A Co Louth hotel which has played host to celebrity guests from the Beatles to George Best has been sold to a new owner after three generations in the same family.
he Ballymascanlon House Hotel outside Dundalk has also been a wedding venue for generations of families, including many from Northern Ireland. It held its first wedding in 1948.
Now the Quinn family has sold the venue for an undisclosed sum to the TMR Hotel Collection, based in Austria.
The Beatles lunched at the hotel, known as the Ballymac to locals, following a concert in Dublin in 1963. Opera singer Pavarotti also dropped in, as did crooner Engelbert Humperdinck and footballer George Best.
Commercial property agents CBRE Hotels confirmed the deal, which they said took place in an off-market transaction. It was acquired by Davy Real Estate on behalf of the TMR Hotel Collection.
The hotel, which has 97 bedrooms, has also been an important venue for church and government events. In 1972, it hosted the first ecumenical meeting of the four main churches on the island of Ireland, a summit still referred to as The Ballymascanlon Talks.
Football teams including Liverpool and Spurs stayed at the hotel when playing European football from the 1960s to the 1990s.
Managing director Oliver Quinn said: “After three generations of ownership, we have agreed to sell the hotel. We have thoroughly enjoyed working with and thank an outstanding team at the hotel during this period and we have no doubt that the hotel will continue to thrive under its new owners.
“The hotel has been an important part of the Quinn family life for three generations. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our customers for their loyalty over the years and wish the new owners every success into the future.”
Eimear Fox, director of Davy Real Estate, said TMR Hotel Collection was delighted to acquire the venue and would be investing in it over time.
The business already owns 13 four-star and five-star Irish hotels which includes Harvey’s Point in Co Donegal, Aghadoe Heights in Co Kerry, Connemara Coast Hotel in Co Galway, Mount Wolseley in Co Carlow and Farnham Estate in Co Cavan.
“We look forward to welcoming long standing and new guests and building on the reputation of the business while maintaining the highest standards of service achieved by the Quinn family,” said Ms Fox.
“Staff are the cornerstone of any good business and we very much look forward to working with all the loyal and dedicated staff of The Ballymac.”
John Hughes, director at CBRE Hotels, said the venue was closely associated with business in the north-east of the Republic and had been developed “with pride” by the Quinn family.