Slieve Donard Resort and Spa

Recently stayed at the resort - a 10/10 experience! Haven’t visited the hotel since refurbishment and what a stunning transformation . Attention to detail throughout is remarkable. Huge credit to Richard and the team for the jewel in the Co Down crown. Will be back soon! ☀️

What a magnificent facility. We had a great mini-suite upgrade and it was a perfect start to our Northern Ireland journey. Staff was great. The bar is spacious with great seating - a snooker room and grass tennis courts out back. If you plan on playing Royal County Down - the gate is just out the back. Wonderful setting on the water.

My wife is heavily pregnant, so we decided to book a last-minute baby moon for the weekend as an opportunity to enjoy some relaxing time together before our baby arrives. We booked the day before, given the uncertainty of how close we are to the due date. At the time of booking, we were informed that multiple rooms were still available (18, according to the staff member we spoke to). Having heard many positive things about the hotel over the years, we had high expectations for what we hoped would be a special stay. Unfortunately, our experience fell well below those expectations from the moment we arrived. The room we were allocated overlooked an internal courtyard filled with rubbish, bird droppings, and nesting baby seagulls. Not only was this an unpleasant view, but the noise from the seagulls continued throughout the night, making it difficult to relax. We enquired about moving rooms, but by the time we checked in we were told there were no alternatives available. Personally, this view is unacceptable for any room in a four-star hotel. On closer inspection of the room itself, we also found cobwebs around the edges of the bathroom ceiling, several dead flies, and noticeable white staining on the sofa. These are not the standards we would expect from a well-established four-star hotel. Despite our disappointment, we tried to make the most of our stay and visited the spa. However, we had to ask for bathrobes to be sent to our room as none were provided despite being told they would be. The spa fell way short of expectations, it was extremely busy with children and the facilities—particularly the tired-looking sun loungers—felt dated and far from the relaxing environment we had hoped for. Meanwhile, the sauna was barely warm and empty plastic glasses were lying everywhere. As a coastal hotel, we had also looked forward to enjoying a drink while taking in the sea views. Instead, we found that the main bar has no windows, and the Lighthouse Café, which does offer views, closes at 5pm, leaving no opportunity to enjoy the setting in the evening. Overall, what was meant to be a memorable and relaxing baby moon before the arrival of our baby became a very disappointing experience. Given the hotel's reputation, history, and four-star rating, we genuinely expected a much higher standard of accommodation, cleanliness, and facilities. In fact, none of these met our expectations; they were all quite far off. At this stage, we have no plans to return to the hotel and will be telling friends and family about our experience.