Brooklodge Vs Marlfield opinions please (pros & cons)

Ok so myself and my fiance have looked through the brochures, visited our shortlist, and have narrowed our choice of venue down to 2 places: brooklodge or marlfield house. Both places are beautiful. But we like them each for different reasons. Both are pricey (Marlfield house is more expensive than Brooklodge per head). Marlfield house is quite opulent and it feels like you're having a party in your own house (if it were a stately home :P), it's very unique in a positive way, the service is impeccable, the food is delicious, beautiful rooms throughout, and the grounds are AMAZING. The downsides are: the shape of the reception room, dancing is in the entrance hall (not beside the reception room & where not all the furniture is removed), the bar is in a separate room (but beside the receptions room), there are only 19 bedrooms. The bedrooms are expensive but reflect that expense. They say the bar (despite the terms and conditions) stays open as long as there are people there. Brooklodge is unique in good ways too. It doesn't feel like a hotel, it has its own self-contained wedding venue called Brookhall. The 'hall' is impressive from the outside, there is a nice flow between its rooms. The function room is large and has the bar and dance floor in it. They have a mini 'chapel' onsite (across the grounds). The residents' bar is in the same purpose built venue (and stays open until late they say). There are 24 bedrooms in this venue, it has won prizes for its organic food. The downsides are: the decor looks tired (and dirty in places), the bedrooms are overpriced and not of the '4 star standard' they claim, the grounds are lovely (very green) but lack flowers (I know that may sound picky!), Both venues have won numerous awards for their food. Smokers wouldn't be 'lost' in either place as they just have to step outside the reception room and can look in the window without missing much. If anyone can help us make a decision by lending their tuppence worth, please do. I love both place. If only I could merge the 2 together!!!!

Hi We went to see both places and picked another venue slightly closer to dublin.. However Marlfield House is AMAZING. when we went there it just was so unique. The owner does all her own flower arranging and she is v good at it so you really would not need any extra flowers for the venue, and the sheer opulence of the place requires no more extras. Have you considered their marquee option on the lawns ( if you are having a summer wedding?. I have heard that they have a bit of a rep of not being the easiest people in the world to deal with then it comes to weddings though Brooklodge- brookhall has a great rep for their food etc I have been to many weddings there and the service was faultless, however, I do agree with you about it's need for a lick of paint here and there. Very different vibes.. if you want something unique I would go for Marlfield its gorge..

Hi there, I recently worked at and attended a wedding in Brooklodge and I have to say it was one of the best weddings i've been at. I stayed in Brookhall myself so it was very handy to have the room right upstairs from the reception! The rooms were gorgeous in Brookhall no complaints from me - and I was working in my room ! The reception itself was fab - food top notch (although the fillet steak was slightly too well done for my liking but so hard with big numbers and fillet steak) We were moved into residents bar while room being set up for dancing but nobody minded and it was such a nice evening many of us were outside on the decking and grass anyway. Residents bar certainly does stay open late I "may" have still been there glass in hand at 5am I didn't see much of the old Brooklodge apart from the breakfast room (used to be the ballroom) and it was lovely and bright, the breakfast is the best breakfast I have EVER had in a hotel and the only room I saw was the suite the bride was staying in when I was bringing her bouquets over and it was amazing, stairs up to the bed with the biggest bath I have ever seen I wished I could get married all over again and have it there, but dh wouldn't agree to it. Best of luck with your planning!

Hi I was at a wedding in Brooklodge last week and the only problem I found was there is not much room once the band move. Very small dancefloor and all the tables were squished together with no room to go in or out. Loved the place other than that.

I Love both venues and originally looked to book marlfield ourslves however the restriction with the band playing and the bar closing at 1:30am was the big decider in moving to another venue, The flowers in the garden are amzing and I just think the conservatory is so romantic for dinner. However, the fact that the party had to wind down by about 1:30 really was a disappointment for us especially given the prices they were charging. Not sure what their prices are like now though and maybe they are not so strict on the curfews.

thanks guys Yeh lille the two places have very different vibes. Brooklodge was the first place we saw and we fell in love with it immediately. We thought it ticked all the boxes. THEN, we visited Marlfield (after a few other venues). On paper I would have dismissed Marlfield immediately, but the place took my breath away. AND brooklodge looks so in need of maintanence by comparison. We're gonna sit down tonight and work through pros and cons...

Good luck with your choice u have two lovely venues there to choose from

I haven't been to Marlfield myself, but I think its big seller is that it's totally private, so if that's what you want for your guests, then go for it. We got married is Brooklodge in May, and I have to say it was all fantastic. We had no problems at all with anything, nothing was too much trouble for Ger and the team, and the food was (as always) amazing. A lot of people say this about the place needing a lick of paint, but I think that they're missing the vibe of the place. It's meant to be an old-style country house hotel, with dogs, comfy armchairs, and a 'homey' feel. Do you realise that 12 years ago, nothing existed there? It was just a field, and was all built from scratch, opening in 1999. Anyhow, apart from that, your guests (unless they stay the full weekend) will be in the new building which does not need painting, plus they're going to be in the function room having drinks, dinner, and dancing with you guys. Or at least you'd hope they would be, not wandering around the rest of the hotel sniffing at the decor! We went for BL because location wise it suited, numbers wise it fitted our guestlist, the food and drink is always fantastic, and because there are lots of other b&b's/accommodation around for anyone who can't afford 250 a night to stay in BL.

Hey Beck. It's the relaxed atmosphere that I love about Brooklodge. I think the original lodge itself is grand. It's the decor of the new hall that I think needs attention. I just think the rooms look as if they used the old bedroom furniture over from the lodge. The place needs some paint (even though that section only opened in 2007). If I had the money I would combine both, or have two weddings; one in each