{"id":389524,"date":"2026-04-09T08:37:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T08:37:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/389524\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T08:37:07","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T08:37:07","slug":"plans-revealed-for-new-backpackers-hostel-in-the-heart-of-abbeyfeale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/389524\/","title":{"rendered":"Plans revealed for new backpackers hostel in the heart of Abbeyfeale"},"content":{"rendered":"

A NEW tourist hostel is being planned<\/a> at the former Bank of Ireland building in the heart of Abbeyfeale.<\/p>\n

Permission is being sought to change the use of the building from financial to residential on its first and second floors to use as a backpackers hostel.<\/p>\n

The building operated as a branch of Bank of Ireland up until October 2021 when it closed down<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In the intervening period, Limerick City and County Council purchased the complex and used it to house international protection asylum seekers.<\/p>\n

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However, the local authority is now seeking the green light to have the site used for a hostel.<\/p>\n

It comes as a result of a feasibility study commissioned by Limerick City and County Council and carried out in consultation with both councillors and community groups in the town, close to Limerick\u2019s border with Kerry.<\/p>\n

The tourist hostel will feature sleeping accommodation, sanitary facilities, a self-catering kitchen, dining area, laundry , bin store and bike store, planning documents show.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hoped the development will support Abbeyfeale\u2019s role as a gateway to the Limerick Greenway and wider West Limerick and North Kerry region.<\/p>\n

The unit at The Square in Abbeyfeale was purpose built in the early 1970s upon the opening of the bank.<\/p>\n

It has two terraces at the rear, providing views of the River Feale.<\/p>\n

On the first floor terrace, a new steel-framed canopy is proposed to provide a sheltered route between internal accommodation and an outdoor shower block.<\/p>\n

The existing shopfront will, according to the plans, be replaced with a new aluminium framed frontage, and a new entrance door, on top of other upgrades.<\/p>\n

Windows on the upper floors will be replaced with new aluminium units, with some openings subtly narrowed.<\/p>\n

A heritage plaque, commemorating Abbeyfeale-born Richard J Hayes, a former director of the National Library of Ireland and curator of the Chester Beatty Library, will stay in place.<\/p>\n

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While the site is owned by Limerick City and County Council, it is intended for the operation of the hostel to be carried out by a private organisation, which will be identified through an expression of interest process.<\/p>\n

Since the site is owned by the local authority, it will be the role of councillors to decide whether planning permission is given.<\/p>\n

Limerick is the only city in Ireland which does not have a youth hostel, a situation which has existed since 2003.<\/p>\n

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ADVERTISEMENT – CONTINUE READING BELOW<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A NEW tourist hostel is being planned at the former Bank of Ireland building in the heart of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":389525,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[5316,7863,61,60,1396,14563,43],"class_list":{"0":"post-389524","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ireland","8":"tag-abbeyfeale","9":"tag-bank-of-ireland","10":"tag-ie","11":"tag-ireland","12":"tag-limerick","13":"tag-limerick-city-and-county-council","14":"tag-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/389524","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=389524"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/389524\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/389525"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=389524"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=389524"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=389524"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}