Avoca Lodge

We paid 110 a night through booking.com on a Friday and it felt overpriced. The room wasn't very clean, was roasting hot, and everything rattled when the window was open. I was still awake at 3am, even though I needed sleep before a 5 am ferry. The port isn't particularly close either. A taxi there is about 14 euro, roughly the same as one from the city. For the same price, I'd have preferred to book a city hotel and take a taxi out.

The mattress was noisy and uncomfortable, and I woke with a bit of a bad back. Apart from that, it was a great stay. We had a clean, tidy suite with our own bathroom, which we'd paid extra for, and were very happy with it. The staff we met were polite and friendly. The young girl did a lovely job with breakfast, though I missed it that morning because I was hungover and couldn't get up in time. We'd been a little worried after booking because of earlier reviews, but I'm glad we hadn't read them beforehand. We'll stay here again next time we're visiting family in Dublin, as long as the suite is available. Thanks Avoca, see you next time.

I chose this place hoping to get some sleep in Dublin, and it worked out really well. My deluxe double was spacious, big, and very clean, and the cooked breakfast option was also very nice. It's near Dublin town, though depending on where you want to go, a taxi costs around €13-18. We found the taxi service efficient. It felt more homely than a hotel or even some of the other B&Bs I've stayed in. I'd definitely consider coming back if it were available.

The bed was really comfortable, and we had a lovely stay overall. The shared bathroom could've been better: there was no shower curtain or proper shower, so you had to bathe or sit or squat in the tub and use the hose. There wasn't any soap or towel in there either, so each time we used it we had to bring our own to wash and dry our hands.