A previously rat-infested lighthouse on a tiny Irish island was transformed into a $5.2 million hotel with a sauna. Take a look around.
- A lighthouse on Clare Island, Ireland, is on the market for around $5.2 million.
- The property currently operates as a hotel and has nine bedrooms and a luxury sauna.
Clare Island Lighthouse, a 19th-century lighthouse that was converted into a nine-bedroom hotel, is on the market for $5.2 million.
Clare Island Lighthouse on Clare Island, off the west coast of Ireland, dates back to 1806, according to Sherry FitzGerald's online listing. The original lighthouse was destroyed by a fire in 1816, and a new building was erected two years later, the listing states.
After the lighthouse was decommissioned in 1965, it was owned by three different parties before the current owner purchased it in 2008 and turned it into a bed-and-breakfast hotel in 2013, according to Roie McCann, the hotel's general manager.
The 9-bedroom property is on the market for €4.8 million, or around $5.2 million.
The current owner spent around four years renovating it, according to McCann.
McCann said the current owner completely "gutted" the lighthouse over a period of four years, which involved taking up all the floorboards and replacing them, as well as dealing with the building's former rat problem.
"The building was a maze of rats. The vermin had taken over for a while," McCann told Insider, adding that the rats were attracted to the cliffs that surround the building.
McCann said she was originally brought on to help with the building's decor in 2012, as she previously worked in interior design and had worked with the owner on other properties. She said her job involved ensuring that the hotel was "comfortable and understated" with a combination of traditional and modern aspects, such as installing 19th-century fireplaces and making all bedrooms ensuites.
The lighthouse is located on Clare Island, a tiny island off the west coast of Ireland with around 160 residents.
Clare Island in Clew Bay, County Mayo, has a population of around 160 people, which tends to increase during the summer months, according to the online listing. The island is 5 miles long and 3 miles wide, and is accessible by a 20-minute ferry from Roonagh Pier, according to the island's website. There's also a private helipad on the grounds of the lighthouse, the listing states.
The island has a long history of habitation dating back to 3,500 B.C., according to the listing, and it's believed that the famous "pirate queen" Grace O'Malley was baptized, married, and buried there during the 16th century.
McCann now lives and works at the lighthouse as general manager.
McCann said that the owner doesn't live on-site, but she and other staff members live in the ensuites while working at the lighthouse. She said she enjoys living there because it's beautiful, and she also enjoys meeting new people who come to visit the island.
"You meet fascinating people all the time. People who go there are usually on the adventurous side, so it's a different kind of experience," she said.
A number of buildings are to be included in the sale of the property, including the main lighthouse, a tower house, a sauna suite, and further guest accommodation units including Banshee Cottage, according to the listing.
The lighthouse building is 3,799 square feet and has two kitchens, a sitting room, a dining room, conservatory, guest bathroom, and ensuite accommodation, the listing states.
The lighthouse is 120 meters above the cliffs and has panoramic views of the ocean, McCann says.
"It's very unusual to get such a large property on an island that's so private, so secure, and in such good condition," Philip Guckian, an associate director at Sherry FitzGerald, told Insider.
"This is just one of the most unique properties that's come to the market," he added.
There are nine bedrooms in total, and each one was decorated differently, McCann says.
McCann said it was important to ensure that the lighthouse was an old building "with a modern twist," and the ensuite bedrooms were decorated with this in mind.
The bedroom photographed has a double bed, a rug, and two large windows which look out onto the ocean.
The sitting room has a fireplace, chandelier, and cozy furniture.
McCann said the original fireplaces in the lighthouse were damaged, so they were replaced with 19th-century fireplaces that reflected the time period the property was built.
The owner converted an outhouse building on the lighthouse grounds into a luxury sauna.
The sauna was originally an outhouse building but is now a luxury suite on the lighthouse grounds with timber flooring, underfloor heating, and a wood-burning stove, according to the lighthouse's website.
Although the owner is currently accepting offers, the hotel is taking bookings until September, McCann told Insider.
McCann told Insider that the hotel is set to re-open after the winter on March 17 and they plan to take bookings until September since it's unclear when the property will be sold. She said it's being sold as a residential property and not as a hotel.
Guckian of Sherry FitzGerald told Insider the hotel is likely to attract either an international or local buyer who's looking for a holiday home or a unique location to work remotely from. He added that there has been a lot of interest from the US market in particular.
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