Welcome.

Your key & the lockbox

Your key is in the lockbox mounted on the wall by the door. Pull back the rubber cover and you'll see the buttons. Your PIN is in your welcome message. Enter it and push the silver release button down to open the box.

Davey John's Forge Opening the lockbox at Ruby’s Cottage

How to find us

Our Eircode is F92 K6H0. Pop that into your SatNav and it'll bring you right to the door. If you'd rather have directions, a quick Google Maps search for the Eircode works too.

Drive in through the gate and you'll see where to park. The fastest way to reach us with any question is a WhatsApp to Shane on +353 85 170 9273.

Coffee and the shops

There's a Nespresso Vertuo machine in the kitchen and we will leave some pods in for you — Vertuo pods are the ones that fit, so feel free to bring your own if you'd rather. We don't leave milk though, so it's worth picking up milk, bread and butter on the way; Carrigart has a Centra and a Circle K a few minutes away, and Ned's Bakehouse just down the road towards Carrigart is worth a stop for the first morning.

Wifi, the projector & TV

The wifi network for the cottage is named VODAFONE-1DA0, and the password is in your welcome message. It's fibre to the home, so the speed should be excellent. Please don't turn off the router in the lounge. It carries the wifi up to our cabins too, and turning it off drops their signal.

The cinema screen is a custom blackout roller blind we had made for the lounge. When you pull it down, the safety catch can make the string come apart; don't worry, it's not broken and clips back together easily. The tip: pull it down by holding the string just above the catch and you'll have no trouble.

The projector is hooked up to Netflix, Prime and Disney+, and there's also a neat app with hundreds of TV channels (all the sport!), films and box sets. The video below shows you how to get the cinema going. Just ignore the old reference to the "Lion App"; it's now called True Media.

Davey John's Forge Getting the cinema going at Ruby’s Cottage

Heating & hot water

Go into the kitchen and turn left towards the bathroom; the thermostat and control panel are on the wall to your right.

There's a button on the right of the control panel you can press top or bottom. One press on the bottom turns the heating and hot water on for an hour; press again for two hours, a third time for three. A fourth press turns it off.

It runs off a combi boiler, so once it's on you'll have unlimited hot water. In the morning it's worth giving it a minute before turning on the shower, so the hot water's there right away. Just above the control box is the thermostat; set it to around 22 for a nice temperature.

Your hot tub

Your hot tub will be ready and waiting when you arrive. It's designed to stay on all the time to hold its temperature, so please don't turn it off at the plug.

The usual do's and don'ts:

• Please shower before using the tub: deodorant, perfume and body lotion make the water foam.
• Please don't use the tub if you've recently applied fake tan; it turns the water brown and needs a full service.
• Make sure there's no sand on your feet before getting in; there's a hose nearby to rinse them off (handy for muddy or sandy paws, too).
• Use the lift arm to open the cover: slide it into the lift and let it lower down the side; no need to lift it off. The video below shows it.
• Keep the top on when you're not using it. It holds the heat and saves on electricity.

Davey John's Forge Using the hot tub at Ruby’s Cottage

The sauna in the old peat shed

We've built a sauna into an old peat shed on the grounds, and you're very welcome to use it. If you're not familiar with sauna use, it's worth reading up on the basics first.

• There's a panel inside, up on the left; turn it on there and use the +/− buttons to set the time. If it doesn't come on, you may need to flick the red switch outside it.
• It takes about 20 minutes to come up to temperature. Once you're inside, gently pour a spoonful of water on the coals to raise the humidity.
• You can connect your phone over Bluetooth, and play with the lights to find a colour that suits your mood.
• There are two vents in the roof you can keep closed; opening the door cools it down quickly if you're too hot.
• We'd suggest 15 minutes, then a cold shower just outside, and back in for another 15 if you're enjoying it.
• The maximum is 90°C, but it's lovely anywhere from 80 up.
• Please just remember to turn it off when you're done.

Davey John's Forge Using the sauna at Ruby’s Cottage

The games room in the old forge

A short walk across the courtyard, the old forge building, where Shane's grandfather, Davey John, worked iron, now has a games room in it, and you're very welcome to use it any time. It's shared between the cottage and the two cabins, and never opened to anyone from outside.

Inside you'll find a whiskey-stave table built along the window over the bay, with a couple of Guinness stools, a chess set, a dartboard, and a TV with the streaming services and the sports channels (the rugby, in particular, gets a good watch in here).

The cold drinks fridge

There's a mini fridge in the games room kept stocked with cold soft drinks, Diet Coke, Sprite and Fanta orange, so do help yourself whenever you fancy one. We run it on an honesty basis, with no till or card machine, so there's a little basket sitting on top of the fridge; just drop a euro in for each can you take. Thank you; that's what keeps it stocked for the next guests.

The ceramic egg BBQ

You're very welcome to use our ceramic egg BBQ grill, a brilliant way to cook outdoors and make the most of the Donegal evenings. These grills are self-cleaning: heat them up and any residue from last time burns off to fine ash.

To get it going:

• Open the vent at the bottom and the lid fully, to let the air in.
• Light the charcoal and let it heat for 10–15 minutes, until the flames die down and you've nice hot coals.
• Use the metal brush provided to sweep off any bits once it's hot.

When you're finished:

• Close the lid and let the remaining heat burn off the residue.
• Once it's cooled (a day later), scoop out the loose ash with the small scoop and put it in the metal bucket.
• Our cleaner doesn't service the BBQ between guests, so we rely on you to leave it ready for the next visitor. Thank you; we hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Davey John's Forge Lighting the BBQ at Ruby’s Cottage