Sandymount House B&B

The Midlands


Once the de Vesci estate manager's home, this beautifully restored country house dating from 1836 has a grand sweeping staircase, marble fireplaces and mature gardens. The four spacious rooms are well equipped with bathrooms sporting high-pressure showers. It's 2.5km west of Abbeyleix.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby The Midlands attractions

1. Market House

1.42 MILES

Built in 1836 by Viscount de Vesci as a market house, this landmark building was restored by the council in 2009 and now houses the town library and an…

2. Abbeyleix Heritage House & Museum

1.61 MILES

An old 19th-century school building houses this museum detailing Abbeyleix' rich history. One room looks at the town's carpet-making legacy – the Turkish…

3. Heywood Gardens

3.78 MILES

These lavish gardens with lakes and woodland were designed by Edwin Lutyens and landscaped by Gertrude Jekyll, and completed in 1912. The centrepiece is a…

4. Timahoe Round Tower

8.26 MILES

In the tiny, charming village of Timahoe, 12km southeast of Portlaoise, is a tilting 30m-tall, 12th-century round tower with an elaborately carved…

5. Donaghmore Workhouse

9.86 MILES

The unadorned stone Donaghmore Workhouse, 19km west of Durrow, was a last resort for the destitute in the 1850s – one of 130 workhouses in the country at…

6. Castlecomer Discovery Park

10.26 MILES

The grounds of the former Wandesforde estate, whose owners grew rich from exploitation of the land's underlying coal deposits, now form a family-oriented…

7. Rock of Dunamase

11.12 MILES

The Rock of Dunamase, 6km east of Portlaoise, is an arresting sight: a craggy limestone outcrop rising 45m out of the flat plains. It offered early…

8. Dunmore Cave

13.31 MILES

Dunmore Cave is as famous for its history as for its beautiful calcite formations, and has yielded many archaeological treasures. Admission is via a…