Carrigart · County Donegal
A Donegal place of three stays.
An old stone cottage and two log cabins on a smallholding above Mulroy Bay, with three private hot tubs, a hot-stone sauna in the old peat shed, and a games room in the original forge.
An old stone cottage and two log cabins on a smallholding above Mulroy Bay, with three private hot tubs, a hot-stone sauna in the old peat shed, and a games room in the original forge.
Davey John’s Forge sits on a quiet smallholding at Devlinmore, just outside Carrigart on the Fanad peninsula. Ruby’s Cottage was Shane’s grandfather’s, kept and slowly restored over the years. The two log cabins were added later, for couples wanting their own front door and their own hot tub.
Around them: a hot-stone sauna in what used to be the peat shed, a games room in what used to be the forge itself, cordyline palms and dry-stone walls, and the long view across Mulroy Bay to the Atlantic beyond.
The hot tubs are private, covered and yours 24/7. Heated and ready when you arrive; they’ll be at temperature, not warming up.
Shane is your host. He replies on WhatsApp, usually quickly.
The cottage, both cabins, the sauna, and all three hot tubs: yours alone. Up to ten people, one booking, no other guests on site.
Discover whole-estate stays
The cabins share a fully fenced garden, open between them, so a lead’s worth using if your dog is reactive. The cottage has its own enclosed garden front and back.
No size limit, no breed restrictions, no extra charge. The fence is real, not chicken wire, but a determined small dog could find a way under it, so eyes on the puppies.
A hose at the back of every cabin for a wash-down. Three blue-flag beaches within twenty minutes, all with dog-friendly stretches.
Two restored outbuildings, open to everyone staying with us. Both are yours whenever you want them: no booking, no shared use with anyone from outside.
What used to be the peat shed is now a hot-stone sauna: electric with coals on top, twenty minutes from cold to 85°C, then yours for as long as you like. Pine inside, a blue starfield in the ceiling, a copper outdoor shower in the quartz-paved courtyard for cooling off between sessions.
The original forge, where Shane’s grandfather worked iron, with charred timber walls, a whiskey-barrel-stave counter and Guinness stools around a tall table at the picture window over the bay, a dartboard, a chess set, and a proper TV for the rugby.
Carrigart is the nearest village. Downings, the seaside town with the beach and the Harbour Bar, is about five minutes on, with Rosapenna and St Patrick’s Links right beside it. Glenveagh Castle and the foot of Mount Errigal are both within half an hour. Murder Hole Beach is closer than that.
Three bedrooms in the old cottage, the games room for evenings, the bay-view garden for afternoons, and three of Donegal’s best beaches within twenty minutes.
Family stays
Either cabin, an evening in the sauna, a longer evening in the games room, dinner at the Olde Glen. The kind of weekend that does the work of a fortnight.
Romantic stays
Fully enclosed gardens, a wash-down hose at the back of every cabin, and three blue-flag beaches with dog-friendly stretches within twenty minutes.
Dog-friendly stays
Tom Doak’s 2021 course, plus Sandy Hills and Old Tom Morris, all within a short drive. Tee times, club storage, and late check-in arranged on request.
Golf at Davey John’s
The Gulf Stream meets this stretch of coast on its way north, and mature cordyline palms grow at the bottom of the cottage garden. Not what most people expect from Donegal.
At dusk, the solar uplighters come on by themselves: small warm pools of light along the dry-stone walls, the planters, the gate at the top of the cabin yard. The sauna courtyard at midnight, with the bay just a darker shimmer over the wall, is the version of the place most guests don’t see coming.
Guest feedback from across Davey John’s Forge
675 reviews to date
what guests mention most
The themes guests raise most often, counted across the written reviews (a share of all 675 stays).
Private hot tub
the standout for most guests, and the view out across Mulroy Bay from it.
Mentioned in 286 reviews
Hospitality
warm, attentive hosting that guests say goes above and beyond.
Mentioned in 252 reviews
Clear communication
clear, detailed directions with everything explained before arrival.
Mentioned in 242 reviews
Cosy & comfortable
warm, well-kept and exactly as described.
Mentioned in 193 reviews
Peaceful
a calm, quiet base for exploring the rest of Donegal.
Mentioned in 172 reviews
We honour Airbnb and Booking.com rates here, and there’s no commission to swallow, which usually means a small discount and an easier conversation about anything you need.
