Kenmare and the Ring of Kerry - Ireland 2014 - page 301

(daily 10:00-17:00, located 5 miles southwest of Kenmare on R-571 on Beara Peninsula,
courtesy shuttle can pick you up in Kenmare, tel. [phone], www.staroutdoors.ie ; ad-
jacent Con's Restaurant is open daily 12:00-21:00).
Goling
Another way to experience Ireland's 40 shades of green is to splurge on a scenic day on
the links. The Kenmare Golf Club is right on the edge of town (€35 greens fee June-Aug,
€25 Sept-May, on R-569 toward Cork, tel. [phone], www.kenmaregolfclub.com ).
Or try the Ring of Kerry Golf and Country Club (€40 greens fee, 4 miles west of town on
N-70, prebook on weekends, tel. [phone], www.ringofkerrygolf.com ) .
Nightlife in Kenmare
Music in Pubs
Wander the compact Kenmare town triangle and stick your head in wherever you hear
something you like. Music usually starts at 21:30 (although some pubs have early 18:30
sessions—ask at the TI) and ranges from Irish traditional sessions to sing-along strum-
mers. Crowley's is an atmospheric little shoebox of a pub with an unpretentious clientele.
Foley's jug-stacked window invites you in for a folksy songfest. The recommended Lans-
downe Arms Hotel sponsors live traditional sessions in their Bold Thady Quill Bar.
Sleeping in Kenmare
$$$ Lansdowne Arms Hotel is the town's venerable grand hotel, with generous public
spaces. This centrally located, 200-year-old historic landmark rents 26 large, crisp rooms
(Sb-€50-85, Db-€80-150, Tb-€165-225; online discounts, music in pub until late on
Fri-Sat, Wi-Fi, parking, corner of Main and Shelbourne Streets, tel. [phone],
www.lansdownearms.com , [e-mail] ) .
$$$ Sallyport House, an elegant, quiet house with five rooms filled with antique
furniture, has been in Helen Arthur's family for generations. Ask her to point out the
foot-worn doorstep that was salvaged from the local workhouse and built into her stone
chimney (Sb-€70-110, Db-€100-140, Tb-€130-160, closed Novmid-March, cash only, no
kids, parking, 5-minute walk south of town before crossing Our Lady's Bridge, tel. 064/
664-2066, www.sallyporthouse.com , [e-mail] ) .
$$ Hawthorn House is a fine, modern, freestanding house with a lounge, a warm and
classy hostess, and 10 comfy rooms sporting fine woodwork courtesy of Mr. O'Brien,
who's also a carpenter. Its quiet residential location is just a block from all the pub and