I am just arrived from Ireland, where I spent 15 days touring around the Island.
In general it was a lovely trip and a great experience.
However, the thing I thought it would be the highlight became the worst event of the trip.
I tell you:
The green gate is a B&B placed in Ardara, a little village in county Donegal.
I´ve never read so many excellent write up about a B&B as I read about it. For that reason I conditioned my trip to can stay there at least two nights.
I imagined a peaceful place where I would reduce the rhythm of my trip and I would have even time to read a book,
When I arrived, Paul Chatenoud, the owner, he helped me to reach the B&B, placed on the top of a hill 1mile far away from Ardara. Then we chated while we took a coffee and finally he volunteered to show me a bit of the outskirts of Ardara.
It was not my plan but I understood that as another token of irish kindness and I accepted to do it.
The unpleasant thig was when he tried to hold my hand, to take me by the arm, to hug me, even to kiss me. He made me feel very annoyed.
The next day I decided to spend the most of the time out of the B&B and I came back late, but he was waiting me. He offered me a cup of coffee and again he tried to hug me and to kiss me around my face. This time was worse than the day before because he told me that we were alone at the B&B. I was afraid of him.
I decided to pay him and he asked me 70€ each night and yet when I phoned him to make the reservation he asked me 45€ each night. In that moment I was scared and I payed him 140€.
During the night I could'nt sleep.
Next day, in spite of I was looking forward leaving the B&B as soon as posible I thought that I must demand to him part of my money, but when I arrived to the place where we usually had breakfast it was closed and I could read in a little sheet of paper " come in and call me". I didn´t dare and I left B&B in that moment.
Therefore, I don´t advise you this B&B, especially I don´t advise any girl travelling alone, as I did, to stay there.
If this is true, it might be sensible to tell the authorities - police, tourist board, etc. I don't know much about the law, but it looks like some laws were broken there.
and also get back to those sources of "excellent writeups".
If you are a troll, I admit to being suckered....
I was intrigued, so googled a bit.....
from hotelchatter.com -
The Sunday Times called the Green Gate B&B "the greatest little B&B in Ireland", Fodor's claimed this property was "one of the world's top establishments", and even the LA Times called it "the best B&B we have ever stayed in", but before you start clicking around for rates and availability you should know that the B&B-keeper "doesn't deal with Americans".
While this may seem a bit harsh, Green Gate's owner, Paul Chatenoud has his reasons:
It's not me that doesn't like Americans, it's Americans that don't like me. I've recently had 10 American couples who decided, once they saw the B&B, they didn't like it. Most didn't tell me to my face; they said they were going into town for a drink, then called up and cancelled, refusing to pay. The cottage is exactly how The Sunday Times described it: remote and basic.
It's got low ceilings, brown water -- but is in the most beautiful place in the world. Some Americans love it, most seem to hate it. They want an old cottage that is actually brand-new.
It's only Americans that this happens with and I can't take the risk any more. I have revised my website to warn that the Green Gate is the opposite of the American way of life. I advise Americans to come and look first, but not to book in advance.
Ugh, bailing on a hotel room without being upfront about it is so cowardly.
What exactly is Paul's web warning? Well there are many, but our favorite "yankee go home" sign on the Green Gate website is the on that says:
The Green Gate is not a fake, pink, new, stupid, American Disneyland Castle. It is a real, green, old, radiant Irish thatched cottage.
This guy rocks. He is up front and honest
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Seems he has a lot to lose if mother theresa is right.
I will get some details for you in next day or 2 and PM you BUT you have to make an official complaint as scumbags like that will do it again and next time the person concerned may not be strong enough or confident enough to fight back.
At least Garda will then be aware of the situation and quite possibly this could get handled very locally very quietly.
peterscot, I´m not a troll. I would prefer to tell you only good things.
onlyMark, why you say "mother Teresa"?
Maybe I have less experience than you travelling around the world, maybe if I had travelled so much as you I would known to react better.
Of course, Paul never used force, and I could refuse and stop him everytime, but really I felt annoyed and I was afraid of him.
What should I tell the authorities, that a man tried to kiss me? that I was afraid because also he had the key of my room and I was the only customer that night?
teresa, I can fully understand you and I'm sure you are not trolling. It's a scary and absolutely annoying situation however 'harmless' it was meant to be. Men and women have different ideas what is harmless or not re sexual advances. I've experienced it quite often while travelling as a woman on my own, it happens everywhere in the world. I think you should write your experience to the tourist board.
Since I recommended the admittedly magic place in my own travel book on Ireland, I'll go and check with the landlord and/or take him out of the book at the next update.
You should have put your foot down, but that's not the question. The scandal is, that he tried his luck with you and scared you. Shouldn't happen.
On the note of the Americans: In this regard I can understand the landlord. I used to let guest rooms for tourists in my old thatched and quite remote cottage, and the Americans in general were the worst (not all of them though!). They were not only infamous in the area for booking several B&Bs in advance just to be on the safe side and to decide on the spot which one they prefer, without letting the other B&Bs know. But when staying in my cottage they more often than not complained about things like no TV in the room, no en-suite and no air conditioner, rooms too small, bathroom not up to hotel standard and what not. It's an old traditonal cottage fgs! And I charged only 25 euro per person!
Anyway, creeps like the landlord in Ardara should be outed. Name and blame, as it's done in Ireland.
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<hr>What should I tell the authorities, that a man tried to kiss me? that I was afraid because also he had the key of my room and I was the only customer that night? <hr></blockquote>
Er, yes. Plus the fact that he seems to have charged you E50 more than he quoted.
I doubt if this is the behaviour of a honest and decent B&B owner. If you don't complain, he'll continue doing it. I'm sure the guide books and the tourist authority would not recommend his place and say its one of the best in the world, if they believed he behaves like you describe.
(I thought you were a troll, because it was such an unusual story..)
What I wrote was "mteresa - (Mother Teresa?)". It is a natural connection because of the m with teresa, and the question mark denoted an uncertainty as to if it was correct or not. No more than that.
It seems to me, instead of a blanket ban on reservations by Americans, B&B's that have bad cancellation experiences could just start charging a deposit on reservations. Plenty of places do this anyway. I admit when I first read about The Green Gate, I was really excited, and thought about driving up and spending a few days there. Then I got to the American thing. It put me right off, but I'm sure it hasn't hurt his business any, and losing my custom probably puts him in no danger of bankruptcy!
But, OP, you should definitely report this somewhere more official than this forum. If he tried it with you, he'll try it with another person, who may or may not be as firm/lucky or bounce back as you have. I don't know how I'd react, but it would definitely have shaken me up and given me a few sleepless nights.
I'm so sorry this happened to you; please do report it.
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