I was so excited about going to this hotel and I was not disappointed. It is the only 5 star hotel in Galway city, I believe. On arriving, our car was valet parked. The reception area I have to say I was disappointed with, quite clinical but the reception staff were extremely professional, friendly and polite. The hotel is decorated beautifully and is so trendy and chic. Our room (junior suite) was fab, spotlessly clean and I loved the touch of the two big cupcakes left for us. The ensuite had double shower which I had never experienced in a hotel before. We ate in the restaurant on one night and it was delicious. Breakfasts are also delicious. The cocktails, while expensive, were perfectly made. If you want to go to town, you would need to drive/get a taxi. The only downside to the location of the hotel is that the car park is shared with a retail park and the queue to get out can be long. The spa is small but perfectly formed, loved the darkness of the thermal suite. I would totally recommend this hotel and cannot wait to go back !!

I am just back from a great weekend in Galway. I am a regular visitor to the city for weekends, but for the first time felt like I had a real hotel experience. The hotel is amazing, the best rooms in Western Ireland and the level of service and courtesy extended by managment and staff was 150%. i will definately be back!!!!!

WOW! A really fantastic hotel.
Excellent service from the second we checked in.

We had a meal in the Matz restaurant and it was delicious. I read some people think the service is slow....I would call it relaxed. It gave us time to enjoy our meal and the fabulous surroundings.

The 1 slight downer was that we missed our appointment for the Thermal Suite by 10 min, and weren't allowed to go in a little late. We were offered to go in 2 hours later, but it would have meant missing our dinner reservation.

Overall, it was a fantastic hotel for a short break. I would have happily spent the whole weekend in the hotel! The lounges, the room, the spa...plenty to do.

I will be going back again.

First and foremost this is nowhere close to being a five star hotel by any measure. Initial impressions are poor, it is located in a retail park and the reception area and lifts are grubby. The photos I had seen of the hotel gave the impression of a spacious property with several different bars/lounge areas. This is not the case. Instead the different lounge rooms are all connected to each other to the left of reception, essentially part of the lobby.
The restaurant was very disappointing. The food is poor for the price, the service is abysmal, and the room itself lacks any character even with the myriad of colours and styles. We ate in the Malt House in town the second night and got far superior food and service for about 20% less.
The room was nice but, as with everything else, it was not up to five star standard. The t.v. was small, there was no iron or ironing board, no room-service menu, and the carpet was quite dirty. On the plus side the bed was very comfortable and the bathroom was well equipped. As I have mentioned, the hotel is located in a retail park which means no views for most rooms, and it is a good 15 to 20 minute walk from the town centre.
Use of the spa was included in our room rate but only for one visit. Additional visits would be charged at thirty euros which is a scandalous price for the average facilities. If you are looking at this hotel for the spa facilities look somewhere else instead. Having been to Monart myself I cannot understand how the management of this hotel can believe they are offering value for money in their mediocre spa.
The staff in the hotel are friendly so it is a shame that they either aren't getting the training or resources they need to do the job.
The overall feel from this place is all (faded) style and no substance and that whoever is running it has never been to a proper five star property.
Very disappointed. Next time I'll save the money and stay in Jurys or Radisson instead.