John O’Rourke used his six-bed family home near the sea to host holidaymakers John O'Rourke at Sycamore Lodge, Kilkee, Co Clare this week. Photograph by Eamon Ward John O'Rourke at Sycamore Lodge in Kilkee, Co Clare. Photo: Eamon Ward An aerial shot of the property The entrance hall The dining room The rear of the home One of the bedrooms The kitchen Sycamore Lodge, Lisdeen, Kilkee, Co Clare Asking price: €479,000 Agent: DNG O’Sullivan/ Hurley, Douglas Hurley (086 3844554) John O’Rourke had long dreamt of running a guest house on the coast when he came upon Sycamore Lodge.
The Tudor-style, six-bedroom home, approached by a winding leafy driveway in Kilkee, Co Clare, was not only spacious and inviting, but just a two-minute drive from the sea. “What appealed to me was the scale of the property, coupled with the fact it was on a private site, surrounded by mature trees,” says Laois native O’Rourke, who works in commercial services at a third level institute and was living in Limerick at the time. He bought the house in 2020, after connecting with the previous owners, who designed and built it in the 1980s.
An aerial shot of the property “Its Tudor style was quite distinct for West Clare at the time and the interior was full of character,” he says. “Every room was spacious.” The 3,132 sq ft property was in good repair.
However, O’Rourke has worked continuously on upgrading the interior since purchasing it. He describes the kitchen, which has a cosy, old-fashioned feel as his “happy place”. It has a big range, modern cream presses and a dresser, and black quartz countertops.
“The kitchen is where the magic happens because I’m passionate about food and love to cook,” he says. There was a storeroom downstairs, which O’Rourke turned into an office and it now houses a large desk, a shelving unit and a piano. “I added soft lighting, and panelling on the wall which gives it a New England feel,” he says.
The entrance hall The mock Tudor-style exposed ceiling beams play a part in the overall character of the home. Two of these, in the kitchen and the office, had over 20 years of ceiling paint on them, so O’Rourke lovingly scraped it off and varnished them. There are two reception rooms, one of which — the living room — also has exposed wooden ceiling beams.
Here, O’Rourke added a feature wall of patterned wallpaper. The hanging old-fashioned lamp, antique furniture, and panelling above the fireplace add to the bygone atmosphere. “It’s really something special at Christmas when the fire is lit,” he says.
The dining room This same atmosphere has been created in the dining room, which has a long dining table that seats 10 and red velvet curtains. He added opulent lighting throughout the house, including chandeliers in the six bedrooms. “It was important for me that each bedroom kept its own distinct personality.
I think any time you have a small space, it’s good to get a little bit more dramatic and adventurous with the décor.” The rear of the home One of these rooms has a farmhouse-style double bed with metal bed posts, a feature wall of striped wallpaper, mauve and gold-patterned curtains, and a crystal chandelier, all of which gives it a vintage feel in keeping with the overall theme. Outside, the 0.
88-acre garden is mature and landscaped. It has a raised decking area, outdoor lighting and colourful flower beds and shrubbery. There’s a high wall separating the front and back gardens, and a glasshouse.
“The trees surrounding the garden create a micro-climate, which means the plants thrive all year,” says O’Rourke, who is a keen gardener and invested time in maintaining it. “For me, it’s a hobby and I happily potter away in the garden or the greenhouse most evenings.” Although it was previously used as a family home, O’Rourke realised the potential of Sycamore House as a guest house, due to its scale, character and picturesque setting.
The fact that it is so near the coast was also a factor. One of the bedrooms “It’s the gateway to the Loop Head Peninsula and gets a lot of European visitors who want that unspoilt beautiful experience.” The house is located on the N67 Kilkee Kilrush road and the town of Kilkee is 3km away.
“Kilkee has a vibrancy and sense of community about it that is very attractive. The local people are friendly.” In fact, O’Rourke studied hotel management years ago, and with his passion for food, felt that starting a guest house would be the perfect outlet to combine his interests.
“I thought I’d experiment with it as a hobby at first and see how it went.” In 2022, Sycamore Lodge became a guest house, and it took off immediately. “I developed a concept where people would come and stay in my home,” he says.
“It wasn’t just a B&B or a hotel, it was a guest experience, driven by excellent service and a personal touch. I like to engage with the visitors and focus on true hospitality which is what the Irish are known for.” The kitchen It worked well as he’s enjoyed the experience and has been rated on booking.
com as 9.7 out of 10. He has, however, continued his full-time job, which allows him to work from home some of the time.
He’s selling the house now as he plans to focus solely on his full-time role, which is expanding, and move closer to Limerick. “Even though I enjoyed the experience of running a guest house, unfortunately I just don’t have the time to commit to it full-time at the moment.” Putting Sycamore Lodge on the market hasn’t been an easy decision.
“Living here is really a lifestyle choice so I will be sad to leave and I’m doing so with a heavy heart,” he says. “For me, it’s been a passion project and something that I really care about. “While Sycamore Lodge is a family home in the first instance, I’d love to see someone take it on as a guest house experience and carry that on into the future.
” Sycamore Lodge has an asking price of €479,000 with DNG O’Sullivan/Hurley. Join the Irish Independent WhatsApp channel Stay up to date with all the latest news.
