Celebrating 150 years of Mayo's iconic Mount Falcon
MOUNT Falcon is celebrating 150 years.
Built in 1876, it will be celebrating its sesquicentennial anniversary all year long, kicking off with great hotel and lodge packages and promotions.
Reopening to the public on March 13 after the annual winter break, the family and staff of Mount Falcon will be celebrating alongside guests the history and legacy of this gem of the west.
When Utred Augustus Knox finished construction on his country manor house, built as a gift for his would-be bride in 1876, he scarcely could have imagined what the world would become 150 years later.
Mount Falcon stands today as a stately yet comfortable-in-its-surroundings reminder of a bygone era of Victorian ideals. The home has an elite pedigree having been designed by renowned architect James Franklin Fuller, designer of several Guinness-family retreats as well as what is today known as Kylemore Abbey.
While Mount Falcon began life as a family home it has always been a place for visitors to escape their busy lives in a bucolic setting. From its earliest days, Mount Falcon welcomed extended family and friends to give its residents access to country pursuits like fishing, hunting, horseback riding, and even just spending time walking the estate to take in the fresh country air. But it was the Aldridge family who paved the way for Mount Falcon to eventually become one of Ireland’s great hotels.
Major Robert Aldridge and his wife Constance, affectionately known by later generations just as Connie, eventually turned Mount Falcon into a guesthouse in the 1970s. Though the Major died in the autumn of 1976, he and Connie played host to celebrities and dignitaries throughout their run as Mount Falcon’s first hoteliers.
Among those who were able to enjoy Mount Falcon’s renowned hospitality were Vivien Leigh of Gone with the Wind and A Streetcar Named Desire, Inspector Jaques Clouseau himself of the Pink Panther, Peter Sellers, former Irish president Dr. Patrick Hillary and former Taoiseach Jack Lynch.
Connie ran the property on her own until 2000 when, at the age of 91, she sold the estate.
A massive renovation and construction project began in 2002 after Alan Maloney and his brothers, Barry and Michael, purchased the property to create what we know today as the Mount Falcon hotel.
The Maloney family was inspired by Connie’s reputation and the heritage that she, her husband and successive generations of the Knox family worked tirelessly to preserve.
Today Mount Falcon has 100 acres of wooded and manicured estate land, walking trails, a falconry, clay pigeon shooting range, luxurious spa and leisure centre, a fishing lake, and two -miles of fishery on the River Moy, which is still known as one of Europe’s, if not the world’s, best salmon fisheries.
The Maloney family continues the tradition of welcoming guests from around the world and down the road to this country retreat. This year also marks 20 years since Mount Falcon welcomed its first hotel guest under the Maloneys' care.
They invite you to join them in 2026 as they celebrate this jewel in the west of Ireland and toast to the next 150 years to come.