Glenarde House as it was then known, was a townhouse built around 1840 for the Persse Family who owned large estates in South Galway. Many of the Persse family members hold a place in local history including, Burton, who was the founder of the Galway Blazers and Augusta who went on to became Lady Gregory, Co-Founder of the Abbey Theatre.

When Ardilaun House opened as a hotel on St Patrick’s Day in 1962, the mansion had been entirely redecorated to include all the modern amenities. At the same time, care had been taken to preserve as much of the original character of the old mansion as possible.

There were eighteen bedrooms, each bedroom with its own distinctive theme and considered modern at the time. It was a sign of how quickly standards were changing that within fifteen years all of the original bedrooms had been phased out having already become inadequate and unacceptable.

In 1975 the bar was extended and the reception area improved. By 1977 the need for further expansion was evident and in a two stage development, an additional forty bedrooms were added - all with ensuite bathrooms.

A new dining room was also constructed with doors leading onto a patio where dining could be enjoyed outdoors during the summer time. The lands and woods surrounding the hotel were landscaped and have since provided pleasant walks for hotel guests.

1999 saw major investment and upgrading of the hotel and its facilities. A superb new Leisure Club was added comprising of an 18 meter deck level swimming pool, jacuzzi, sauna, steam room, gymnasium and an aerobics studio. Included in this redevelopment also was the addition of the Health and Beauty Salon and renovations took place in the public and conference areas with the addition of a new meeting room and a boardroom. The hotel was relaunched as The Ardilaun House Hotel, Conference Centre and Leisure Club.

The Ardilaun now had 89 bedrooms to include a number of suites. The hotel is rated four star and owners, management and staff are very proud to provide this level of service in the dining-room, accommodation and public areas.

In 2005 a further redevelopment commenced which reached completion in 2006. This exciting programme saw 36 luxury new rooms, 2 tiers of underground parking, conversion for 4 existing bedrooms to Garden Suites, extensions to the Restaurant, Bar, foyer and Connacht Suite ballroom and grounds were fully landscaped.

The Ardilaun Hotel is ideally suited for any event or occasion, for business or pleasure. A major advantage of the hotel is its ample complimentary and convenient car parking.

The Ardilaun Hotel the name which many locals had already been referring to it as. This rebrand was done in line with the hotels 45th Anniversary celebration. 2008 saw further redevelopment when Blazers Bar was extended to become Blazers Bar & Bistro. At this time there was also renovation to the restrooms and staff areas.

A further 14 rooms on 2 floors were redeveloped and are now 12 deluxe rooms – each with its own individual character. In addition to the many Irish guests who are regular visitors to the hotel, it is also a most popular choice to those travelling from USA, UK and Europe. Guests are always very impressed with the hotels unique seclusion while, at the same time, its convenience to the city centre.

To ensure continued excellence in business, the hotel invested in the Optimus Programme. The Ardilaun Hotel was the first hotel in the West of Ireland to achieve this mark of recognition and each year since investing in the programme in 2005 has been awarded the Optimus Mark of Best Practice.