Adare is known as a popular destination for tourists but is set to welcome even more visitors than usual in a little over three years’ time as the 2027 Ryder Cup is set to roll in to the small Co Limerick village.
The hotel and golf resort of Adare Manor will be hosting the tournament and as golf fans scramble to land a place to stay during the competition, rental prices in the region are already going through the roof and into the stratosphere.
Rather than forking out €40,000 in rent, a price quoted for a four-bedroom house in Castletroy during the tournament, you could get much closer to the action at Number 5 the Demesne located on the grounds of Adare Manor.
One of a development of 19 homes built on the gated grounds just a short walk from the golf course, you could conceivably step out your front door and spot Rory McIlroy looking for a stray ball in your landscaped front lawn.
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Pat Niland from Co Galway and her husband, Ray, from Co Mayo, bought the substantial 0.6-acre site in 2007 and hired architects Douglas Wallace to supervise the design and building of a big, light-filled home with double-height windows, big bedrooms and a huge lobby laid in rich Portuguese marble with a sweeping staircase to an expansive landing.
“Ray was great with the marble floors,” Pat says. “He flew to Portugal to visit a quarry and pick out the tiles.”
Sadly Ray, a former consultant ophthalmic surgeon at University Hospital Limerick and GAA star who played intercounty football for both Mayo and Galway, died just three years after the family moved in to their dream home by the golf course.
Pat, an avid golfer, regularly uses the practice ground at Adare Manor and has decided the time is right to downsize; she’s planning to move to Dublin to be closer to her grown-up children, including her son, former professional tennis player Conor Niland, who competed at Wimbledon and at the US, French and Australian opens.
It’s a chance for another sport-loving family to enjoy the idyllic setting of this exclusive enclave, and this B1-rated 632sq m (6,802sq ft) home, with six bedrooms and seven bathrooms, is for sale through Sherry FitzGerald, seeking €2.25 million.
The property stretches out on either side of a large terrace at the front, and the double-height entrance hallway is designed to impress, particularly the marble staircase, which is supported by a huge stone pillar. The hallway is filled with light – a theme that runs through the house.
To the left is the kitchen and informal dining area, with fully fitted McNally kitchen units and Miele appliances, and a gas fire in the dining area.
There’s a separate pantry off the kitchen and an island with plenty of worktop space. This family hub leads to a more formal diningroom, with a big marble fireplace with a gas fire, and doors out to the garden.
There’s also a large utility room with ample storage units and a plant room housing the heating system. There’s even a water softener installed. This leads into a garage for one car, with an electric roller door.
To the right of the hallway is a cosy family lounge with an enclosed gas fire, leading to a large, dual-aspect formal drawingroom with a marble fireplace fitted with a gas fire, and a feature “floating” ceiling with recessed spotlights. Off the hallway is a guest WC, a cloakroom and a hidden piece of futureproofing: a lift that brings you to the first floor.
On the first floor, the landing has become a living space in itself, overlooking the hallway and looking out through the double-height windows to the lush greenery of the Adare Manor grounds.
There are six bedrooms at this level, including the supersized main bedroom, with its own large en suite bathroom clad in Portuguese marble and a huge dressingroom. Three of the other bedrooms have en suites tiled in neutral, timeless colours, while two of the bedrooms share a Jack-and-Jill bathroom.
You’d almost miss the discreet staircase on the landing that leads to the second floor, which has two large rooms that can be used as guest bedrooms, a home gym/yoga room or a games room – the choice is yours.
The walled gardens have now nicely matured with plenty of trees offering privacy, and seasonal shrubs and box hedging in place. There’s a large limestone paved patio to the rear which has more than enough space to entertain guests at those Ryder Cup garden parties you’ll be hosting.
The house is also the closest to Adare village, says Pat, and a handy side gate will get you straight into the village without having to take the long way via the front gates of the estate.
