Apple Cottage, Ballylickey

The minute you enter this exceptional cottage – through the South facing sunroom – you feel at home. An instantly relaxing space, flanked by two doorways stepping into the main part of the house.
One side accesses an intimate and cozy sitting room, anchored by a wood-burning stove. The other doorway leads through a small study, which also opens onto the sitting room, or on through to the hallway at the core of the cottage.

Under an archway, and a couple of steps down from the sitting room, is a casually elegant dining room with fully upholstered chairs, and an expandable table that comfortably seats eight.

The L shaped kitchen is conveniently located adjacent. The style is country farmhouse, with traditional enamel Gas range cooker, supplementary twin electric ovens, and everything else you might need. There’s loads of space too, with a rustic alcove for everyday dining.
From here, double doors open onto furnished patio – perfect for sunny summer breakfasts.

To the rear of the cottage is a double-height family room, featuring another wood-burning stove, TV, and more double doors opening onto a covered patio fronting the orchard.

A modest laundry room and a guest WC are situated off the main hallway.

Sleeps up to 8 guests.

There are two bedrooms at ground level, a double and a twin. The double bedroom has a large ensuite bathroom and an impressive dressing room with abundant storage space.
The spacious second bedroom with two matching single beds, is luxuriously furnished with a sofa and armchair. It also boasts a generous ensuite shower-room.

The master suite is reached via a dedicated staircase from the main hallway. It features a substantial bedroom with a dressing area, its own landing, an imposing ensuite bathroom, and a separate toilet and bidet.

The other double bedroom with its ensuite, is reached via an open staircase in the family room, directly above the twin bedroom.

The cottage sits in its own gardens on the Ballylickey House Estate, with access to some of the shared facilities, which include a magnificent swimming pool – heated from May till September.
Note that Ballylickey House and its grounds remain strictly private.

• Lunch at Mannings
• Get sailing and show us the cut of your jib
• All about the copper mines
• Walk around the Beara loop
• Go for a hole in one in Bantry
• Sup a slow pint in O’Neills
• Visit Garnish Island’s exotic gardens
• Lose your golf ball in the water
• A pint and a story in MacCarthy’s
• Go for a leisurely Pony Trek
• Cross the Bridge to Mizen
• Cycle around the Sheeps Head
• Drive over the Healy Pass
• Drop-in Buddhist centre

• For Fishing or Bay tours
• Visit Bantry’s Stately Home
• Another boating tour
• Kayake with the seals

All about Bantry

Annual festivals a-plenty include:

• Ballydehob Jazz Festival
• Traditional Irish music Festival
• The Chamber Music Festival
• The West Cork Literary Festival

Apple Cottage sits just above Bantry Bay at Ballylickey, in the crook of the sound. There is an excellent gourmet café and deli just two-minutes’ walk from the house. The nearest supermarket is in Reendesert a few minutes’ drive away, but a trip to Bantry town will not disappoint – about 10 minutes – there are several large outlets to choose from, and a fine farmers market on Friday mornings.

Bantry has a rich history. At the end of the 18th century a republican group seeking to overthrow British rule in Ireland, and spurred on by activities in America and France, managed to persuade the French to send a sizeable fleet of ships and some 14,000 troops to Bantry Bay.
Storms and general mismanagement doomed the Armada – an exhibition in Bantry House details more of this, plus the gardens are fantastic.

Sailing is the most ubiquitous pastime along this stretch of Corks coastline, and Crookhaven to Kinsale there are countless regattas throughout the summer, and great opportunities for the serious sailor to up their skills.

The Ring of Beara road twists its way around this headland, exposing colourful hamlets in its path. Narrow, but with minimal traffic, it is a splendid tour, and the views are spectacular. For Cyclists or walkers the Beara Way https://bearatourism.com/things-to-do/beara-way-walking-route offers a safer route.

West Cork is blessed with an exceptionally warm and wet micro-climate. The Gulf Stream ocean current ensures that summer sea temperatures are about 17 C, approximately the same as Long Beach California. Here you can find palm trees, luxuriant sub-tropical vegetation and exotic flowers growing in abundance. Fuchsia abound, and have become the unofficial emblem of West Cork.

The tiny Garnish Island, just off the buzzing village of Glengarrif, 15 minutes away, demonstrates this in a series of gardens flush with rhododendrons, azaleas and other surprising plants.

Further along, Castletownbere is Irelands largest white fish port. The harbour is deep and is reputed to be one of the safest in the world. Sheltered by Bere Island, itself with many ancient archaeological sites, the town has a long military history.

At the tip of the peninsula a spur off the loop road continues to Ballaghboy. From here you can catch Irelands only cable car for the ten-minute ride to Dursey Island.
The rickety car carries six passengers (or the equivalent in sheep) about 250m above infamous Dursey Sound, where strong tides make travelling by boat hazardous.
With magnificent views stretching from the Skelligs to Mizen Head, only a handful of inhabitants brave this wild and windy island.
Dolphins, whales and innocent basking sharks are frequently seen in the surrounding seas.

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For a period during the 19th century copper mining was the major industry in the area, and much evidence still exists in the small town of Allihies where there is an interesting museum – and a simply stunning beach.

The Caha Mountain range runs down the spine of Beara, and Hungry Hill is the highest of its peaks. The panorama at the top is of course staggering, but the route is a bit all-terrain and needs fine weather.
To cross back to Strand Cottage, don’t miss the Tim Healy Pass. This zigzag road is worth it for the wonderful scenery, and is one of the classic Irish Car Rally stages.

There are ample sites for fishing into deep water straight off the rocky Beara shoreline. Glenbeg Lake, is also teeming with trout and the short Glenmore River spate is extremely prolific, with runs of Spring Salmon coming in March, and Sea-Trout in mid-June to late July.
Bantry Bay is renowned for mussel fishing, and there is a deep water harbour at Whiddy Island (need to take ferry). The island once served as an oil terminal for berthing super tankers until in 1979 the French tanker Betelgeuse exploded in what remains the biggest maritime disaster in Irish history.

The narrow Sheep’s Head peninsula spans the southern shores of Bantry Bay and has a pedestrian loop that makes for a completely unique walking experience.