How a Cork couple turned their outhouses into luxury lodges
The Kellehers’ Cork beef enterprise was under financial pressure, so they decided to turn some of their farm buildings into self-catering lodges, and with 98pc occupancy since opening, ‘it has brought the farm alive’
Cork couple Veronica and Maurice Kelleher saw potential in their farm out-houses and converted them into self-catering accommodation.
Two years on from opening their business, in Riverstick, 10km from Kinsale, the couple have also opened the family farmhouse as self-catering accommodation.
Despite Veronica’s initial fears that they wouldn’t get bookings, she says diversifying has been the best thing they’ve ever done.
“We wanted to make the farm more commercially viable so we started looking at our options,” she says. “We were under financial pressure, and this anchored all our problems.
“The farm was originally a dairy farm and Maurice continued dairying for 15 years after taking it over. Then in 2007 he got out — he just found the enterprise wasn’t that viable as it was and we couldn’t expand because of the location of the farm.”
Since 2007, the Kellehers have focused on bull beef, buying in Friesian bull calves and selling them to the mart within the year. They also breed four thoroughbred horses every year, for racing and selling.
Until 2018 they had been using their three out-houses to foal mares, house cattle and keep hens, but after seeing the possibility of farmhouse accommodation, they gutted them, starting from scratch.
“We saw potential in the farm, it has always felt like a kind of magical place and we knew it had something more to offer,” says Veronica.
Oldest son Conor takes one of the horses out for excercise
“When we’d go for a drive on a Sunday we’d often come across Air B&Bs and self-catering lodges in Kinsale or the surrounding area and we wondered if we should give something like that a go.
“We wanted something that would give us more cash-flow and that we could control.”
The couple decided to keep the structure of the houses, but totally refurbish them, adding a mezzanine level with exposed beams and high ceilings. They went the direct labour route and did all the work themselves.
“The out-houses had a plaster finish on them and when we were starting to take down the plaster we realised it was all stone behind it,” says Veronica.
“The stone was gorgeous and authentic and very traditional so we decided to treat all that natural stone and build it back in to keep the character of the buildings and their traditional feel.
“It was a painstaking process, though, and very labour-intensive.”
Veronica and Maurice wanted to incorporate their working farm as much as possible so they cleared the cattle pathways through the farms so that guests could use them as walkways.
Maurice and Tara lead some of their herd to a new pasture
“We’ve got unique, naturally occurring pathways through the farm and we did a bit of work to make them accessible,” says Veronica.
“You can walk along the pathway to see cattle, horses and foals.
“We’re next to a Coillte forest and we’re just a two-minute walk from the village so people can walk down through the farm and bordering forestry and into the village, where there’s lots of lovely little attractions.
“We also bought four alpacas from a girl in Bantry and they’re a great added attraction. Guests love going down to feed and walk them.”
Tara and her brother Tom feed the alpacas on the farm
After two years of preparation, the Curragh Farm lodges were ready to open, just as the pandemic hit.
“We ran out of money a couple of times but the lodges were finished in December 2019,” says Veronica. “I needed a back operation in the middle of everything so that delayed us too.
“I was scared opening up to the public — we didn’t know if it would work.
“We had all the work done and the lodges were stunning, but I was still doubting if we’d get bookings. I thought, ‘who would come to holiday in Riverstick?’ But I was so wrong.
“We opened the week Covid hit and had our first guests before lockdown. We had to close again then but once we re-opened, we were block-booked within days, I couldn’t believe it.”
The Kellehers also decided to renovate the family farmhouse where Maurice grew up, and rent it too.
“My parents-in-law had been living in the farmhouse and after they passed away in 2014 and 2017, we couldn’t bring ourselves to touch the house,” says Veronica.
“It was beginning to fall into disrepair, though, and we knew we had to do something. Since the lodges were going well we decided to renovate the farmhouse for the same purpose.
“We toyed with the idea of adding an extension, but decided against it because we wanted to keep the house as traditional as possible.
“I think that’s what people like when it comes to farmhouse accommodation. They like the traditional feel and cosy atmosphere.”
Veronica says they’d often had inquiries from families who wanted to come but the lodges are not designed for small children, so they saw the farmhouse as a way around this.
“It had been a four-bedroomed house and we brought it back to two good-sized bedrooms to cater for people with young families,” she says.
“It’s got a traditional farmhouse kitchen and a sitting room and it has gorgeous, exposed beams and window seats dotted around. You can see the local pub from the kitchen window seat. “It took longer than expected to get it finished because we bought a pub in the village in the middle of it — this stalled things money-wise.
“We were finding it difficult to get the money to finish it — we needed a loan because we went over budget. I wanted everything high-end, just like the lodges and put in a quartz countertop and top-quality furnishings.
“We’ve found that being there to meet the guests is really important,” she says. “People usually like to put a face to the accommodation and they like that personal touch that Irish farming families tend to offer.
“It’s a real family-run business here. Our son Tom (11) does the final checks with me before guests arrive and then he brings the guests out to feed the alpacas and goes through the history of the breed.
“Conor (19), the eldest, does farm walks with the guests if I’m not there and often does check-ins too.
“Mossie (14) does the farm walks, showing people the cattle and horses (from behind the fence) and then Tara (7) does check-ins with me.”
Although the road to diversification hasn’t been without its challenges for the Kellehers, Veronica says it’s been the best thing they’ve ever done.
“It’s been life-changing for us and for the farm,” she says. “It’s made it viable and family-friendly but it hasn’t been without sacrifice.
“We have no summer holidays now because it’s busy season for the self-catering. The children might not get as much attention from us at the moment but it’s great training for them and we’re showing them that hard work and sacrifice pay off.
“It has brought the farm alive and made it commercially viable. We’ve had 98pc occupancy since opening.”
Q&A: ‘We’re nearly at €400,000, between renovating the lodges and then the farmhouse’
What level of start-up costs did you incur in setting up the business?
Overall, we’re nearly at €400,000, between renovating the lodges and then the farmhouse. Getting into self-catering is a massive investment and it’s not something to take lightly.
How long did it take to get the business up and running?
The lodges took almost two years — we stopped and started when we had money.
Then the house took around two years also. Things were delayed because we bought a pub in the village, The Babbling Brook, in the middle of the renovation work.
What has been your biggest challenge since diversifying?
Financing was the biggest challenge. We wanted to go for a high-end finish so we ended up going over budget — finishing everything to the standard we wanted was difficult.
But we got there in the end and I think it’s paying off. We have been fully booked for the summer since February.
What advice would you give to someone who is thinking of opening farm accommodation?
Don’t let old farm out-houses go into wreck and ruin — there’s a huge demand for them.
There’s a massive opening for farm-based accommodation in general and it’s a great farm diversification project to undertake.
It adds value and authenticity to any farm and there’s something very rewarding about seeing your hard work pay off.
I’d say to believe in yourself and work hard, and don’t tell many people what you’re planning. Keep it private until you’re well into it.
Look at it from an objective point of view: ask yourself, ‘what would a stranger want if they were to stay here?’
Don’t be frightened of failing, there’s a lot of support out there and it’s a great way of adding value to your farm.
