Can you name the best hotel that you’ve ever stayed at? Choosing the best luxury hotels isn’t simply about seeking the place with the highest thread count, where you can choose your own pillow or even what scent you breath in. Supreme comfort is a given, but on a Luxury Gold tour you’ll stay in elegant accommodation that offers more than every other 5-star hotel. Luxury means different things to different people, but it all comes down to the most superb service you’ve ever experienced. These places are exemplary; carefully chosen as not just a comforting place to rest your head, but a truly immersive experience on its own.

Dedicated to providing outstanding holidays and experiences, Luxury Gold and The Red Carnation Hotel Collection are both proud to be part of The Travel Corporation (TTC), a family-owned and family-run company for over 100 years. Being sister brands, we are always thrilled to share recent news and achievements, including the opening of their new Xigera Safari Lodge in Botswana 

Ireland’s West Coast is a labyrinth of landscapes that evolve with every passing hour. Winding roads flanked by traditional stone walls, a magnificent coastline of dashing waves and expansive walks, and pretty villages and towns awash with character and charm.

And nestled in the West is the county of Mayo, the birthplace of Ireland’s first female President and home to one of the most historic and spectacular five-star hotels in Ireland, Ashford Castle, the only hotel in Ireland to have earned a Five-Star Forbes Travel Guide Ranking.

Niall Rochford, General Manager at Ashford Castle, invites you to take a look around the hotel and the 350-acre estate that envelops the castle, where guests have enjoyed exceptional levels of hospitality for more than 80 years: