2018 Irish Enterprise Award

24 EU BUSINESS NEWS / 2018 Irish Enterprise Awards , Best Luxury Boutique Accommodation 2018 - Leinster Decoy Country Cottages offer luxury self-catering holiday cottages in countyMeath, Ireland. Paula Irwin provides us with a fascinating insight into her business and how she and her team work to offer every guest a truly spectacular experience. Located in the beautiful and historic Boyne Valley, where the history of Ireland was written, Decoy Country Cottages offers eight luxurious cottages, which range in size from one to four bedrooms. These stunningly furnished properties are a haven of peace away from the stresses of today’s hectic lifestyle. Paula explores how she came to create Decoy Country Cottages by drawing on her own experience of holidaying in similar accommodation. “Decoy Country Cottages was created following a holiday I took with my young family while in the UK. It was so great to stay in accommodation that was not a hotel, as this can be quite difficult with small children since there is not much space or freedom. When converting the farm buildings at Decoy House, my aim was to provide a space that was perfect for families, groups and couples to spend quality time together in the beautiful surroundings of The Boyne Valley away from the stress and noise of modern life. “Today, we cater to a range of clients, including families and groups who use the cottages as a base to explore the surrounding area or to celebrate significant family occasions such as weddings, anniversaries and birthdays. They are also increasingly popular with business travellers as we are just 30 minutes from Dublin. We offer a peaceful and tranquil location, food delivered to the door if guests do not wish to cook or go out to eat, spa treatments in our onsite treatment rooms and we can also arrange tours with a private tour guide.” In today’s modern corporate landscape, people are often stressed and looking for the ideal combination of supported accommodation and relaxing space to recharge. Decoy Country Cottages aims to offer the perfect balance, as Paula highlights. “By offering a broad range of services, at Decoy Country Cottages we are able to work towards achieving our mission: to give our clients the best experience we can by offering excellent customer service from the moment an enquiry is made to the time the guest checks out. We try to make the guest stay as relaxing as possible, and as such although we are always on hand to deal with any queries and requests, we are always discreet and let our guests enjoy their holiday in peace.” “Alongside the service we provide, the quality of our accommodation is also very high. We have used as many recycled and natural materials as possible in the build process and this has made the cottages and the courtyard a very pleasant place to stay. We provide a safe environment where children are free to roam and play so parents get time to relax, unwind and recharge. This ensures that everyone who stays at one of our cottages has the experience they need to return to normality feeling re-energised and refreshed.” Ultimately, as the holiday market evolves and clients look for personalised, bespoke experiences to enhance their hard earned breaks, firms such as Decoy Country Cottages will continue to grow and flourish. Paula concludes by discussing how she will continue to drive better improvements to the cottages to ensure it continues to meet guests’ ever evolving needs. “Looking ahead, the ongoing focus at Decoy Country Cottages is on striving to be the best, as it has been every year since the business was established. This year we are installing a new heating system that utilises cutting edge daylight heating roof panels that will provide the majority of the cottage’s heating and hot water needs as well as generating electricity, which I hope to be able to sell back to the grid. Next year, I would like to install a hot tub and possibly a yoga studio. By continuously improving we have managed to achieve phenomenal growth so far, and I am keen to build upon this success over the years to come.” GBA17007 Paula Irwin Manager Decoy Country Cottages