A range of hoteliers and investors from Ireland and overseas are expected to run the rule over the sale of Cahermoyle House in Co Limerick.
Acquired by the current owners, Urban Green, from McKinnon Investments in 2018, the historic 49-bedroom period manor is being offered to the market by joint agents CBRE and GVM auctioneers. While a guide price has not been set, the property and its 43-acre estate are expected to secure in the region of €3 million.
Constructed originally in 1871, Cahermoyle House has both historical and architectural significance. The property, which was built by Edward Smith O’Brien, son of William Smith O’Brien, an Irish nationalist MP and leader of the Young Ireland movement, has a distinctive Venetian palazzo design with Tuscan, Romanesque and Gothic styles also evident.
Designed by JJ McCarthy, an architect renowned for his work during the 19th century Gothic revival, the house retains many of its original period features including marble fireplaces, decorative cornicing, timber panelling and a dramatic double-height entrance hall. The hall features an ambulatory on the ground and first floors, separated from the lobby by rendered arcades with column capitals depicting different scenes, including cows and milkmaids, hunting dogs and boars.
Today, the house which extends to 36,500sq ft, comprises 49 guest bedrooms along with a restaurant, lounge, whiskey bar, banqueting and meeting facilities. The wider 17.4-hectare (43-acre) estate comprises a mix of farmland and mature woodland and features a private chapel, traditional outbuildings, a walled garden, a gardener’s residence and an outdoor swimming pool.
The property is not trading at present and offers the prospective purchaser the opportunity to reposition it for a number of uses, subject to planning permission.
Cahermoyle House’s most obvious potential is in the area of high-end hospitality given its proximity to Adare Manor, which is due to host the upcoming Ryder Cup golf event in September 2027.
Susan Joyce of CBRE’s hotel division says “opportunities to acquire a historic estate of this scale and character are rare”.
“Cahermoyle House combines architectural quality, land and an attractive location close to Adare. The flexibility of use will appeal to a broad range of buyers, from hospitality, and medical operators to private purchasers seeking a substantial country residence.”