An overnight stay in Clayton Hotel in Ballsbridge!

A few weeks ago, the kids & I were invited to have an overnight stay at the Clayton Hotel Ballsbridge, Dublin. Which tied in perfectly for our day trip to the Dublin Zoo, which was on our Summer bucket list for this year – so being able to relax, rather than rushing to get transport home was a real luxury. 

We waited until after our time at Dublin Zoo before checking in and as we walked up to the hotel, the kids giggled at how too much it looked like Monsters University whereas I thought it resembled Hogwarts a little. Either of those assumptions aside it had a real old school feel to it and I looked forward to finding out a bit of its history later on. 

As we walked into the hotel my immediate thought was how Instagram-mable it all looked. High ceilings, grand chandeliers, marble floors, delicate plants, comfortable seating areas and so much natural light that my heart skipped. We were greeted at the desk by the lovely reception staff. They checked us in, gave us our hotel key cards and off we went to find our room. 

Clayton Hotel in Ballsbridge, Dublin

Photo courtesy of the Clayton Hotel Ballsbridge website

We were up on the fifth floor and given 2 adjoining rooms. Initially, it was meant to be the three children, myself & my husband staying over. But due to him having to work away at the last minute, it ended up just being myself and the kids.

The adjoining rooms were really lovely, ‘fancy’ as the kids called them. Massive comfy beds, which the kids claimed which one they’d be sleeping in seconds after we entered the room. Each bedroom had one double bed & one single bed, a TV, bathroom, complimentary toiletries, a kettle & hot drink requirements as well as fresh towels.

It had everything you could possibly need. As well as complimentary wifi – my eldest daughter loved that. 

Adjoining bedrooms for families

After walking into the rooms and watching the kids scatter off to claim their beds, I noticed this super kind basket of treats left for us on the sideboard. The two ladies on reception, Lisa & Laura had made the kids & me a beautiful care package.

It had popcorn & sweets, colouring-in books, bottles of candy and even a cheeky little box of chocolates for myself. I thought this was just the sweetest touch and we really appreciated that. 

I loved the subtle lighting around the hotel rooms – the lamps above the beds just gave off that real cosy settling-down-for-the-night feel and I really liked that. 

However, before we could settle down for the evening, we had a dinner reservation in the hotel restaurant for 7 pm. So we got our shoes on, freshened up and went downstairs for dinner. 

Dinner at the Clayton Hotel with kids!

Entering the restaurant I did feel a little conscious having a four-year-old with me. There were shiny wine glasses everywhere; many breakable things – and that made me a little nervous. Anything that wasn’t needed got taken away because four-year-olds will be well, four-year-olds, right? I was able to breathe a little easier & enjoy our family dinner together. 

A lovely waiter took our drinks order; “And wine for you Madam?” he asked, “Oh, no, just water for me, thank you” I replied – the look he gave me was so funny. Almost like an “are you sure?” look without actually saying it. The kids were given their menus which doubled up as colouring in pages – crayons were supplied and I had three content children. 

My two youngest chose to have chicken goujons & chips, and my eldest daughter chose to have sausages & mash – an epic choice. I, however, had a little difficulty choosing from the adult menu. Everything was just too…high-end for me. So when I asked if I could have one of the dishes from the kid’s menu, in an adult portion, it was no trouble at all. 

We all left clean plates – the food was really lovely. I could have eaten mine twice over it tasted so good. We decided to indulge in dessert and all chose to have the delicious warm brownie & ice cream, and my youngest girl chose a trio of ice cream. 

After we had filled our bellies with a really delicious dinner, it was time to retire to our room for the night. We all had a pretty busy day, walking around Dublin Zoo on what felt like the hottest day imaginable – but now pyjamas, popcorn & a movie was calling us. 

We all slept very well. The beds were so comfortable and the next morning it was our four-year-old who was the last to get up. She even exclaimed that she had the “best night’s sleep EVER” – from the mouth’s of babes. So when everyone was finally awake *head-tilt to the littlest one* we were ready for breakfast. 

The hotel breakfast was down in the restaurant that we had dinner in the night before. It was a self-service breakfast and the kids were keen to get stuck in! I mean, hotel breakfasts are the best, right? Once they were settled with their food {sausages, pancakes & cereal} it meant I could have a look round.

There was so much choice on offer; from a range of juices, a choice of bread & muffins, hot food, cereals, fruits, pancakes & pastries. There was a gluten-free section with its own toaster which I thought was amazing. There was literally something for everyone. 

Breakfast at the Clayton Hotel

After a delicious breakfast, it was time to head back to our room. It was time to pack up our things and relax for a while before our journey home to Belfast.

Overall…

We had such a lovely stay at the Clayton Hotel Ballsbridge, Dublin. The service overall was amazing, the staff were so accommodating & helpful. 

A big thank you for Clayton Hotel Ballsbridge for inviting us to stay in return for this review. All thoughts, photos & opinions are entirely my own.