Powerscourt Hotel, Autograph Collection

We recently stayed at powerscourt to celebrate our first wedding anniversary. From the second we checked in we were very well looked after. Cannot fault the staff at all. The rooms were beautiful spacious and clean! We arrived to the room and greeted with chocolate strawberries and cakes with a card congratulating us on our engagement from management and again at dinner in the Sika restaurant our server Eva was amazing and brought us chocolates after our meal. Food was lovely enjoyed every course. We sat in the bar after for a few drinks listening to the band. Even the pizza we ordered to the room was lovely. All in all thoroughly enjoyed our stay at powerscourt and mad our first anniversary nearly as special as our wedding.

Powers Court is in is incredible! Everything from arrival to departure was seamless and the customer experience was amazing. In particular, we loved Mossy, as well as Elizabeth at the restaurant. Jorgos was also incredible. Obviously can’t say enough about what was an incredible experience!

We visited the Powerscourt Hotel with 2 other families for one night in the week after New Year's, having made our reservation two months in advance. They were VERY excited we were coming. They sent us so many emails to tell us so. Would we like to upgrade our room? Champagne? Flowers in the room? Perhaps a box of chocolates? Are you sure? SO many emails to ask us if we'd like to "enhance" our stay...including several about dinner reservations. There are only 2 restaurants on the premises, and "we'll be fully booked" so they wanted to make sure we were able to dine where we wished: the fancy restaurant Sika, or the more casual pub. This did not seem like a pressing issue six weeks out. We had no idea what we'd be doing during the day, when we'd arrive, how fancy we'd feel... Four days before we were due to arrive, a woman from "Reservations" emailed me again about dinner. They really would be fully booked, and did we know where and when we'd like to eat? This email was sent at 4:20 in the afternoon. I responded a few hours later that the 7 of us, 5 adults and 2 children (this covered 3 rooms at the hotel) would like to dine at 7 in Sika. I received an auto reply email shortly afterward that the Reservations desk had closed for the evening at 7PM. Oh...that seemed odd, but ok. I had not received any response by 2PM the next day, so I called the hotel, spoke to a nice lady about the reservation, and she informed us we could only dine at 6PM or 9PM. Well, with 2 kids, 9 was out, so 6 it was. Great, thank you. I then received a text for the confirmation, which I affirmed. The next day I received ANOTHER text confirmation for the reservation, which I again responded to in the affirmative. So you can imagine my surprise when later that afternoon, the original woman from Reservations responded to my initial email request (2 days prior) and informed me sadly that my reservation could not be honored. No further information. No suggestion of another time. So I emailed back: Did you mean my 7PM request, or the 6PM reservation I've confirmed 3 times in 2 days? "OH! I'm so sorry. I didn't know about your other reservation. You're all set for 6PM." And that pretty much sums up the service at the hotel. The left hand does not seem to know what the right is doing. We arrived at about 2PM and our room wasn't yet ready (perfectly fine). It is a lovely looking hotel, especially when done up for the holidays. The lobby and bar area has a grand, sweeping view of Sugarloaf mountain. They knew what they were doing when they designed the thing for impact. We sat at a table in the bar area, and were taken with the lovely silver towers that delivered the Tea Service. "Would it be possible to order the Tea Service?" "OH..." our waitress frowned, "you'd have to make a reservation for tomorrow." It was 2PM. We were seated in the area other people were being served. Do they have a finite number of silver tower trays? We were given (not by request) an "accessible" room on the 3rd floor (the 4th floor being the main floor/entrance). It was huge, with a handsome marble bathroom with nice products. Comfy bed. Huge writing desk and enough empty bookshelves to start a local library. Of note...and I think this sums up the hotel as a whole...it was the room FARTHEST from the lifts on the hall, so whatever special needs, disability, or infirmity the person this room was designed for had, they'd have the longest journey to leave the floor. Additionally, all the dining is also on the 3rd floor, but inaccessible from this wing, so they'd have to walk the whole hallway, take an elevator one floor up, walk across the lobby, and take a separate elevator down to have a meal. The "Garden" is an expansive lawn on the mountain side of the hotel that would be marvelous to have a wedding reception on. Our party arrived at 5:58 for our reservation, and I swear the hostess said to the couple ahead of us with a straight face "I'll seat you, but the kitchen doesn't open until 6." They decided to live on the edge. We were seated as far as possible from other guests in the next room against the farthest wall, in the corner, which was totally fine. 90 euro a head per adult seemed reasonable for 4 courses. The wine list was not long, but it was nicely varied. There was a kids menu that one of the 12 year olds happily chose from. The captain/wine steward was experienced and poised, which was essential because the entire rest of the staff seemed to be on their first week of the job. The woman who seated us knocked over 2 wine glasses as she did so. Some dishes were more plunked down than delivered. If you've ever wondered what it would be like to be served wagyu beef by a Slovenian kid who worked summers as a Waffle House dishwasher, look no further. One poor teen white-knuckled our canapés to the table with a sweaty, laser-focused panic that had us convinced his mother was being held at gunpoint in. the kitchen. This is not to say servers weren't friendly or helpful...but the cocktail I finished before the bread arrived sat empty at my place until we were served coffee. Side dishes were generous. Some dishes left a bit to be desired. The local venison was outstanding. Again, the captain worked VERY hard to keep the ship together. We had drinks afterward in the pub which an entirely different scene. Done up for the holidays in lights and garland. The staff was attentive, particularly the manager who took his blazer off, rolled up his sleeves and got into it to expedite things. It was vibrant, and fun, and surprisingly (to my ignorance) filled with actual Irish people (rather than tourists) who'd decided to make a nice weekend of it. We did not experience the spa, but guests seemed very enthusiastic about it, with many of them wearing bathrobes in all portions of the hotel without a care in the world. I watched a pair of berobed guests get on the elevator on the 5th floor and take it to the 2nd. The spa is on neither. Breakfast is an extensive buffet served in the fancy dinner space. It's ok. Of note is that it has a gluten free section and seems to cater to many dietary needs. My coffee order was taken by a teenager when I sat down and did not arrive until I'd cleared my plate, seemingly brewed with grinds offered to several other customers first. My girlfriend had spent the entire night vomiting because of something she'd eaten (no one else fell ill, thankfully) and skipped breakfast. I ran into one of my traveling companions and he said he'd just asked for (and gotten) a late check out so they could enjoy the pool. This was great news, as my girlfriend could have really used some extra time to recuperate. I called the front desk from the room and sat on hold for 12 minutes. No answer. Just the same recording over and over. So I walked back to the front desk to find no line. Just one young woman behind the counter. I introduced myself and asked if we might have a noon checkout rather than 11. She did the fake glance down at the monitor and I got the "Oh, no, sir. I'm sorry. It's the holidays and we're fully booked." No. It's after the holidays. It's a Friday morning. Check in isn't until 3. You just gave my friend with a much fancier room on the 6th floor a late check out not 25 minutes ago...and no one picks up your phone. I did not give her the "sick girlfriend" sob story because she was clearly a teenager quoting the policy book by rote, but it did rather sum up our stay. I will say this: it's a beautiful hotel in a breathtaking space, and if you're planning to visit the actual Powerscourt Gardens (which we did that afternoon) it's the obvious choice to stay. Ample free parking. And there were some very friendly staff members, particularly the doormen, and Mossy the porter/luggage person. But they're really hurting for qualified/experienced staff, and a hotel that expensive which thinks so much of itself should be delivering a higher standard.

Myself and my husband dined in the Sally Gap and had an absolutely incredible experience. We were served by Holly, who was so friendly and professional. She gave us excellent wine recommendations to pair with our meal which was also perfect. All of the staff at the sally gap were amazing and we had a great night. We will most definitely be back again.

Have stayed here many times over the years. I am very disappointed with my recent 2 night stay with party of 4. Food very limited and expensive. Sika restaurant not open. Many issues with the room eg. no bathrobes, leaking coffee machine, fuses blown (3 times), safe not working, hair dryer not working, cold. Phone calls to reception and housekeeping not answere!!. I had to go down to the main reception desk. Waited over 1 hour and 2 further phone calls before kettle and extra duvets (no blankets) were delivered. Room service menu limited and no requests accommodated. No toothpicks in restaurant when requested. One of my party of 4 spoke to the manager. No acknowledgement at check out. Unbelievably we were not even asked how was our stay. Will vote with my feet and not return.