18 Century house and garden in rural Westmeath, Ireland

Availability

  2025 

 Min stay requested: at least 2 weeks

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Details

  • Description

    Description

    We are a married couple with four grown up boys who have all now left home and live overseas. The eldest is working and living in London with his wife. The second trains racehorses near Sydney, Australia. The third is in the fashion industry; he is married and living in New York with his husband. The fourth is works in London organising conferences around the European Union.
    We found and bought this house 30 years ago. Built in about 1760, it was a virtual ruin and we have restored the main block. The gardens, which include two walled gardens, are gradually being restored. Caroline is a keen and knowledgeable gardener (RHS qualified) who has made our garden out of a wilderness. The garden is large with an orchard, vegetable garden, flower garden and lots of grass that needs cutting.
    We both work from home, Patrick is an architectural historian and Caroline sells garden items that are displayed in the walled garden.
    Our sons, daughter and son-in-law come home whenever they can and we have students staying in the house at times.

  • Types of help and learning opportunities

    Types of help and learning opportunities

    Gardening
    DIY and building projects
    Animal Care
    Creating/ Cooking family meals
    Help around the house
    General Maintenance
  • Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

    Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

    If they want to learn English we can help them and Patrick is TEFL qualified and can give English lessons. These have to be paid for and cannot be done in lieu of extra hours.
    We encourage them to explore the surrounding beautiful countryside and take them with us for walks and visits to local sites if they want to come. We teach them about the Irish legends of this area and Irish history and architecture.
    Many of our workawayers have come to us for their first experience and have learnt lots about gardening, building, painting and house maintenance.

  • Help

    Help

    At this time of year there is always help needed in the garden, looking after vegetables, weeding, clearing up after the winter and preparing for the summer. When it is raining, there are plenty of things to do in the house. This building is an ongoing restoration programme for us. There is always painting and decorating to do plus some housework. This is our 12th year of hosting workawayers and, as you can see, people like staying here.
    We make a point of treating our workawayers as part of the family and every night we all sit down to dinner together. We really enjoy it if a workaway cooks for us sometimes - particularly food from their country.

  • Languages spoken

    English: Fluent
    French: Fluent

  • Accommodation

    Accommodation

    Full board. We have a double room and a single room with a bathroom next to them and two power showers. As many workawayers like to eat a lot at lunchtime, particularly French and Italians, they usually have to prepare this themselves using the food in the cupboard or fridge. We eat a very healthy diet with home cooked food at all times, eating many vegetables from our garden, tended by workawayers and eggs from our own hens.

  • What else ...

    What else ...

    This area, largely unknown to tourists, is situated in the North Midlands of Ireland and is rolling country with beautiful lakes. It is 100kms northwest of Dublin, close to Mullingar, with good transport links: train, bus and main M4 close by. There is good fishing in the lakes. The village has a good pub with music on occasions and restaurants nearby (driving). The house is very much in the country, surrounded by farmland (though we are not farmers). As such it is not suitable for people with allergies to animals. The local village is 10mins. walk away. There is a daily return Bus Eireann bus to Dublin (about 2.5 hours each way). There are, however, other faster methods of getting to Dublin by bus and train. We also have bicycles and high viz tops.
    We encourage workawayers to go on weekend trips by bus or train to visit Dublin, Galway, Belfast and other areas of Ireland; we are very flexible about this and about how our guests manage their hours.

  • A little more information

    A little more information

    • Internet access

    • Limited internet access

      Limited internet access

    • We have pets

    • We are smokers

    • Can host families

  • Can host digital nomads

    Can host digital nomads

    The wifi is very good as we have fibre broadband.

  • Space for parking camper vans

    Space for parking camper vans

    There is plenty of room around the house, all on gravel.

  • How many Workawayers can stay?

    How many Workawayers can stay?

    Two

Host ref number: 738643259889

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Photos

The image depicts a two-story stone house with a red door, featuring windows, chimneys, and a gravel driveway, set against a clear blue sky.
The image depicts a two-story stone house with a dark roof, featuring multiple windows and a chimney, set against a serene blue sky backdrop.
The image shows two older people smiling at the camera, with a green bush and cloudy sky in the background, likely taken outdoors on a gloomy day.
The image depicts four men in suits standing in a room with ornate furnishings, including a fireplace and a portrait on the wall, in a formal setting.
The image depicts a two-story stone house with a red door, white windows, and chimneys, set against a blue sky with white clouds.
The image depicts a serene courtyard with a fountain, surrounded by a pond, featuring ducks, and a stone building in the background, exuding a sense of tranquility.
A brown chicken with a red comb stands on a stone wall, framed by a hole, with a grassy field in the background.

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