I hate writing bad reviews, but Ross House definitely merits a whopper. When we talk about Ross House now, my family joking refers to it as “Ruff” House. It was a huge disappointment. Yes, it is well-located from the perspective of being able to walk (20 minutes) to Salt Hill or (15 minutes) to downtown Galway. But don’t believe it’s unique. The area is scattered with B&Bs charging the same amount, and even during arts festival week, there is plenty of vacancy for walk-ins. We were even tempted to move out when we discovered Jurys Inn, located in downtown Galway, was offering large “American-sized” rooms (albeit without free parking or breakfast) at the price we were paying.

Ross House may be okay for average travelers who don’t expect much, but having seen what Ireland has to offer, and having traveled extensively in other countries, we were astonished by the level of service and so-called comfort at this B&B. Our room was a postage stamp – smallest room imaginable. It was the subject of numerous jokes after our stay, but during the two nights, it was the source of quite a bit of frustration. In her defense, the hostess had promised us a different room which was of “normal” size, but I changed the dates after the original reservation to a time when she had evidently planned some renovation. Still, this was a month prior to our arrival, and she never let me know that our normal sized room was to be replaced by a glorified closet. There wasn’t even running water in our room the evening of arrival because the bigger room’s bathroom was getting fixed. Not a big deal, I suppose, but at 90 EUROS a night for two adults and child, this was a costly inconvenience.

Describing the room is borderline kinky, but here are the unmistakable facts: 1) The bathroom was so small that you could literally sit on the (poorly fitted) toilet seat, brush your teeth in the sink hanging over your body, and with your legs extended, rinse your feet in the shower. God forbid you were heavy or tall! 2) The shower was so small that you needed to keep soap and shampoo on the bathroom sink. Any attempts to wedge them inside the shower stall were fruitless; they would be knocked over the first time you turned while bathing. 3) There was so little floor space in the main room that the suitcases blocked the single path to the bathroom, and there was actually a crevice cut out of the closet door to allow it to open by passing over the front door handle. 4) Also, while this wasn't a noisy area by any means, the walls were sufficiently thin so that you could hear not only running water but also (sorry to say) the bowel movements of our neighbors at 5 AM (no joke).

If the rooms weren’t enough, the breakfasts were a bomb – almost literally. Both mornings we awoke to a smoke-filled house because the hostess had burnt the toast. When we came downstairs, the windows were closed, but we were assured that the house had already been aired out. In addition, the food – which, to our chagrin, we had to pre-order upon arrival the previous afternoon -- was mediocre at best. Gone was the thin sliced smoked salmon we had in Connemara; instead, we had less delicate (smoked?) salmon steak, seemingly cooked and served cold. The store-brand yogurts had been purchased in bulk and were of the 4 oz variety. The coffee was literally undrinkable, and when we made a comment, the hostess made us feel guilty by offering an exception to give us one from a different machine which – for some reason -- usually came at a price. The eggs and French toast were a bit blah, “fresh fruit” included things like sliced unpeeled banana, and, my son’s hot chocolate was clearly instant.


One rather outrageous incident added a final blemish to the stay. When the hostess made up our rooms after the first night, she took the liberty to relocate and pile our suitcases in the pint-sized closet. Typically a guest’s personal belongings are off limits, and in this case, either because of the hostess’ "I know what's right" attitude and/or the undeniable fact that her room was way too small to maneuver comfortably, she displaced our suitcases which weren’t ready to be moved and stuffed them 'out of the way'. Not only was it unsettling to know that someone had manipulated our open suitcases, but it also required us to schlep them out one by one, resettle their contents, and once again “unpack” in the limited floor space allotted.

All in all, this was our least favorite B&B and we would never return. In spite of her politeness, the hostess made us feel uncomfortable, the environment was stale and unfriendly (the guests didn’t talk to each other), and our attempts to adjust the bill – given the fact that we lived in a room designed for elves which would have easily violated numerous OSHA standards – were met with stubborn coldness. For what we paid, this was not an honest value, and it reflects on the establishment as a whole.