Pros

  • Close to the city center, public transportation, and restaurants
  • Modern rooms with mini-fridges, some with balconies and river views
  • Indoor heated pool, children’s pool, and hot tub
  • Asian restaurant and a lounge with light meals
  • Afternoon tea service and 24-hour room service
  • Well-stocked gym with an aerobics studio
  • Spa offers beauty treatments, sauna, and steam room
  • Seven fully equipped meeting rooms, plus public computer
  • Full-Irish breakfast served daily (for a fee)
  • Kids' club and events offered around holidays
  • Free Wi-Fi throughout
  • Discounted rates for underground parking garage
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Cons

  • Fee for parking and breakfast
  • Complaints about cleanliness and heating/AC problems
  • Restaurant food is reportedly mediocre
  • Swimming caps required for the pool
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Bottom Line

The Clarion Hotel Cork is a centrally located four-pearl property that’s popular with business travelers and tourists alike. The 198 rooms are contemporary, though a little dated in style, and they're well-equipped with flat-screen TVs, Nespresso coffeemakers, and mini-fridges. Hotel highlights include an Asian restaurant and bar, a large fitness center, an indoor pool, and a children’s pool, meeting spaces, and a spa. However, parking and breakfast cost extra. The nearby River Lee Hotel is a  comparable property and offers free parking.  

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Amenities

  • Cribs
  • Fitness Center
  • Internet
  • Jacuzzi
  • Pool
  • Spa

Oyster Hotel Review

Clayton Hotel Cork City

Scene

Modern hotel with an impersonal vibe that attracts business and leisure travelers alike

Housed in a building made of stone and glass, the Clarion Hotel Cork, built in 2005, looks a little impersonal from the outside. However, the interiors are considerably more pleasant, with floor-to-ceiling windows that brighten the lobby and three navy front desks, glossy floors, and armchairs clustered on printed rugs that provide modern touches. The best style feature of the hotel is the Atrium Lounge, a large square area lit by an expansive skylight and accented with modern furnishings in green, orange, and navy blue hues, gray leaf-printed carpet, and gold hanging globes. Other funky elements to the Atrium include a large egg-shaped pod that seats up to four and an area with floors covered in turf grass and multiple flat-screen TVs clustered on the wall. In contrast, the on-site Kudos Restaurant and bar has a streamlined look, with red and green chairs and wooden tables. The property is generally busy and though the main clientele are couples, it also gets plenty of business travelers and vacationing families. 

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Location

Located on River Lee and within walking distance of the city center and transportation

The Clarion Hotel Cork is located on the banks of River Lee and is within easy walking distance of the city center. There are multiple dining options and shopping on St. Patrick’s Street, a six-minute walk away. It takes nine minutes to reach the English Market on foot. There's a bus stop a two-minute walk from the hotel, and Cork Kent Train Station is 12 minutes away on foot. As for the surrounding area, Blackrock Castle Observatory is a 12-minute car ride, while Blarney Castle is a 16-minute drive away. It takes 16 minutes by car to reach the Fota Wildlife Park and 11 minutes to reach Cork International Airport.

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Rooms

Contemporary rooms with flat-screen TVs, Nespresso coffeemakers, and mini-fridges

The hotel has 198 rooms in categories ranging from base-level Superior Rooms to Executive Rooms with couches and Family Rooms with sleeper sofa beds for children. Some rooms have balconies with river views, and Suites offer separate living rooms and bedrooms. Furnishings include plush mattresses with white linens and gray-and-red bed runners, gray chairs or couches with red cushions, and basic blond-wood furniture. The look is dated, but the hotel plans to refurbish the rooms at some point in 2016. Standard amenities include free Wi-Fi, flat-screen TVs, Nespresso coffeemakers, air-conditioning, and mini-fridges. Bathrooms are spacious, with shower/tub combos, and those in Suites and Executive Rooms have separate walk-in showers and deep soaking tubs. Toiletries and hairdryers are provided. Some past guests have complained of inconsistent cleaning and problems stabilizing the heating and air-conditioning to a comfortable setting. 

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Features

Spa, fitness center, pool, children's pool, restaurant, bar, and meeting spaces

The Clarion Hotel Cork offers a wide array of features for its diverse clientele. The highlight for many is the SanoVitae Health and Fitness Club, which offers a spa with the usual range of beauty treatments and massages plus a sauna and a steam room. It also has a large fitness center with over 50 pieces of fitness equipment that includes cardio machines with TVs, free weights, weight machines, and an aerobics studio with fitness classes (for a fee). The indoor heated pool, children’s pool, and hot tub are also a part of the fitness club. Guests must use swimming caps in the pool, and children are only allowed in the pool area during certain hours.

The on-site Kudos Restaurant and Bar is one of the best-known Asian restaurants in Cork and provides 24-hour room service, but complaints have been made concerning slow service and poor food quality. The Atrium Lounge serves light breakfast and lunch items and there’s an afternoon tea for a pricey fee. A full Irish breakfast is offered each morning, though it's expensive and isn’t included in most room rates.

For business travelers, the hotel has seven meeting and event spaces that come fully equipped with audiovisual equipment. Some have views of River Lee. Though the hotel lacks a business center, they do have a public computer for guest use. The hotel is kid-friendly, with a kids' menu and kids' club activities hosted around the holidays. There’s free Wi-Fi throughout the property, and underground parking is available for a discounted fee. 

See More Features

Things You Should Know About Clayton Hotel Cork City

Also Known As

  • Clarion Hotel Cork

Address

Lapps Quay, Ireland

Website

Oyster Hotel Review

Clayton Hotel Cork City

Scene

Modern hotel with an impersonal vibe that attracts business and leisure travelers alike

Housed in a building made of stone and glass, the Clarion Hotel Cork, built in 2005, looks a little impersonal from the outside. However, the interiors are considerably more pleasant, with floor-to-ceiling windows that brighten the lobby and three navy front desks, glossy floors, and armchairs clustered on printed rugs that provide modern touches. The best style feature of the hotel is the Atrium Lounge, a large square area lit by an expansive skylight and accented with modern furnishings in green, orange, and navy blue hues, gray leaf-printed carpet, and gold hanging globes. Other funky elements to the Atrium include a large egg-shaped pod that seats up to four and an area with floors covered in turf grass and multiple flat-screen TVs clustered on the wall. In contrast, the on-site Kudos Restaurant and bar has a streamlined look, with red and green chairs and wooden tables. The property is generally busy and though the main clientele are couples, it also gets plenty of business travelers and vacationing families. 

See More Scene

Location

Located on River Lee and within walking distance of the city center and transportation

The Clarion Hotel Cork is located on the banks of River Lee and is within easy walking distance of the city center. There are multiple dining options and shopping on St. Patrick’s Street, a six-minute walk away. It takes nine minutes to reach the English Market on foot. There's a bus stop a two-minute walk from the hotel, and Cork Kent Train Station is 12 minutes away on foot. As for the surrounding area, Blackrock Castle Observatory is a 12-minute car ride, while Blarney Castle is a 16-minute drive away. It takes 16 minutes by car to reach the Fota Wildlife Park and 11 minutes to reach Cork International Airport.

See More Location

Rooms

Contemporary rooms with flat-screen TVs, Nespresso coffeemakers, and mini-fridges

The hotel has 198 rooms in categories ranging from base-level Superior Rooms to Executive Rooms with couches and Family Rooms with sleeper sofa beds for children. Some rooms have balconies with river views, and Suites offer separate living rooms and bedrooms. Furnishings include plush mattresses with white linens and gray-and-red bed runners, gray chairs or couches with red cushions, and basic blond-wood furniture. The look is dated, but the hotel plans to refurbish the rooms at some point in 2016. Standard amenities include free Wi-Fi, flat-screen TVs, Nespresso coffeemakers, air-conditioning, and mini-fridges. Bathrooms are spacious, with shower/tub combos, and those in Suites and Executive Rooms have separate walk-in showers and deep soaking tubs. Toiletries and hairdryers are provided. Some past guests have complained of inconsistent cleaning and problems stabilizing the heating and air-conditioning to a comfortable setting. 

See More Rooms

Features

Spa, fitness center, pool, children's pool, restaurant, bar, and meeting spaces

The Clarion Hotel Cork offers a wide array of features for its diverse clientele. The highlight for many is the SanoVitae Health and Fitness Club, which offers a spa with the usual range of beauty treatments and massages plus a sauna and a steam room. It also has a large fitness center with over 50 pieces of fitness equipment that includes cardio machines with TVs, free weights, weight machines, and an aerobics studio with fitness classes (for a fee). The indoor heated pool, children’s pool, and hot tub are also a part of the fitness club. Guests must use swimming caps in the pool, and children are only allowed in the pool area during certain hours.

The on-site Kudos Restaurant and Bar is one of the best-known Asian restaurants in Cork and provides 24-hour room service, but complaints have been made concerning slow service and poor food quality. The Atrium Lounge serves light breakfast and lunch items and there’s an afternoon tea for a pricey fee. A full Irish breakfast is offered each morning, though it's expensive and isn’t included in most room rates.

For business travelers, the hotel has seven meeting and event spaces that come fully equipped with audiovisual equipment. Some have views of River Lee. Though the hotel lacks a business center, they do have a public computer for guest use. The hotel is kid-friendly, with a kids' menu and kids' club activities hosted around the holidays. There’s free Wi-Fi throughout the property, and underground parking is available for a discounted fee. 

See More Features

Best Rates

Amenities

  • Air Conditioner

  • Babysitting Services

  • Business Center

  • Cabanas

  • Cable

  • Cribs

  • Dry Cleaning

  • Fitness Center

  • Internet

  • Jacuzzi

  • Kids Allowed

  • Laundry

  • Meeting / Conference Rooms

  • Pool

  • Rental Car Service Desk Onsite

  • Room Service

  • Separate Bedroom / Living Room Space

  • Spa

  • Tennis Court

Disclaimer: This content was accurate at the time the hotel was reviewed. Please check our partner sites when booking to verify that details are still correct.