Name: Earl Of Desmond
Address: Tralee County Kerry,, Tralee, Tralee, Tralee, 0, Ireland
Rating: 8

24-hour reception

Elevator/lift

Smoke-free property

Heating

Garden

General

Bridal suite

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Hairdryer

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Bathtub

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Linens

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Safe-deposit box

Luggage storage

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Telephone

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Coffee/tea for guests

Restaurant

Vending machine

Kettle

Meals

Internet access

Internet

German

English

Languages Spoken

Beach/pool towels

Pool and beach

Event facilities

Fax and copy machine

Business

Pets Not Allowed

Pets

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Kerry County Airport

Earl Of Desmond

Tralee

I don’t usually write hotel reviews, however I feel compelled to warn anyone about this ‘hotel’. 

If there were other hotels or B and B’s with availability in Tralee on the night we stayed we would have left and gone elsewhere. That is how bad this place was. However, we had to stay as everywhere was booked up because of the Mayo v Kerry match and a huge local wedding. 

With the hotel being rated 3 stars before arrival my friend and I were under no illusion that luxury was not expected. However, we did expect certain very basic requirements to be met such as cleanliness, friendliness, food, shower facilities etc … These were not. 

Upon arriving, the first impression from the outset is that of a very tired establishment that is in need of major renovations. The car park was completely empty which immediately set alarm bells ringing. The entry way had tins of white paint on the doors with no sign to say the paint was wet. If we hadn’t noticed we would have been covered in white paint. 

The first impression was that this is not a busy hotel that was busy for the match and a local wedding (which a taxi man told us) and some last last stitch attempts had been frantically made to make it somewhat presentable. 

Upon entry the hotel was dead. One receptionist and no guests to be seen or heard. We proceeded to the “check in” desk and there was not even a “hello” or any greeting. No “how was your trip” or anything. 

We asked this very hostile looking gentleman whether our room was ready. We were told it would be ready in 20 minutes and to have a drink in the bar. We had to search for the bar as no direction was given. The overall communication from all staff was terrible expect one housekeeper who was lovely. 

When we got to the bar we ordered Guinness. It was very stale and the top had a tinge of yellow. We could only drink half of the pint. The gentleman from reception came into the bar within 5 minutes and asked if we wanted a double or two single beds. This was strange as we booked a triple room and one of the party could not make it. However the hotel was not informed of this at the time. We were told the room is ready when you have finished your drinks. 

We asked to pay and the card machine had to be “located” and plugged in and the dust blown off of it. It was rather obvious from the start of this trip that the hotel is incredibly disorganised and there is a lack of oversight and trained management. 

We picked up the old fashioned physical key from reception. This was the strangest check in experience of my life. Nothing to sign. No information given about the hotel. Not told the check out time or when breakfast started and ended. The only information we were told is where the room was. 

Our walk to the room was bizarre. Every door of each room was wide open, held by a chair. I have never seen this in a hotel. The windows of each room were also open so a gale was blowing down the corridor. However, even the gale could bring hide the strong smells akin to that of a hospital that filled the corridor. We could see that the furniture in each room varies dramatically when walking along the open doorways too. 

When we got to our room our door was also held open by a chair. Until then I thought it was only the rooms being cleaned (which was somewhat understandable). The room itself is in need of renovation. The bathroom was the best part and was visibly more modern. The only positive was that the bathroom and bed appeared clean.  We were given a double room not the triple as paid for. This was not a problem as I said one of our party cancelled. But the hotel did not know this so it was strange that we were given this room. 

However, upon opening one of the drawers my friend was greeted by a dead daddy long legs.  This immediately turned our stomach and made us question the actual cleanliness of the room.  

My friend took the hair dryer out of the draw and turned it on. It made the loudest noise I have ever heard from an electrical device and a puff of dust came out of it. Very minted toiletries were provided in the bathroom. 

The purpose of our trip was to attend the Mayo V Kerry match which was not until 7:30pm. It was about 1pm at this stage and we were starving for some lunch after the drive from Mayo to Tralee. From a hotel you expect to be able to get something to eat in the middle of the day. There was no lunch service on this Saturday afternoon and an electronic sign read that there was no Sunday lunch until further notice. 

Therefore we had to get a taxi into Tralee in order to get fed. We asked the receptionist to call us a taxi. At this stage two receptionists were on the desk. One said “waking is better” in a sarcastic tone. This suggested walking for over an hour on a busy main road with no footpath. The other receptionist rang the taxi and was exceptionally rude to both us and the taxi company. Neither of these receptionist are suited to front of house roles. They have zero customer service skills and training is needed. We are 25 and 26 respectively and were spoken to like children. Very condescending staff. 

The taxi man was a lovely guy who informed us that he thought the Earl of Desmond was actually closed down. This shows how this hotel is avoided and for good reason. 

We had lunch in the Grand Hotel in Tralee town and it was fabulous. A huge difference between both establishments. Lovely staff and excellent service. The food was wonderful. 

We brought all our things for the match with us and stayed away from the Earl of Desmond until 11:30pm that night. That is how bad it was. We didn’t want to be in the place for longer than we absolutely had to. 

Upon return at 11:30pm the car park appeared full. There were maximum 20 people in the front bar and we had a drink. The atmosphere was that miserable and the staff that cold that we actually took our drinks back to the room. 

We turned on the TV in the room and the channel selection was limited and was in black and white. At this stage we could only laugh. 

I looked up online what time check out was as again we had not been informed. It was at 11 as opposed to the usual 12 with a 50% fee of the next night if late check out. Obviously not being told this at reception was not a mistake but a strategic move on the hotels part to earn more money. 

We woke at 7am and I headed down to check the breakfast area at 8:30am, unsure if breakfast was even provided due to the lack of communication on check in. 

The breakfast room was more akin to a hospital canteen than a hotel. I checked the buffet and the rashers were swimming in about an inch or two of oil and the eggs looked hard and greasy. We decided it was best not to chance eating the breakfast and we went to McDonalds drive thru instead. This is how bad it was. 

Check out was similar with no talk from the gentleman just a grab of the key off of us. 

I did not chance having a shower either as although the bathroom appeared clean the other aspects of uncleanliness put me off. 

All in all this hotel requires serious improvements. The staff are untrained, cold and rude. The faculties are tired. The food is inedible. There are serious cleanliness concerns. The worst place I have ever stayed. Not worth €176!!!

Worst Hotel in Ireland. Avoid at all Costs.

One of the worst places I’ve stayed in, the staff didn’t bother communicating with us when we arrived or left, we weren’t given any information sheet to sign just a giant key, we weren’t told what time check in was or anything. When we went to the bar it was empty and the Guinness was stale, our room was average, very outdated furniture, there was a dead daddy long legs in the drawer, the tv had barely any channels, there was no lunch available and  we didn’t chance eating the breakfast the next morning as the rashers were swimming in oil and the eggs were watery. It was way too overpriced for what we got. Most of the staff would need to improve their communication skills and make more of an effort, they clearly didn’t care about us and didn’t ask how out stay was. The hotel needs a lot of renovations, the paint colour on the walls was an off putting custard.

The worst hotel

I had an early meeting in Tralee, and decided to stay over the night before. I was looking for a clean, quiet room, easy parking, and a bar (I know, I know). 
I got that and more!

Yes, this caters to tour buses - so that means they unexpectedly had music on a Monday night! What fun as it was a night of country music, and the German tourists were dancing up a storm! A good time was had by all. 

The lobby lounge area had the wildest lighting & really neat colored sofas - my home now looks boring, let me tell you! A nice spot to sit & sip a drink and people watch. 

The room (1st floor) was spacious, very quiet, and spotless. There were USB Outlets & electric outlets to spare. The lights operated from bedside switches.  Soap in bathroom (no shampoo) but wasn’t expecting it (many places in Ireland don’t offer those amenities now that “plastic free” is a real goal, here). 

Breakfast was buffet (tour buses, remember) with plenty of options. Parking lot was easy to maneuver (Tralee hotels in town often don’t have easy parking options). 

I would definitely stay again. The staff (front desk at night; restaurant staff in the morning) were happy and engaging. AND I would call the hotel directly- it was nighttime when I phoned and I got a better rate than B O O K I N G. 

Not overly fancy - but exactly what I needed. 

Enjoy! 



Excellent value, clean & spacious 

WOW , what a fantastic hotel. we visited for 4 nights on a coach trip . I cannot praise the staff enough who run this hotel . 
From the reception desk to the restuarant and bar staff , they are all doing a wonderful job.   The choice of food was very good and the service was exceptional.  The food was always piping hot and a great choice for hot and cold breakfast . 
Our room was nice and clean .
I WOULD HAVE NO HESITATION ON A RETURN TO THIS HOTEL.
Well done to all concerned .

GREAT PLACE TO STAY

One of the best hotels ever on a coach holiday!  Modern hotel in a country setting, about 6 km. to Tralee. A pleasant walking track around the hotel by the river. Spacious rooms, lifts to upper floors. Professional staff having to cater for a constant stream of coach parties. Excellent food & menu choice. Would recommend & would stay again.

Wonderful stay

Just returned from the Killarney & Ring of Kerry with Caledonian Travel.This hotel is one of the best we have stayed in.All staff were lovely & cope very well with coach parties.Food was excellent and always piping hot.Bedrooms a bit dated but very clean.Would certainly return in the future.Coach driver Danny was excellent.

Second visit

We were on a coach tour. Lovely hotel. All staff friendly and helpful. Plenty of space in lounges. Entertainment very good. Rooms are large and spacious. Fried breakfast buffet or cereal, fruit, yogurt with plenty of choice. Evening meal had three choices of starters, main and dessert. Tea and coffee. Food was very good and the service is excellent. The staff work extremely hard to serve a lot of tables and this is done with the utmost efficiency and food was always fresh and hot. A big thank you to all the staff that make this hotel so comfortable for all their guests.

Excellent hotel.

The lobby decor was so vibrant and inviting.  Older hotel that was newly renovated.  Large rooms, very clean and a wonderful park like setting.  Breakfast was included and nicely done.  Gorgeous bouquet of fresh lilies were in the lobby.

Wonderful setting

Positives, lovely large clean comfortable hotel, excellent piping hot food, well presented and served efficiently by plenty of staff, beautifully kept gardens a treasure to explore.
Negatives, rude manager needs some customer care training! No good  entertainment, very repetitive and lacking, although has a great size Caberet room not put to full potential use! Hotel is isolated from town, need a taxi both ways, no buses., taxi cost 15 euro each way so makes it an expensive night out in the town, when the hotel could easily source some traditional Irish entertainment as the town was full of great groups and singers, but the manager totally lacking in interests of his guest requests, very disappointing attitude, will not stay here again solely for this reason

Lovely hotel but too isolated

This is a very pretty and well maintained hotel. The food is very good. 

Unfortunately the rooms are incredibly noisy. Two nights in a row we were woken every few minutes with slamming doors. Not just once or twice, but in to the hundreds. It didn’t help that they had a wedding where the guests thought it acceptable to use the corridors as a 1) race track 2) vomit bowl 3) pop idol audition stage. The drunk guy smashing down the corridor and vomiting at 03:00 was a great touch. 

It seems no attempt was made to put our guests away from the wedding party guests. No thought about rooms at all. The manager just dismissed me with ‘it’s the other guests’. Totally unconcerned for anyone not in the wedding party. 

Don’t stay here if you want a relaxing and peaceful sleep. 

Earl Of Desmond

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