The sale of the luxurious An Culu castle in Co Kerry represents one of the largest country residential property sales in Ireland this year.
Irish realty group Savills announced on December 2 that it had confirmed the sale of An Culu, a luxurious castle property situated on the edge of Kenmare Bay in Co Kerry, Ireland.
The sale, which was agreed at a price close to the asking figure of €4.5 million, represents one of the largest country property transactions in Ireland this year.
An aerial view of An Culu in Kenmare, Co Kerry. (Savills)
An Culu – a former ‘tea folly’ house – sits on 4.5-acres of land overlooking the stunning setting of Kenmare Bay and was meticulously renovated in the late 90s after it was purchased by UK entrepreneur and businessman Kevin Reardan.
In 2018, Reardon told The Irish Independent: "I grew up in London but Dad was from Cork. As a kid, I was always over here and I kept coming back. In particular, I just loved Kenmare. I fancied the idea of moving here and I wanted to build a waterfront home for the family. I was in my boat fishing one day when I saw this ruin on the shore. I looked at it and thought 'that's a really lovely site'."
He continued: "So I went to the planners with some ideas but they said: 'Look, Kevin, you've got to build a castle.' So I said: 'OK, I'd better build a castle then'. And that's how it happened. The truth is I never actually intended building a castle.
"So I called in a local architect named Wallace and as I researched castles I began imagining more and more aspects to it. If we had to have a castle, then it was going to be a proper fairytale castle. As we progressed, it got bigger and bigger. I got quite wrapped up in it. Maybe a bit too much, to be honest!"
The 9,000 sq. ft. property is located amongst vast Coillte forest lands and has been often described as one of Ireland’s best-kept secrets due to its hidden nature – a feature that attracted its new owner.
The inside of An Culu in Kenmare, Co Kerry (Savills)
The sale was handled by Savills Cork office in conjunction with its Country Homes division, and negotiated by Catherine McAuliffe, Director, and her colleague Michael O’Donovan, Associate.
“This was definitely one of the most unique properties we have had the pleasure of selling” said McAuliffe, describing the property as “a truly magnificent home in the most private and tranquil setting."
Most definitely not your typical fairy-tale castle, An Culu was designed and decorated to ensure its residents have a full authentic castle experience. In other words, to believe that it existed in a long-forgotten era with its moat, drawbridge, castellated entrance, stained glass windows, and cut stone staircase which serves all five stories to include a top floor living room with domed frescoed ceiling and magnificent terrace to inhale the amazing views over Kenmare Bay with the Caha mountain backdrop.
Modern luxuries such as a leisure basement with a heated swimming pool, steam room and sauna, a lift serving all floors, a full Bose sound system throughout, and an extensive gas fired central heating system all remind you of its actual age.
The pool at An Culu in Kenmare, Co Kerry (Savills)
The extensive use of material in silk padded walls, bed canopies, and sumptuous drapes and curtains certainly portray the historic theme to the building, together with extensive use of cut stone fireplaces and oak and cherrywood paneling and carpentry throughout.
The octangular conservatory has superb views of the bay and over the purpose-built harbour with deep water quay and floating marina. The outgoing custodians certainly had an excellent eye for detail and their wide-ranging knowledge of building and construction is evident throughout this project.
The lucky new owner plans to spend a large part of the year at An Culu where he plans to entertain overseas guests and business associates as well as being able to appreciate some downtime in this luxurious haven.
We’re only a little jealous!
Inside An Culu in Kenmare, Co Kerry (Savills)
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