Great National Hotel Ballina

My partner & I stayed here last weekend, booked a DELUXE DOUBLE room & paid almost €600 (that's with 15% discount off for booking direct) I do want to stress that most of the staff that we encountered where lovely. But it seriously needs said, that in no way is this hotel worthy of its 4 star rating. I requested a room with a walk in shower - it was a wet room, with no shower curtain or doors around the shower, so every time we got a shower, the bathroom literally flooded. We explained this to the lady at reception when we where asking for more towels & she just nodded her head, grunted & went back to what she was doing. The water in the bathroom smelled like sewage & was off colour, how is anyone supposed to make tea with that? We bought bottled water the whole time we where there. The bed was supposed to be a Deluxe double - it was 2 single beds pushed together - not 2 single bases with a king-size mattress, which we have had in a few other hotels.... literally 2 single beds - the large join in the middle made it extremely uncomfortable. The TV in the room was pre-historic.... I'm not asking for a 40" flat screen, but it's 2024. Plus it only had 2/3 channels. The fuse box in the room hummed/buzzed constantly. One lady at reception told us to take our card out during the night - we couldn't do that as we take an electric cooler box with us for my partners diabetic medication. Another member of staff told my partner "yeah, they all do that"! The breakfast was good, unfortunately dinner was not. My partner ordered the steak sandwich, which the menu says, comes with chunky chips - it arrived, half a soft sub roll with 5 peices of steak (overcooked) in it, with frozen chips. The cocktails where most definitely made with a pre mix. The noise at all times of the day shows that noise proofing is needed - on the 1st floor anyway. The one saving grace of this hotel is the beer garden... we had beautiful weather and it was lovely to be able to sit out. I accept that this review is quite harsh - reason being, we have stayed in a number of 4 star hotels, so are used to that type of accommodation. This hotel is definitely not up to others standards.

After reading other reviews we were a little apprehensive heading here last weekend... however we were warmly welcomed by reception staff put us at ease. Our room was spacious & spotless absolutely no complaints there. We had a late lunch in the bar & had breakfast the next morning. I felt this is where it dropped a point. Our food at lunch was luke warm & at Breakfast( again Luke warm) they seemed to have run out of quite a few things... however when we asked staff for them they were very helpful. As for the Ukrainian people staying at the hotel we were not aware of them at all. We would have no problem returning to stay here. Top marks for fab friendly staff.. & a beautiful spacious room which was spotless....thank you.

Not a 4 star; disappointing stay. Our deluxe room was tatty and worn with stains all over the carpet and two torn seats. Very Far outside of town which we didn’t realize. Nice big pool but Sauna was filthy, particularly the glass door. At £187 for the night it was way overpriced. Would not recommend. How it’s a 4 star I’ll never know!

Went for a nice relaxing night away. Lovely steak sandwich meal in the bar. Got a great free room upgrade to basically a bigger room, with a settee in it. But nice touch. Found that there are a group of Ukrainians residing in the hotel. Maybe a wee bit intimidating, when they gather outside in the evening. They have breakfast in a different part of the dining area in the morning. No issues for us, but always good to be aware.

Really nice friendly staff. Good sized rooms and really clean. Was supposed to stay for 3 nights but unfortunately due to a health emergency (outside anyone's control) could only stay for 1 night. Hotel refunded us some money which was unexpected but greatly appreciated. Hotels a short drive from the town - may be a bit too far to walk - and looked as though the town had everything you needed in it. Breakfast was buffet style and decent, normal cooked options with cereal, yoghurt, etc be also. Would recommend the home made Banana bread. The evening meal was really nice and great size with lots of decent options - washed down with a pint of Guinness. The hotel is housing refugees and they seem to be segregated away in the restaurant area from hotel guests - I felt awkward when we were being served food in one part and they were queuing for food in the other but that's not their fault and they were no issue. All in all a really nice hotel - shame we couldn't stay here longer.

My spa experience in Eidin at the Great National Hotel was fantastic on both occasions. Indian head massage and also hot stone massage, Niamh is very gifted....a must if you're in Ballina. Also, the relaxation room is a perfect readjustment to reality afterwards

been here several times with local friends and always great food,service and looked after very well Thanks to Alex,Corey,Shauna, Jacob and Lorraine for looking after us we will return soon for more delicious food Great addition for Ballina town. Regards,thomas

Visited the hotel for a dinner with friends and we were all amazed by the quality of food,especially their Angus Burger and Chicken. Price is balanced with the quality you're getting. The service was impeccable and everyone at the table were talking about the professionalism and pride in service they provide. We were looked after by Siofra and Alex and they couldn't be more attentive and helpful throughout our dinner. Nothing was an issue for them and left us thinking already about our return. The only minor issue that we found is the interior of the dining room. We found it a bit outdated comparing to the lobby atmosphere. But that won't set us back from returning for more dinners. Thank you to the staff and see you again in the future.

What a lovely stay. Fabulous food lovely staff and a great atmosphere. The staff were so friendly and accommodating. They couldn't do enough for us. Always had time for a quick chat. The food was second to none, absolutely beautiful. The accommodation was perfect. The only small downside was that the pool was very cold, we couldn't use it. That doesn't stop me giving this hotel top marks.