A HOUSE DATING to the 1770s is bound to have a storied past. John Swete, who served as the High Sheriff of Cork, built this exclusive home and sold it soon after. By 1791, Ballinacurra House belonged to the Bleazbys, a family well-known in Cork city. William Bleazby expanded the original house in 1831, adding matching east and west wings, with one wing featuring a grand ballroom.
A century and a half later, Ballinacurra House changed hands when the Bleazby family sold it to John Danford, an artist and avid traveller. After Danford died in 1970, the property was acquired by a group of nuns who had cared for him during his illness in Africa. Through ownership changes, the estate eventually landed in the hands of the current owners in 2000. They dedicated three years to restoring, expanding, and enhancing the property and its grounds, transforming it into a boutique hotel and wedding venue.
Approaching this former hotel, you’ll pass through electric gates along a winding avenue that meanders through the lawns, leading to the gravelled entrance courtyard. This courtyard features a central oval lawn, flanked by the east and west wings.
There are also two service access avenues: one to the right of the main entrance with a separate gate, and the second to the west of the walled garden.
The estate boasts an extensive main residence, two charming stone cottages, and a meticulously restored coach house, offering a total of 15 bedrooms and 13 bathrooms.
The heart of the property is the Georgian main house that spans about 1156 m², which has undergone extensions and renovations over the years.
Upon entry into the reception hall, the original reception rooms flank either side, leading to the spacious family kitchen. Upstairs, two generously sized bedrooms with en suite bathrooms await. The west wing also houses a library, massage room/study and six bedrooms. Meanwhile, the east wing is currently used as a wedding venue that consists of a bar and a ballroom that connect to a 120 m² conservatory on the ground floor.
The conservatory opens onto a covered outdoor area featuring a barbecue and toilet facilities, while the opposite side reveals a spacious sun terrace.
On the grounds, a well restored and extended stone-fronted house, was built in 2004. It offers an open plan living, dining and kitchen area, utility room, separate guest toilet and four bedrooms with en suite bathrooms – a cosy retreat away from the busy main house.
The coach house was converted in 2005 and offers a galley kitchen and three more bedrooms and a living and dining room.
Nestled between the main house and the coach house lies a building that was once a cookery school. Additionally, there’s an array of storage buildings behind the main house and adjacent to the sand arena stands a range of stables, complete with a tack room and fodder storage.
Ballinacurra House enjoys direct access to the Ballinacurra and White Castle creeks which flow to the Bandon River. The estate is lined by the estates private woodland, home to an abundance of walking trails.
The whole estate is surrounded by 23 acres of lawns, woodland and manicured gardens. Located just 4 km from the busy town of Kinsale, it’s just half an hour from Cork city and airport.
Whether it continues as a business or becomes a private family home, this exquisite waterfront estate is certainly a rare opportunity to own a piece of Irish heritage.
Ballinacurra House, Ballinacurra, Kinsale, Co Cork is on the market for €4,000,000 through Colliers.
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