Castle Leslie Estate

We have been coming to the Castle Leslie Estate for 18 years now and it never ever fails to impress. It’s truly one in a million to visit. From the minute you drive through those gates you feel like the rest of the world just melts away. The grounds and building are so impressive, but the magical touch is their staff. Every staff member greets and welcomes you, no matter where they are or what they are doing. Caroline on reception remembers our names on every visit and greets us like friends. The bar and restaurant staff could not be more attentive - even asking if a change asked for in a menu option was an allergen or a preference. Nothing was ever too much trouble. The extravagant Christmas decorations are so so beautiful and the castle especially is like a winter wonderland dream. The grounds are just beautiful to walk through and there are many trails you can take for longer walks too. There is also the most amazing equestrian centre, catering for every riders/ or non riders ability. And with around 400 acres of countryside you may never hack the same way twice. The horses are so clearly well cared for and eager to do their jobs that it makes riding such a pleasure whether you go for a leisurely walk or canter through the forest trails, or even getting to canter through the lake itself. You may even have the privilege of seeing the deers roam freely around the estate. |We took a fabulous carriage ride, snuggled up in blankets with hot drinks (and cold bubbles) to sip as we were driven all around the estate by Steven and Aine. It was truly magical. |As I said before, if you only take one trip this year, make it a trip to Castle Leslie. You will not be disappointed.

My wife and I stayed at the Lodge at Castle Leslie for what must be our 4th time. As always it was magical stay with all the wonderful Christmas decorations in a majestic old building. |Our stay was amazing as always and really relaxed and enjoyed our time there. The restaurant, food, room, staff was amazing hence the reason we come back each time, and we look forward to returning again in the future. Couldn’t recommend the lodge enough.

Castle Leslie, world class service, delicious food , breakfast of dreams and cocktails are sublime. Castle Leslie is fabulous. The staff are professional friendly and attentive, the rooms are beautiful and the bed is just like a cloud of meringue to drift off in the most comfortable sleep all year! Absolutely love the carriage ride round the grounds and a walk up to the castle decorated in the most abundant festive style. Relaxing from the minute the gates open to welcome you , cannot recommend it highly enough it’s simply out of this world.

We stayed for 2 nights to celebrate my wife's birthday and yet again, we had a brilliant time. Staff were amazing and welcomed us back, congratulated my wife on her birthday and made us feel to special. |We had dinner in Snaffles th 1st night and it was probably the best we've had since coming here. |On the Sunday we ate in Connors Bar and again really nice. |We do love this place and it gets better every time we come, so thank you to all the staff for making it so.|On the downside, we stayed in Schnitzel, the shower door and the seal around it need looked at and a mirror with adequate lighting in the room would be ideal. |And you took away the real fire. We weren't the only ones to comment on that.

We stayed here for a night. |Beautiful surroundings |Comfortable , clean room. |Staff were very helpful. |It was a great experience. |We ate in the Snaffles restaurant at night and the food was superb. The waiter was very knowledgeable and friendly. |The only downside was the breakfast which was average.

We've stayed at Castle Leslie numerous times over the years and I can honestly say that never once did we have a reason to complain. The service, the staff, the rooms and restaurants are all truly faultless and are off the highest quality every time. We've dined in some of the highest quality restaurants across the world and have no hesitation in stating that Snaffles Restaurant is the best we've ever eaten in. I can't recommend Castle Leslie high enough and needless to say we'll be back for another fabulous stay.

We had our wedding in Castle Leslie in November 2025. |It was everything that we imagined and more. Working with Helen and the other members of the team was so easy and they made the whole experience relaxing and very easy. |Castle Leslie promise a lot for weddings and all I can say is that they deliver on everything. |I would recommend Castle Leslie for wedding or any event. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I recently attended a cookery demonstration in Castle Leslie and have to say I was blown away by the experience and attention I received. As a coeliac I often find it difficult to go places as it is not something that is often catered for, on this particular night the waiters and waitresses were serving the crowd delicious food to which I mentioned to a waitress that unfortunately I couldn't eat the food as I was coeliac, she said 'leave it with me' and within minutes arrived back with delicious coeliac treats for me, from that point on I wasn't forgotten and got plenty more treats throughout the night. I want to commend the staff of Castle Leslie for their kindness and ability to cater for those who are ceoliac. It made an already enjoyable night all the more enjoyable.|Thank you.

We traveled from San Francisco to Ireland for our dream wedding at Castle Leslie on the word that business was as usual for the venue during the pandemic. As the week progressed with the worldwide pandemic, Castle Leslie still insisted that things were still going ahead as scheduled and that we would have the castle to ourselves so we advised family that they should still travel. 2 hours before check-in, they called us and tried to transfer us to a different location. Then, they said the CEO (Brian Baldwin) was on a call and would get back to us. He didn't and they canceled our reception. It was a huge disaster and disappointment for everyone involved. The problems were only starting however. The castle started advising ourselves and couples from other bookings to speak to their solicitors as they kept the €5000 deposits on all the canceled weddings. This was out of our control and had they told us at the beginning of the week or before we even left for Ireland, we could have at least rescheduled at that point. Very disappointed that a venue who claim to be high-end acted with such sneakiness and lack of class. I strongly advise to pick a different location.

I wish I could give it more stars than 5 because it has been the best getaway break of my life. There are so many different parts of the break that I have to break them down: Old Stable Mews- We were on the Girls Getaway Break staying at the Old Stable Mews which included a welcome breakfast basket of bread, jam, fruit, milk, butter, 2 bottles of wine and some beer and alcopops. The house is a beautiful spacious 2 bedroom self catering unit in the forest with an open fire, lovely open plan living room/kitchen/dining room and there are 3 bathrooms. It is very clean, very spacious and stunning. Spa and Treatment rooms- Our package included a 30 minute treatment and full use of the hot tub which is on an outdoor balcony overlooking the stables. Absolutely stunning. I had the Indian head massage which was so relaxing and the spa waiting/relaxation area was beautiful. You could help yourself to herbals teas, water, fruit etc. Snaffles Resteraunt- We had a 6 course meal here included in our package...it was delicious! I could hardly move afterwards. Best meal I have ever had. The fillet of beef was cooked to perfection. The entire meal was tasty. The Equestrian Centre- Loved it. My favourite part of the getaway break. This wasn't included in our package but can be booked in addition. I went for the walk trot canter hack one day then a lesson the next. It was amazing. The horses are stunning, they have tonnes of them all to suit different levels of riders. If you have never even ridden before you can hop on and join in the fun. This is the best equestrian centre I have ever been to. The staff- Have all gone above and beyond in every single area, they couldn't be more friendly, attentive or welcoming. They have made the whole experience even more enjoyable. The grounds and miles and miles of private forests are stunning. I don't want to go home lol :)

Setting: Beautiful surroundings with the choice of lounge or bar area to dine in. The Lounge is bright, open and spacious, the bar darker and more cosy atmosphere. Food: Nice menu but absolutely nothing suitable for my vegetarian mother. When she asked for a round of salad sandwiches we were met with some hesitation even though there is salad served with all other sandwiches on the menu! Gin menu is very good - I had Saffron Gin Staff: Ok. Although not very forthright with vegetarian alternatives. Asked for the bill, waited an age then went to the bar to ask again finally got seen. Overall: Nice atmosphere, need more vegetarian/vegan menu options, good gin.

Disgraceful how castle leslie's has treated couple's on what should of been their most special day. Absolutely no class. Canceling numerous weddings and holding on to their deposits. Shame on them. Making a stressful time for any couple even more stressful. This place should be boycotted as they deserve no business whatsoever.

Brilliant location. Lovely grounds for walks - bring your wellies! Spacious rooms, friendly staff, and good grub.

Located in beautiful Glaslough, Co. Monaghan, Ireland. Glaslough has been rated many times as one of the top Tidy Towns. It certainly does live up to that reputation while driving through to the jaw-dropping Castle Leslie in wonderful Co Monaghan. This old Castle has a wonderfully elegant charm to it. The beautiful grounds are the perfect setting for the perfect Instagram-worthy shot. All jokes aside, once you step onto the grounds you'll feel like you're in the most quiet, relaxing and beautiful place in the country. They do have accommodations to stay in the Castle and on other parts of the grounds, as well as a restaurant to enjoy some afternoon tea. While I was here they were setting up for a wedding in this beautiful large room. I said to my best friend "I want to get married here." I already had the American wedding, now I should have an Irish wedding! Convincing my husband to have a large Irish wedding here is a whole other story, lol. I would love to get married again here. It's so beautiful and you would get some amazing photos.

There are so many places to stay and packages to purchase at Castle Leslie, my vacation and review is for the Sports Package (equestrian package) at the Lodge. **5-Day Sports Package** What a deal! Our sports package was 6 nights in a Stable room, located at the Lodge of the Castle (a separate building from the castle itself). The package included the hotel room, breakfast and dinner daily, and 3 hours of horseback riding daily. For breakfast, a lovely continental breakfast was laid out daily which included 8+ juices, fresh breads, pastries, yogurt, cereals, fresh fruit, jams, jellies, compotes, sugar, and everything you need. Or order anything from the hot breakfast menu (free of charge) including omelettes, crepes, etc. Service was superb with coffee or tea service and a tray of toast. For dinner, the Sports Package included one entree at the Snaffles restaurant or a starter and entree at Conor's Pub. Drinks, sides and desert extra. See below for reviews of each restaurant - but both were great. **Stable Rooms at the Lodge** We reserved 3 Stable rooms (1 single and 2 doubles) located at the Lodge. The Lodge is the social hub of the estate and contains Conor's Pub, Snaffles restaurant, the spa and entry to the equestrian center. Many of the rooms have balconies that overlook the stables below. The rooms are large, beautifully decorated, and light and bright with windows and doors that open to let in fresh, Irish air. Daily cleaning and evening turndown service was lovely. **Equestrian Centre** If you're an equestrian looking for an excellent place to vacation, Castle Leslie is your place. It's not for the faint of heart. We heard that the estate has over 50 horses including "handsome hunters, cheeky ponies or flying armchairs" as they claim. We started with an hour-long assessment so that the Centre could properly place us with varying levels of horses. Each riding program was customized. As a dressage rider, I opted for daily 2-hour hacks in the morning and a 1-hour flat lesson in the afternoon. Friends opted for 2-hour cross country jumping adventures in the morning and 1-hour jump lessons in the afternoon. The 2-hour walk/trot/canter hacks were AMAZING. However, all canters are more like a gallop! But the trails are safe and defined so no one got too out of hand. There are endless kilometers of trails through fields and heavy woods and streams. There's also a sand pit made just for a proper gallop. Excellent. I wasn't impressed with the flat classes. I'd skip them altogether next time, or switch to jumping. Castle Leslie's horses are wonderful but they aren't trained for lateral work or carrying themselves on the bit (especially giant draft horses). So next time, all hacking! **Conor's Bar** For a tiny pub, Conor's made for many enjoyable lunches and dinners. There are great beers on tap (love the red lager) and lovely wines (try the rosé) for reasonable prices. There is always a new soup of the day and a few special dishes in addition to the regular menu. Our favorite dishes were the kitchen salad and fish n' chips. Oh, and garlic bread too! **Snaffles Restaurant** Dinner attire: Dressy! Pack a few nice dresses or slacks and shirts for this fancy place. Book reservations at the front desk at least the day before. Due to events, the restaurant isn't open daily, and reservations go fast. Our Sports package included one entree here but we were also treated to a tiny starter of the chef's choice (e.g. smoked salmon or a cod fritter). Skip the Mediterranean veggie entree but the halibut, steak and coq au vin were great. We enjoyed the daily seafood specials too. All entrees are also served with a family-style side dish of vegetables - always a type of potato, green veggie and root veggie (e.g. mashed potatoes, buttered snap peas and roasted parsnips). Service was great and very proper. Wine was served in a fitting glass; silverware was removed or added depending on your entree. And the staff was always exceptionally friendly. **The Spa** I splurged on a hot stone massage and, after 5 straight days of hard riding, I'm SO glad that I did. Book ahead! The spa was small and intimate. Massages were WONDERFUL (Amy did an amazing job). **The Castle, Grounds & Services** The Castle has thought of nearly everything. Forgot to pack boots to hike in the damp Ireland weather? Help yourself to Wellies in the Boot Room. Same with umbrellas. Mineral bath salts were provided and recommended for our aching riding muscles (and it worked wonders!). I only wish they'd have had some form of a market or shop on site. Whenever we were in need of water bottles, snacks or even cold medicine, we had to drive into Emyvale. Not that we minded an adventure! We had an EXCELLENT vacation at Castle Leslie. We pushed our limits on riding adventures, enjoyed kilometers of green countryside, and relaxed in the warmth and comfort of the Lodge. We can't wait to go back!

Stayed here for a wedding. We were shown to our room after a quick explanation of the castle layout. We stayed in Sir John's bedroom, which is stunning. The bathroom has a glitterball which "reflects his love of boom boom music!" The bed was big enough for 3 adults and so comfortable. There are no televisions in any rooms of the main castle. This adds to the tranquility. It really is the best place to get away from it all. Breakfast is served in the main dining room from 8-11am. They offer a wide range of cereals, fruits, juice and breads. They also make a mean freshly cooked hot breakfast. The castle is steeped in history and the family have done a lovely job of adding this into the decor. Personal items belonging to Sir John himself were in the room. You can even hear the family members as you walk around the castle. I was only here for one night and it was too short a trip. Would love to go back and venture round a bit more. They supply wellingtons if you forget your own boots. Can't wait to go back!!

I recently went to Castle Leslie for a short mini moon after our wedding with my husband. We booked 2 nights in the Eagle's nest suite. The castle is stunning, really beautiful grounds and our room was lovely. We noticed that the majority of the things to do were located in the lodge, which was a short walk away or if your avoiding the cold and wet weather there is a complimentary range rover coiffeur to drive you anywhere within the 1,000 acre grounds. We had our dinner in the Castle's Lodge restaurant which was fantastic, and the selection of 88 different kinds of gin went down really nicely. We both got a spa treatment which was quite reasonable for a 5 star hotel. We also made use of there equestrian centre and took a stroll around the grounds on horse back. Which i highly recommend as it is a huge place and with typical irish weather, you will need a good rain coat and wellies to face the muck, but on horse back it was so easy. We also made use of there small cinema within the castle. Where you have some DVDs to choose from and access to there sky account. Each of the seats were large leather recliners. This was really great, however there DVD selection was pretty weak. I would recommend they get a few classics to throw in. We had breakfast each morning in the castle. As a big coffee drinker, I was disappointed with there coffee but the food was good. We also had afternoon tea on one of the afternoons there. Which was nice but expensive. The biggest downfall for the castle is that it has a air of stuffiness. We felt quite tense when we were outside our room for anything. It had the feeling of being in a library. You constantly whispered and to be honest felt out of place. In the lodge however, it didn't have that vibe at all. We had an incredible bathtub in our room, however it was very difficult to get proper hot water to fill the bath. Even after calling down to reception, with there recommendation of just letting the water flow until it heats up didn't do the trick. This was pretty disappointing. I would recommend anyone coming here to visit the castle, but consider staying in the lodge. Your close to everything and it has a much easier going vibe. I would defiantly come back here for the restaurant. Really friendly staff and a lovely menu. Also if your looking to head outside of the castle for a meal one of the nights, there is a beautiful italian restaurant called ambledown just beside the lodge, that does incredible pizza's in a really romantic candlelit restaurant. Highly recommend it!

Wonderful gem of a place! I can't recommend this place enough. The grounds are perfect and give you e feeling of being back in time. We rode horses, walked the grounds and the nearby village and relaxed like at no other place. The staff makes you feel like royalty and the equestrian center is world class. We will be back and will strongly recommend this place to everyone. One very small negative is the menu at Connors bar. It needs to be expanded. The meals upstairs at Snaffles restaurant are great.

Not sure it is a castle so much as a very large house and grounds. Mews areas are far from a high standard, with lack of organisation with room check ins as they cash in on daily weddings and cannot cope with this very quick turnover.

Let me begin by stating that the grounds are beautiful and that the lodge and estate themselves are wonderful. If you are an couple looking to get away for a very, very, very quiet overpriced weekend away then this is the place for you. I am still quite puzzled at why they call it a castle unless someone is into google analytics because this is and nothing more than a very beautiful large country estate. Oh thats right I guess some famous people got married here, thats why its so famous. Oh, well on with the review. My wife accidentally had us booked for the wrong night which of course we rectified by booking the next night so that we wouldnt miss all the excitement ( oh and that cost us 90 euro - bad americans -so much for apologizing). We arrived at the "Castle" in which there was no one to help with my bags but not surprising as I guess they were all to busy getting ready for the next days amazing time. We checked into the room - which I will say by european standards was quite nice and the bed quite large. However, doesn't it make sense that when you request an additional bed for your 6 year old that you might need towels to go along with that? Secondly, when you call down for those extra towels, just replacing the two sets that are already there don't help much. The high point of the evening was the bartender/server and I apologize not only to him to everyone reading this as I have forgotten his name. His service was impeccable and actually was quite nice. He called us by name by the end of the evening and even remembered my sons name when we ran into him at breakfast the next morning. The food at the bar was OK and that is about as far as I will go with it. The next morning we awoke to hungry belly's and a need for a good ole Irish breakfast. We arrived for this breakfast which we were informed that we should just get off of the buffet. Not what I was expecting to say the least and when we would dare order something not on the menu for our son ( those culinary disasters known as soft boiled eggs) we got a nasty look and upon receiving them hard boiled eggs as they had sat under the heat lamps for an additional 5 minutes while the waitress was assisting us with our request for actual toast. The saving grace for the trip was the grounds themselves - I will say they are amazing but I guess if you are going to cater to families maybe you should actually offer something for them to do other than just walk and look. I guess there is a certain clientele that like this sort of place - those would be the one's staring at us from behind their newspapers up in the main house ( which kids are not allowed to stay). I guess even grandparents need to just get away to the silence. So, if you are looking at spending a lot of money for a good room, ok food and a great view in the middle of nowhere ( oh and by the way their signage is absolute crap - hands down the most difficult place to find ever in Ireland) then this is your cup of tea. As for any normal family go spend your money elsewhere! I am an American married to a beautiful Dublin Gal with an amazing son so I guess when you rate yourself 5 star or close to it there is a certain expectation that goes along with it - This one just didn't deliver. So I will continue my quest to actually sleep in a real castle as my last name is Knight and that what one does.

I really don't knw what to write, its just so beautifull, the food amazing, the place is a travel trough time, u have an very good walk outside, or u can get lost inside the castle, just to easy ur mind, the little town is very cozy, so is the little pub just outside

Beautiful old castle full of secrets. Great for horse riding, and lovely spa afterwards. Would recommend for a really nice get away close to home.

This place is like going back in time and is supposed to be haunted. By the feel of the place it prob is. Paul McCartney married whatshername here. Loadsa posh rooms to stay in too. Went once to eat and it's a lovely memory. The ambience is tranquil. Food is either killed or grown on the estate! Venisons, pheasants.... Stags & old portraits peer down from the walls keeping an eager eye on your table manners!! Spooky, classy, intriguing castle restaurant to try out. VIP's go all the time (allegedly!). You can't see into the estate from the road at all and the lake is HUGE. I'd say many the celeb has escaped here. It's only over the border from Aughnacloy a bit, not that far away. The estates equestrian centre is more casual and has a cracker 'pub menu' in an equally medieval setting of stags, monumental fire places and history. You'll get a guiness and beef pie here, but not in the gastro pub way! The food is outstanding in both restaurants. Wheaten bread ice cream must be tried. A special anniversary....just the place. My cousins sent my aunt and uncle here for a night on their wedding anniversary. Very Different.

My boyfriend and I decided to book a romantic weekend away and booked a package to stay in one of the Castle Leslie cottages. The package included two nights stay, a spa treatment, and dinner in the restaurant. I was excited as I've never been and my aunt had her wedding there and my grandmother had celebrated her 80th there as well and loved it. We didn't arrive to the castle until 10pm Friday as we drove from Dublin after work. It was a cold and rainy night and on arrival the cottage was freezing but we saw there were coals in the fire so we went about lighting it. Unfortunately there were no matches so my boyfriend went out to the car to use the car lighter. It was raining out and when he came back in he slipped on the linoleum floor and fell on his arm (he was wearing rubber soled trainers). As the night went on in the freezing cold cottage his arm was paining him more and more so I knew it had to be fractured and we decided to go to the hospital. We drove to Cavan General which was the nearest hospital, an hour and a half away. I rang Castle Leslie to cancel our spa reservations. 6 hours later with confirmation of a fractured arm and a referral to an orthopaedic surgeon we drove back to Castle Leslie. We decided it would be better to check out so we could go back to Dublin to see a surgeon. The general manager kindly met with us to see how my boyfriend's arm was and referred us to the concierge who would "take care of us." I couldn't wait for the concierge to book us in for another weekend as a do over so we could go to the spa and enjoy our dinner at Castle Leslie. Instead they gave us back €50 from our €500 payment we made on arrival since we weren't staying the second night. I was literally gobsmacked they wanted to charge us €450 for staying in a freezing cottage for 6 hours and another 6 hours spent in an Emergency Department. After leaving us standing at the desk for 20 minutes the concierge came back from speaking to the manager and gave us half off our entire payment, so we paid €250 for a fractured arm and a few head colds that developed the next day....so much for five star. I have never been more disappointed in a luxury hotel. Please put down some mats and fix the heat! Needless to say I will never recommend this hotel again.

Fancy, original decorations/art/sculptures throughout. Very unique experience. The wedding we went to had fireworks comparable to Macy's NYC 4th of July.

Im a big fan of castle Leslie. I frequently visit I the huntinglodge bar and am always impressed. The surroundings are gorgeous, and the bar always has a great atmosphere with a lovely mix of locals and visitors from all corners of the world. The staff are very friendly and the food is always top notch!

My family stayed in The Lodge for two nights on our trip to Ireland last week. We enjoyed the grounds and this resort very much. We didn't have much time to spend enjoying the amenities but walked up to the castle (beautiful!) and down to the lakes (also beautiful) and we ate in the pub at the Lodge a few times. The food in the pub was pretty mediocre, but the breakfast at Snaffles was amazingly delicious. We really enjoyed our stay!

I had the great fortune to attend a wedding at the Castle Leslie and have only positive things to say about it. The building, the grounds, the ambiance, this place is pure class. The wedding took place in a large tent just adjacent to the main hotel building. It worked great and was a fun setting for the 200 or so guests at the wedding. In the morning, Jack Leslie came out to join the guests staying at the hotel for breakfast, which was a fun and welcome surprise. I would love to make it back to Castle Leslie at some point.