This article is from page 24 of the 2007-11-06 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 24 JPG
A HAPPY mixture of family values and the traditional Irish welcome were the driving force behind Lisdoonvarna woman Martina Shelly being awarded the prestigious Irish Host of the Year by the Georgina GF: Tae} o)oro dm Cie b re (on
Martina, who owns and operates Sheedy’s four-star hotel with her husband John, picked up the prestig- ious award at a ceremony in Dublin IETS MW iere) .@
This is the latest in a series of awards for Sheedy’s Hotel, which was awarded Best Breakfast in Mun- ster by the guide two years ago and
the Double Rosette from the AA. “They are really looking for the traditional Irish welcome. For something personal with an attention to detail. [really would care about the stay of the guest, to make sure that they are greeted properly and have a proper welcome,’ said Martina. “Because it is a family business,
it all reflects back on me. I will be there in the afternoon and I will be there in the evening to make sure that everything is going well. I’d say if someone didn’t enjoy their stay I’d nearly take it personally.
“It is a very respected guide and a lot of people use it as their travelling bible. You don’t pay to go into this guide and it is a great one for us to win because it emphasises the qual- ity of the service we give.
“It’s great for the town of Lisdoonvarna. It reminds the minds of the people in Dublin that there is a lot going on down here. They might only think of Lisdoonvarna in terms of the Matchmaking festival that takes place.”
The hotel has been in John’s fam- ily for four generations and has developed along with the town around Lisdoonvarna’s famous spa wells. “It was one of the very old houses in the village. It started off as a thatched cottage and then it was expanded into three thatched cot- tages when they found the spa wells, which were let out for the summer. That was my great-grandparents,’ said John, who was the head chef at Ashford Castle.
“My grandparents did further building work and then my own father knocked a section and built on pneKO uc hee-BEtE
“It’s been knocked and rebuilt on a number of occasions over the years. It had 30 bedrooms at one stage and now we have 11.
“The rooms have been getting bigger and bigger through the years as standards have gotten higher and ab hedatss