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How we love The Townhouse, let us count the ways...Situated at the south end of Lower Gardiner Street, this unique 80-room bed-and-breakfast has personality to spare. We're talking elegant, individually decorated rooms filled with plush fabrics, handsome furnishings, and lots of history to boot.
Grainne, the friendly manager, took us around this well-run and clearly loved guesthouse. Many of the decorations throughout the Townhouse were brought back from trips abroad by the owner, who, incidentally, designed he rose-patterned carpet in many of the rooms.
Two brick Georgian houses, once home to Irish playwrights Dion Boucicault and Lafcadio Hearn, form the original hotel. You'll see tributes to their work all over this B&B, particularly in the room names, which bare titles of their works.
The Rip Van Winkle room, for instance, has a four-post bed with velvet canopy, a fireplace, and high ceilings; Love in a Maze is tastefully decorated with plush chairs, velvety curtains, and an artful mosaic table. En suite bathrooms are covered in cheerful yellow tiles with hand-painted horses livening up the mix.
In addition to the Georgian homes, there is also the Townhouse Mews, a "purpose-built" brick built structure (circa 1997) that sits behind the outdoor patio. Though lacking in history, these rooms are every bit as elegant as those in the Georgian houses and perhaps a bit fresher. Decorated in rich gold tones and royal blues, the newer rooms have more contemporary-styled furniture and wood floors. Some have bathtubs or balconies. Request ahead.
Regardless of the wing you end up in, we recommend rooms overlooking the lovely garden patio, which can also be viewed from the window-lined breakfast room.
For those unable or unwilling to pay the midrange rates, there are a few bedrooms that share hall toilets and showers. However, these are only offered to walk-ins, so you can't reserve them ahead of time. For those on a tighter budget, the Globetrotters Tourist Hotel, a pleasant hostel next door, is owned by the same proprietor.
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