Esplanade Hotel On The Seafront, Bray

Strand Road, Bray, . 3

Located on the Dublin Wicklow seafront, this 94 bedroom hotel has all modern amenities, combined with Victorian charm. The perfect place for the family break, a... more

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€ Rooms from €79 (≈ $116) per night
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8/10 Overall rating

Category Average Rating
8/10 Check-in process
7/10 Your room
7/10 Working order of facilities / equipment
8/10 Order and cleanliness of the hotel
8/10 Performance of staff
8/10 Overall experience
8/10 Overall value for money
  • 8/10 Samantha ( Family with older children) 

    from Belfast , GB  on  April 27, 2008

    "good clean and comfortable hotel." (97180133)

    beds really comfortable and good size room

    wedding on below us, loud music playing until early hours. we had 3yrs child trying to sleep.no parking at hotel.

    2 of 2 people found this review helpful:

  • 8/10 Anonymous ( Mature couple) 

    on  April 11, 2008

    "nice location hotel has old world charm and was generally good value for money It would have been preferable to have had a pot of tea/coffee brought to your breakfast table rather than to carry hot drinks around quite a large dining room." (97018758)

    no folder in room with maps and details of local attractions

    2 of 2 people found this review helpful:

  • 6/10 Anonymous ( Mature couple) 

    on  March 24, 2008

    "would go back to Bray but would not be staying this hotel. Was fine for a two day break but not any longer." (97108140)

    location and room

    Dining staff not very friendly also the service was very poor and hap hazard, tables not being cleared with people left, food when it arrived was only luke warm. When a German couple complained to a waiter he was told it is not my problem. Then the cook arrived with hot bacon which he proceeded to put on top of the cold bacon.

    2 of 2 people found this review helpful:

  • 9/10 Ronnie ( Group of work colleagues) 

    from Colwyn bay , GB  on  March 14, 2008

    "As above.The accomodation is excellent value for money .The service good and friendly staff which makes the stay so much more pleasurable.Hotel is in a good spot with lovely walks along the sea front.Social visit to enjoy the rugby with friends but would definetly bring my wife for a holiday at the hotel" (97401611)

    Friendly staff, excellent breakfast, clean bedroom .Value for money will simply make me book again

    2 of 2 people found this review helpful:

  • 8/10 Yvonn ( Family with young children) 

    from Solihull , GB  on  November 5, 2007

    "Found the hotel to be very acceptable and good accommodation for the room rates. Would use again. Liked the location being on the seafront, as able to enjoy morning walks on the promenade before breakfast!" (97069068)

    overall in a convenient, quiet area of Bray

    inability to live a sleeping child without any monitoring facilities. Meant my husband and i could not eat together in the dining room. A simple baby monitor would have remedied this as you can hear any sounds from the room so know if the child wakes up.

    2 of 2 people found this review helpful:

  • 9/10 Anonymous ( Young couple) 

    on  October 3, 2007

    Very comfortable

    1 of 1 people found this review helpful:

  • 5/10 Anonymous ( Family with older children) 

    on  August 1, 2007

    "I would have liked to have been told that a wedding was taking place at the hotel and the time that the event would finish but was given no information and was told we'd just have to wait until the music finished." (97312503)

    What did I dislike the wedding disco playing directly below my room until 1.10am when we had gone to bed at 11.00pm for an early night as we had a flight in the morning!! The room was literally shaking!

    1 of 1 people found this review helpful:

  • 7/10 Anonymous ( Mature couple) 

    on  July 19, 2007

    "Used the hotel as a stop over for the ferry back from holidays in Ireland." (97770574)

    Had room only so did not sample the food on this occassion.

    1 of 1 people found this review helpful:

  • 7/10 Angela ( Other) 

    from Christchurch , United Kingdom;GB  on  June 1, 2007

    location

    needs updating. Mix up over sea view room. E-mail confirmation directly from hotel but receptionist had left and no booking was made.

    1 of 1 people found this review helpful:

  • 9/10 Paul ( Family with young children) 

    from Sheffield , GB  on  May 14, 2008

    "Hotel and staff could not have been better for us truly enjoyed our stay,breakfast was very good but evening meal disapointing and dined elswhere after first night." (97034744)

    location on seafront,accomodation and friendly staff excellant value for money.

    walk from rear car park with cases and steps to main door

  • 8/10 Christopher ( Group of adult friends) 

    from Tamworth , United Kingdom;GB  on  April 25, 2007

    "Nice location. showers in rooms nice and powerful. Good that breakfast goes on until 11am." (99449508)

    clean rooms, friendly staff

    should have included breakfast in price. some rooms not ready on time.

  • 10/10 Bernie ( Mature couple) 

    from Coventry , United Kingdom;GB  on  April 20, 2007

    "This is our second trip to the coast of Dublin. Last year we stayed at Howth. Bray and Howth both highly recommended - easy to reach by the Dart - a holiday with the best of both worlds - the shopping in Dublin city or a quiet rest by the coast all in the same day. Hoping to return in October with friends." (99346327)

    A beautiful old Victorian Hotel situated on the sea front at Bray. Excellent service, staff very friendly and nothing to much trouble. Accommodation excellent as well really clean and comfortable. Food fab as well.

  • 6/10 Agnes ( Mature couple) 

    from Ballymena , United Kingdom;GB  on  April 13, 2007

    breakfast only

    room was cold, no hot water in morning, no mirror lightning in bathroom, only 2 pillows had to use clothes as pillows, phone to reception not working, ask for a seaview got a brick wall never will stay in hotel again p.s. sockets in bedroom went out no tv, lamps etc

  • 9/10 Rochelle ( Young couple) 

    from Swords , IE  on  April 11, 2007

    "Perfect location on the seafront and in walking distance to the town. Hotel was beautifully decorated and our room was immaculate! Excellent value for money and kudos to the staff. I would recommend to a friend and will stay again without hesitation." (99196053)

    Excellent value for money, the staff were perfectly helpful and happy!

    The working order of facilities was a little disappointing, ie. Hair dryer was broken and no hot water.

  • 8/10 Carol ( Family with older children) 

    from Birmingham , United Kingdom;GB  on  August 11, 2006

    "It was very off-putting to be greeted almost immediately with a request for a credit card...I had barely reached the desk and given my name! Would have preferred a 'welcome to Esplanade' or some similar greeting or small talk. I expect it was a trainee or inexperienced female receptionist (though seemingly being supervised by senior male?) nevertheless, it was not a welcome I would expect - especially in friendly, laid-back Ireland! Generally though, we enjoyed our stay at the hotel...apart from the breakfast experience. The included dinner was excellent - great food and the staff were very busy - perhaps more training would benefit both staff and management (and ultimately, the guest!). We would certainly stay here again - our rooms were very pleasant (Nos. 107 & 110 I think!)" (3304934965)

    Bright, clean rooms - great sea view. Loved the light colours - generally speaking, hotel decor tends to be dark and lighting poor but Esplanade rooms were cheerful and bright without being too 'modern/minimilist' - in keeping with the period.

    *Breakfast was a disappointment - poor. The expected 'full Irish' buffet choice was poor - no mushrooms, no black or white pudding and the service was non-existent. No-one cleared away used plates between courses. We had to stack used platee on nearby table ourselves. Staff didn't ask if we needed anything - had to ask for tea/coffee and the toast was 'untoasted' on both mornings!! *Poor language communication overall. Asked for pint beer at dinner -got wine 'spritzer'??? *Could do with king size duvets on double beds - present ones barely covers mattress... *Would benefit from fan to cool rooms on hot nights. *No 'set down' point at hotel steps for luggage/check-in. *No porter or trolleys available to help with luggage.

    1 of 1 people found this review helpful:

  • 4/10 Vicente ( Solo leisure traveller) 

    from Rafelcofer , Spain;ES  on  March 15, 2007

    The room was good, and the beds as well

    It was good but the first room wasn't clean, and the second room was different that the room i had booked, so finally the third room was good but i wasted more time than i expected

  • 9/10 Anonymous ( Family with young children) 

    on  March 14, 2007

    Our room was excellent value for money and would use this hotel again.

  • 8/10 Ken ( Mature couple) 

    from Nuneaton , United Kingdom;GB  on  March 12, 2007

    "A very nice hotel, with excellent food, which was a very pleasant surprise. All the staff were pleasant and very helpful. I would definitely stay here again. We were actually offered a choice of three rooms when we arrived, but it was out of season." (99203401)

    The sea view.

    The plumbing - but we were in the Victorian part of the building.

  • 10/10 Lesley ( Group of adult friends) 

    from Bristol , United Kingdom;GB  on  March 9, 2007

    "Good value for money, and well situated. I am from England and have been fortunate enough to visit Bray twice before. The train the Dart is very handy for getting into Dublin quickly." (99342723)

    It was very clean and the staff were friendly and helpful

  • 7/10 Liam ( Young couple) 

    from Lucan , Ireland;IE  on  February 16, 2007

    The price of the hotel was good..

    Room very small.While my girlfriend was showering the next morning,a call came to the room to ask if she could stop the shower as it was leaking through to the bar,so I did not get a shower myself.There was no apology when we checked out..

  • 8/10 Anonymous ( Mature couple) 

    on  February 11, 2007

    Clean and tidy. Well placed for our visit

  • 8/10 Maria ( Group of adult friends) 

    from Allershausen , Germany;DE  on  March 31, 2007

    schön, stilvoll eingerichtet

    hätte mir in unserem Zimmer eine Minibar gewünscht, damit man z.B. am Anreisetag abends etwas trinken kann, wenn man so wie wir nichts dabei hatten, da es beim Fliegen nicht mehr gestattet ist.

    2 of 2 people found this review helpful:

  • 10/10 Anonymous ( Mature couple) 

    on  January 20, 2007

    "We knew the area very well and so also knew which part of the town we wanted to stay in. Nothing we would have known before would have bettered our experience." (99101222)

    clean,comfortable and well run hotel with excellent staff.

  • 9/10 Edward ( Mature couple) 

    from Newtownards , United Kingdom;GB  on  January 5, 2007

    We liked the food the room and the helpfull staff.

    The old TV

  • 4/10 Anonymous ( Same sex couple) 

    on  April 5, 2006

    "I called beforehand to check on parking available, I was advised there was ample parking spaces, when I arrived I found no actual parking at the front of the hotel only on-street parking and possibly 25/30 spaces at the back of the hotel, which was more like a builing site than a carpark. The receptionist was not very friendly at check-in, she practically threw my visa card across the desk instead of handing it back to me. On check out the next morning the cleaners left the cleaner equipment/bags of towels etc, all over the hotel hall way and we had to almost climb over them to get past. The room was fine, nice and clean, some stains on the bed cover though. There was no problem with the bathroom, it was clean. All other staff were friendly and polite." (3304461533)

    Good Location

    The receptionist was a little rude on our arrival but she was friendlier when we were checking out.

    1 of 1 people found this review helpful:

  • 5/10 Mairead ( Mature couple) 

    from Tipperary , United Kingdom;GB  on  December 13, 2006

    "we should have been advised when booking,that there was no lift to the first floor, or any lift at all for the benefit of people with limited mobility. the bed was extremely uncomfortable. and while i realise that the price was very reasonable, i still think the accomodation was poor enough." (99283203)

    a most beautiful building to look at. good position on the sea front

    facilities were poor enough. the wardrobe was like two bit of medite stuck together, cups with no saucers. etc

  • 8/10 Anonymous ( Group of work colleagues) 

    on  November 29, 2006

    "overall the hotel was great value for money,its a pity that there are no lesure facilities. we probably wouldn't have used them anyway, but that would probably attract more guests." (99586586)

    Clean,warm and friendly staff

    the breakfast was hard to eat with a hangover!

  • 8/10 Jerome ( Solo leisure traveller) 

    from Bray , Ireland;IE  on  November 21, 2006

    "Good but but room for improvment. Consider including breakfast in your price." (99474006)

    Most of the hotel is new and a pleasure to be in. Some of the older parts are a bit shabby, eg some wires hanging from the ceiling and a musty smell in the lounge.

    I think you let yourself down on the value for money. I payed 74euro, a lot of places you would get a breakfast included for this.

  • 8/10 Vivien ( Mature couple) 

    from Milford haven , United Kingdom;GB  on  October 17, 2006

    Excellent room; good breakfast; comfortable public rooms.

    Car park not lit, lights visible, but not working? Information requested on check in not very helpful, eg were we too late for evening meal, if so, where could we go?

  • 6/10 Ian ( Mature couple) 

    from Hetton le hole , United Kingdom;GB  on  July 13, 2006

    "Enjoyed our 2 Day stay in the region but were disappointed with the service within the hotel" (3304925589)

    Well situated for touring around the dublin and east coast region

    Srervice at evening meal not to the standard expected ( waited 15 mins for bottle of wine after ordering } + wine just left on table where you would have expected the waiter to pour out to taste

  • 10/10 Tammy ( Family with older children) 

    from Toms river , United States;US  on  July 9, 2006

    spacious rooms, helpful staff, quality dining, location

  • 9/10 Rachel ( Young couple) 

    from Oakham , United Kingdom;GB  on  June 15, 2006

    The friendly and vary helpfull staff made our stay. Thank you

  • 7/10 Anonymous ( Other) 

    on  May 5, 2006

    clean

    a bit noisy

  • 9/10 Wayne ( Same sex couple) 

    from Basingstoke , United Kingdom;GB  on  May 4, 2006

    "My overall perception is a positive one & I would highly recommend the hotel. Some of the staff would be happier behind a desk without interaction with the public while others should always be working when the hotel is full as they are exceptional in making one feel like you are welcome & special." (3304542676)

    The location is magnificent, the breakfast sumptuous, the rooms stunning and we even had a small view of the sea despite not paying the extra E10 pn for a sea-facing room; the night manager, assistant manager & most waiters gave exceptional service, when we missed the free dinner as the advertised time on the key holder was different to the time advertised in the bedroom, the manager ordered take-out pizza for us which was great although we had to ask for it, which wasnt. The rooms are cleaned daily to a high standard.

    Some of the staff were cool/ nervous and didnt make eye-contact when interacting with one, they also gave the impression that you were holding them up; when we missed the complimentary supper the manager shouldnt have needed an arm twisting to resolve our need for food. And is a budget for pizza an adequate compensation for missing a sit-down dinner. My perception was that she didnt have the support/ authority to really make us happy as she belived she should. One morning only one bed was made which wasnt a big deal. The coffee was weak for 2 of the 3 breakfasts. Dont make calls from the bedroom as they are heavily loaded: about 3 Euro per call!!

  • 9/10 Anonymous ( Mature couple) 

    on  April 22, 2006

    "My self and my husband like to travel and stay at different hotels for little breaks. We remembered the Esplanade Hotel from years ago and were very pleased when we arrived at the hotel. They had refurbished the hotel completely, a lovely big red carpet reception area with big bay view windows looking out on to the ocean. Very impressive entrance we could'nt believe the rate we got for the room, a promotional special they said. The bedroom was beautiful and clean. Breakfast was good, hot and fresh and the girl serving was friendly. We walked around the area for the day and then did the bray head cliff walk. Had dinner in the restaurant, very nice and cosy, a friendly waiter was good giving us help with the menu. Then we went for a walk down the promenade, it was a lovely stay we would liked to have stayed longer. Nice room, food and staff." (3304540673)

    Beautiful bedroom and a lovely location

    Everything was very good, no bad comments

  • 10/10 Anonymous ( Solo leisure traveller) 

    on  April 14, 2006

    "Will be definitly back in the summer with friends. Stayed at this hotel for a family reunion and the hotel looked after us very well. The staff were all very friendly, the girl at front desk was helpful and informative with directions and all the attractions in the area. The location is definitly superb. We had dinner in the restaurant which was very good, we had a lovely table beside the window and the waitress was good helping us decide on the menu. I would definitly come back again in the summer with friends, it was unfortunate I was only there for 1 night." (3304517660)

    Fantastic location and hotel... Big spacious bedroom spotlessly clean. Breakfast and dinner was excellent and the staff serving were very friendly.

    No comments, very satisfied with everything.

  • 9/10 Hartmann ( Family with young children) 

    from Villach , Austria;AT  on  April 19, 2006

    schönes hotel, gute Lage, leider schlecht Beschilder vom Flufhafen aus, Personal äußerst freundlich an der reception, Beim Frühstück eine wenig Chaos und unfreundliche und nciht sehr gut organisierte Mitarbeiter

    Frühstück,

The views expressed on this page are the personal opinions of guests and therefore do not necessarily represent the views of Active Hotels, Active Reservations or our distribution partners (About our hotel reviews).

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