Ashford Castle^ASSOULINE Online

Nestled on the shore of Lough Corrib, this heralded estate has only grown in repute over the passing eight centuries, passing through the hands of esteemed lords and ladies, as well as several generations of the Guinness family, who eventually passed the property to the Irish government. Hosting visitors over the years ranging from King George V and Prince Rainier III of Monaco to Oscar Wilde and John Lennon, the castle even provided a setting for the Hollywood production of The Quiet Man, starring John Wayne. This publication, presenting the newly renovated Ashford Castle, now including all modern conveniences as well as a cinema, a spa, and suites named after American Presidents Reagan and Kennedy, both former guests, is a celebration of Ireland’s castles as repositories of the country’s history and legend.

Stanley Stewart FRSL is the author of three highly acclaimed travel books and several hundred articles based on journeys across five continents. His latest book, In the Empire of Genghis Khan, has been translated into ten languages, and was the BBC Book of the Week. Stewart has won the Benjamin Franklin Award in the US for In the Empire, and is the only author to have twice won the prestigious Thomas Cook Travel Book Award. Stewart’s work has appeared regularly in travel anthologies on both sides of the Atlantic. His travel journalism has won numerous awards. He has been named Travel Writer of the Year six times and was awarded the Magazine Writer of the Year in 2008. He is a contributing editor of Condé Nast Traveller, and in the UK his work appears regularly in the Sunday Times. In 2002, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.