Home away from home...

Guest: Judith (Hendersonville, North Carolina, USA)
Date of Stay: 04/14/11 Review Submitted: 04/26/11

Our visit to County Donegal and Hilltown was delightful. The house was better than described, and we so appreciated your helpful information about sights, dining and hiking. We would definitely recommend the Hilltown for anyone who is looking for a picturesque setting in County Donegal. All the amenities of home were available to us, even clothes pins for hanging laundry outdoors on a bright sunny day!

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Beautiful home and location

Guest: Lisa (Nazareth, PA USA)
Date of Stay: 09/09/10 Review Submitted: 10/26/10

What a beautiful home and location! My family and I had a wonderful time here. The house is so spacious yet so cozy - we all had plenty of space to stretch out. The surrounding countryside is beautiful. It's located in the country but so close to Donegal town. The pictures of the house on the website do not do it justice - it was even better than we expected it would be! Everything was spotless and well maintained. Geoffrey (the caretaker) was readily available if needed, and he was a very nice man. Boyce was very helpful by providing us with a list of local pubs and restaurants and local attractions. After a day of touring it was so nice to come "home" to this lovely farmhouse. We would recommend this home and we will stay here again on our next trip to Donegal! Thank you Boyce for sharing your home!

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Storybook Setting

Guest: Kathy (Chatham NJ)
Date of Stay: 08/21/10 Review Submitted: 09/14/10

My husband and I, with teens down to young children, loved your elegant renovated home. I am so glad the roads are still one lane with those old hedgerows! The land feels like a storybook setting, but with modern comforts in the house. Mary, the cleaning lady, let us in, was very helpful and the place was clean. The gardens are beautiful outside. It is so nice that the cows and the pony are on the fields near the house. We felt we were transported to a quieter time. Very relaxing. Also, the view with the ruined stone church and graveyard and the bay view from the top of the hill was fabulous. So wonderfully linked to the past and so aesthetically pleasing! Donegal town and Murvagh beach are also really inviting. The apple orchard and blackberries in August were a bonus. I made 4 pies with my daughters.

Recommended for:Sightseeing, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

The perfect Ireland Vacation home!

Guest: Barbara Z (Washington, DC)
Date of Stay: 07/24/10 Review Submitted: 09/04/10

Hilltown is a beautiful, perfectly appointed home that serves as a great base for a visit to NW Ireland. We were two couples and played golf 5 out of 7 days, at great courses like Enniscrone, Sligo, Donegal, Rosapenna and Cruit Island - all at a fraction of the cost of the better-known Irish links courses. After using the terrific materials provided by the owner, we were able to provision the house with local food products and cooked in a couple nights. The kitchen has everything you need. All the other evenings we enjoyed some of the great local restaurants and pubs featured in the owners guide. We cannot recommend Hilltown enough if you are interested in discovering a little-visited lovely part of Ireland.

Recommended for:Sightseeing, adventure seekers, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Guest: Robert & Robin Finnesey (Chester, NJ)
Date of Stay: 02/02/10 Review Submitted: 02/02/10

We would like to thank the Budd family for helping to make a dream vacation come true. Our trip to Donegal and Hilltown marked our 6th trip to Ireland. We have had the good fortune to see the southwest, the west coast to Sligo, greater Dublin, and the Antrim Coast. We thoroughly enjoyed all of these trips and have played some of the great links golf courses in the world. These previous trips required 2 and 3 night stays at various lovely B&Bs and enchanting castles. Living out of a suitcase, however, does have its drawbacks. Our 2 week stay at The Hilltown was easily our favorite accommodation to date. It was relaxing, the house was charming, spacious and very well appointed,making us feel right at home. Geoffrey and Jennifer McClay, the house and farm managers, were extremely gracious and helpful. Between Boyce and the McClays we were provided ample guidance, including handwritten guides to help us operate everything in the house, directions to various Pubs, restaurants and shops, we never felt lost. The golf was spectacular. The Links at Murvaugh, 5 mins from the front door; Narin and Port Noo; Cruit Island (the best 9 hole course in the world- not to be missed); Port Salon; Rosapenna; County Sligo; and Enniscrone are all fabulous and less than half the cost of Ireland's more famous venues. In addition to Boyce's great recommendations, another restaurant worth the trip is The Courthouse in Kinlough (071) 984-2391. Also, take the opportunity to walk the miles of sandy beaches only minutes away. We cannot wait to return. Morning coffee is not quite the same without the daily parade of 90 single file dairy cows on their way to pasture, topped off by a nice carrot for Lizzy the pony. Being at Hilltown is a magical experience that we hope to repeat in the near future.

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Guest: Mike Cotter (-)
Date of Stay: 06/24/09 Review Submitted: 06/24/09

My friends and I (8 in total) had the pleasure of staying at The Hilltown as our base for a golfing tour of the Northwest coast. A beautifully restored property in the most pastoral of settings, The Hilltown was a perfectly quiet retreat that still afforded us all of the comforts of home, including cable TV and very fast wireless Internet service! We played 5 rounds at spectacular links courses all within a 90 minute drive. The courses were: Donegal Golf Club (very close..great)Enniscrone (90 Minutes …Fabulous), Cruit Island(90 Minutes ..great scenery), Narin & Portnoo (45 Minutes and a real GEM) and Sligo Golf Club(60 minutes ...Great). Downtown Donegal is a short 10 minute drive providing excellent restaurants and pubs. We all had a great trip. The Hilltown was perfect and the owners were a pleasure to deal with. Highly enjoyed and recommended by all of us.Thanks very much!!!

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Guest: Kelly Hamill (-)
Date of Stay: 04/27/09 Review Submitted: 04/27/09

We have fallen in love with Hilltown & Donegal! I would start out the day chasing the sheep around the front yard trying to get them to eat from my hand. I went so far as to dice-up an apple/carrot mixture, which they seemed to prefer! There were baby lambs everywhere which made it irresistible! We would then venture into town or to a neighboring town for site-seeing. During the weekend, there was an amazing festival with celtic performers. On Saturday we spent the morning in town at St.Patricks Cathedral listening to the choral competition. Amazing! We want to thank you again for opening Hilltown to us. We now know why it is such a magical place. We will always remember Donegal and Hilltown with love!

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Guestbook Comment

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 10/01/08 Review Submitted: 10/12/08

We had a grand week this August ('08) with two other couples. The accomodations were charming and comfortable. The caretaker, Geoffrey, was attentive and helpful. We ate in three times, enjoying the Olympics and turf fire. The Hilltown is centrally located for golf: Murvagh (Donegal), Rosses Point (Sligo), Great Northern (Bundoran) and Narin-Port Noo. There are plenty of others, but time only allowed us these four. There are beaches, restaurants, culture and Donegalness! We defintely will repeat. Enjoy, Denis and Louise Duffy

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Guestbook Comment

Guest: Sue D. (Wilmington, Delaware)
Date of Stay: 09/01/08 Review Submitted: 09/18/08

We spent a week at this beautiful home with three other golfing couples this August. It was spectacular, warm, cozy, spacious, updated and on acres of fantastic land with panoramic views. We walked down to the beach, to the old cemetery, to the apple orchard to pick a few for pies. The sheep were out the kitchen window sometimes. Geoffrey would take the cows in and out in the distance. This piece of heaven helped create a memorable vacation - plus, the golf courses were great. Kudos to the owners! Note: The fourth bedroom with bunkbeds is a tandem bedroom but does have a back staircase which worked fine for our group.

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Guestbook Comment

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 09/01/08 Review Submitted: 09/05/08

Hilltown was an ideal choice for a relaxing family vacation. Although rural in location, many activities can keep you entertained and active. If golf is your focus, there are several outstanding links courses within easy reach; most particularly Donegal Golf Club, which is only 5 minutes away. The house itself is supremely suited for a group/family vacation. It is comfortable and lacks no conveniences. If you prefer eating out, there are numerous quality choices; some very near, some a bit of a drive, but the scenery enroute or upon arrival makes the drive worthwhile (see the owner's recommendations). At least once you should take advantage of a cliff top or beach venue and enjoy a wine and cheese outing.

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