navan, less than 10 minutes’ drive away.
Feeling hungry, we headed back to Bellinter House. Worryingly, to get to the Eden Restaurant, you have to climb down a very scary spiral staircase (slightly daunting for my dad with his titanium knees), but RoboGrandad managed admirably and once you’re down there, the dining room is light and airy with quite a trendy 60s feel to it. The staff are friendly, welcoming, lovely with children and really knowledgeable. Our food was absolutely spectacular, complemented perfectly by a couple of bottles of amazingly good chilled Rosé. Highlights included Eden Smokies (smoked haddock, spring onions, crème fraiche and cheddar), and the roasted cod main course on a bed of crushed potatoes and delicious asparagus.
The desserts were nothing short of mind blowing. My oldest son had to protect his raspberry and chocolate gateau from invading forks and my iced nougat with an apricot coulis was delicious and beautifully presented.
Bellinter is set in over 12 acres of beautiful parkland, and with free wellies on offer, there’s no excuse for lounging (although with so many comfy nooks and crannies around the house, it’s tempting to curl up with a good book). We decided to walk off our dinner, though, and headed for a small waddle around the gardens, which brought us face to face with Diarmuid Gavin’s weird ‘installation’, originally designed for the Chelsea Flower Show – it’s a big egg shaped thing made up of lots of little balls, all individually screwed on.
Weird but really tactile and strangely fascinating. For the less adventurous, the Bathhouse Spa offers a huge array of treatments, and a spectacular infinity pool. There’s even an outdoor tub!
For the more energetic, this friendly hotel can arrange a whole host of activities like horse riding, fishing, clay pigeon shooting and even hot air ballooning. Ask the staff about day trips to nearby Causey Farm (the ‘bog jumping’ is very messy but highly recommended by my sons).
The facts:
For more information and to book online visit: www.bellinterhouse.comCheck the website for special offers, including great deals on midweek breaks or email: info@bellinterhouse.com.
Aer Lingus and Ryanair both fly regularly to Dublin Airport. For more information, check out: www.ryanair.com, http://aerlingus.com and www.dublinairport.com.
For car rental information, visit: www.dublinairport.com/to-and-from/car-rentals
For information on Brú na Bóinne visit here.
Causey Farm: www.causey.ie
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