About The Twelve

About The Twelve

 
To download The Twelve Galway Hotel brochure click here              
The Journey - The Beginning to infinity and beyond...
 
In essence, The Twelve Hotel is fun, quirky, elegant, tasteful, luxurious, cheeky, open to ideas, lacking in pretense, where service matters and simple yet complex. We hope you'll enjoy the home that we've created in an urban ruralness that is considered one of the top 4 star Ireland hotels. We also hope you stay true to your own passions and dreams.
 
See you around,
 
The Twelve
(Fergus, Manon and the entire team as well as the many other passionate people helping to make the dream a reality) xx
 
 
The Twelve – what the press are saying..... 
 
One of ‘Ireland’s Sexiest Hotels’ 
“It was evident that, as luxury hotels go, The Twelve is no pretentious ivory tower that could be anywhere, but is rather rooted in Ireland's west coast between Galway and Connemara. There used to be a pub on the site and perhaps its warm spirit lives on.” 
 
“The general decor was elegantly understated: wood floor, dark purple sofa, white-going-on-silver wallpaper and deep red lampshades. Comfortable rather than opulent - more or less true of the hotel itself.” 
David Smith, The Observer 
 
Ireland's Pet Friendly Hotel of The Year 2021 - Georgina Campbell                                                                                Handy to both Connemara and Galway city this unique hotel is famed for its funky style, an exceptionally focused food and wine offering, and hands-on management and marketing by the inspired MD Fergus O’Halloran. Their motto “True to The Region, True to The Season” sums up a philosophy that can be seen at work in every aspect of the hotel. The offering is highly unusual, from romantic rooms and West At The Twelve's exceptional fine wining and dining experience, to quality casual food, notably pizza, in the busy, child-friendly Pins Gastro Bar, Nóin outdoor dining - and sales in the Pizza Dozzina artisanal shop next door - it sings of quality and innovation at every level. So, it should come as no surprise that there’s an extra layer of enthusiasm and imagination when it come to welcoming dogs too – as they say themselves, “A stay at The Twelve Hotel is proof all dogs really do go to heaven”.
 
“Style lovers in search of somewhere chic to lay their heads will find a small (but perfectly formed) crop of new boutique retreats have opened recently around the country. Our favourites include the funky Ross in Killarney town and The Twelve in Bearna, Galway” 
Jillian Bolger, ‘Hip-Pip Hotel!’ The Sunday Tribune Magazine 
 
“Dublin has the Dylan, Belfast has Malmaison, Killarney the Ross, Galway has The G inside the city and The Twelve outside. And now Sligo has the Glasshouse. What connects all of these contemporary hotels is a quirky design-led style, an approach that is becoming quite the thing in today’s Ireland.” 
Food and Wine Magazine
 
“The Twelve is less a place to stay the night and more an invitation to become part of a west of Ireland community – in haute style of course. A mere 10 minutes from Galway city centre, it still enjoys beautiful countryside and gorgeous views of Bearna. The interior is a fitting compliment to the setting, carefully designed with the history and location in mind, where bespoke furniture and handcrafted pieces by local artists sit alongside high tech essentials”. 
House and Home Magazine
 
“THE NEW HIP HOTEL: MAGIC NUMBER. Our appetite for boutique hotels seemingly can’t be sated. The latest chic hostelry to get us excited is The Twelve, set to open in picturesque Bearna, Galway, this Spring” 
The Sunday Tribune 2007
 
“The village of Bearna is set to become a hotspot this Spring as the opening of The Twelve puts it firmly on the map for those looking for a really special hotel break……This is a place for those who enjoy culture, fun, comforts and great culinary experiences” 
Cara Magazine 
 
“HOT SHOTS 2007: Is this the year to be living dangerously? One to be enjoyed to the luxe and to the max? Now that 2007 is upon us, it’s time to get set for the new people, places, trends, treats and trinkets to set our hearts aflutter. Here’s what the IMAGE team predicts the next few months will be all about……..LOBBY LIFE: Last year saw boutique hotels sprout up all over Ireland. 
 
Killarney’s got the Ross, Galway’s got The House and The Twelve and there’s the George in Limerick. We look forward to a year of cosmopolitan country living ….opulent surroundings, buzzy bars, plasma TVs and designer details.” 
Image magazine 
 
“For dining, the West restaurant focuses on local, fresh, organic foods. It also includes a Champagne Bar where diners can relax before their meal and enjoy some fresh oysters”. 
Sunday Business Post
 
“And boy was it worth waiting for the €18 million hotel and bar to open the doors. In fact, so impressive is the new bar that it is bound to be THE new hot spot during race week.” 
“The Oscar will have to go to the smoking section in the Pins. Complete with plasma screen (for those who can’t bear to tear themselves away from the many matches that will be 
shown on the pub’s other 3 plasma screens), unusual furniture and dome lights, heaters and a water fountain will make life easier for those partial to the odd cigarette.” 
Connacht Tribune
 
“After a day exploring Galway, guests can take five in The Pins bar where a quiet pint and some ‘just out of the oven’ breads from the on-site bakery are the order of the day……before heading down to the world class restaurant West where the menu offers the finest organic produce from the area. The West also has an exclusive Chefs Table along with one of the most exciting wine collections in Ireland.” 
Cara Magazine 
 
“Glamorous but comfortable, the Suite XII combines dramatic baroque looks with luxurious home comfort. The rich, deep colour scheme gives it a lived-infeel that is instantly welcoming. Three different patterns in the curtains, rug and sofa sit together comfortably by following a complementary colour scheme.” 
House and Home 
 
“I had made a mental beeline for this hotel from the moment I heard that interior designer Brian McDonald was involved…this is definitely a design hotel but it isn’t screaming at you; instead it manages to lay on the glamour while maintaining the laidback ambience of a country hotel…but what really blew my socks off about this hotel was the restaurant. In terms of cuisine, this is one of the best Irish hotels I’ve ever stayed in!” 
Irish Homes Magazine
 
“Now an uber modern boutique hotel with popular on site pub and award winning restaurant West …class. The Twelve Hotel is a perfect mix of theold and the very new…” 
Johnny Wilson, UK Journalist
 
“The Twelve boasts its own bakery… and the laziest of us will soon be able to enjoy a full spa treatment in the comfort of our bedrooms… We are treated to a seat at the chef’s table, in the heart of the kitchen of the West restaurant. Forget Gordon Ramsay tantrums, the place is an oasis of calm, as head chef John Greene “forces” us to struggle manfully through eight courses… from lobster and halibut to lamb and fillet beef… The Pins bar where the locals drop in for a pint and watch the rugby, where someone can always be relied on to drum up a tune” 
Peter Doherty, UK Journalist 
 
“Suite XII at the Bearna boutique hotel is the ultimate lovers' bolthole, with cool design, a hot-tub for two (order the in-room seaweed bath) and a mini-bar stocked like they should be - think proper pressed apple juice, great champagne and home-made gingerbread men… check out the in-house  bakery for the most delicious fresh produce, or allow the New York-trained barmen entertain you with the most original cocktails in the west.” 
Irish Tatler 
 
“The prized seats in the bar are the vast squashy sofas in front of the fire, and a welcoming touch in the bar are the floor-to-ceiling bookcases with up-to-the minute novels and coffee table books for guests to browse and enjoy…The rooms, where dark wood is the leading design theme, feature several clever ideas from the ultra-fashionable bold print wallpaper, to the near black net curtains which along with the soft lighting gave our room a quiet, relaxed, cocoon-like feeling.…a suite whose size and sheer luxury would put even the smartest new apartment in the shade.” 
Irish Times
 
“the Pins (bakery), in Barna, Co Galway, is a welcome find. It's part of the Twelve, a snazzy boutique hotel, and when the hotel's pastry chef, 
Sunil Phommadura, has some down time he's baking for the tiny new shop, on Barna's main street.” 
The Irish Times Saturday Magazine 
 
“...West is on a par with many of Dublin’s finer establishments and is itself worth the journey to Galway.” The Pins Bakery “demonstrates the hotel’s attention to detail and respect for ingredients in its preparation of delicious breads and pastries and its determination to provide fresh and interesting foods.” “The Twelve is an ideal destination for those who want to switch off the mobile phone and unwind in comfort.” “.....a study of understated chic that creates a genuinely different boutique experience to many urban counterparts.” “This sense of luxury and indulgence permeate the building and imbue a sense of opulence without the impersonality that so often accompanies it in bigger hotels.” 
Wealth Magazine
 
“This rich, luxurious and sexy theme has garnered the hotel a lot of attention in the press, earning plenty of mentions in articles dedicated to ‘Ireland’s Sexiest Hotels’”. ‘On the ground floor, the aptly named The Pins bar and bistro provides a hub for Bearna locals as well as a chic space for guests to unwind and choose from the whopping selection of cocktails and super premium spirits, not to mention the tasty treats from the Pins Bakery’. 
Hotel and Catering Review Style Guide 
 
“This restaurant is very much about wine, with one of Ireland’s most exciting wine collections on display in specially designed cabinets and wonderful vintages seen as artwork themselves’. 
Irish Homes
 
“Quite honestly, it was the most exciting meal I’ve ever had, made all the more enjoyable by the fact that it was introduced by people who are genuinely passionate about what they do.” 
Sunday Business Post
 
‘This pocket of stylish elegance is perfectly perched at the gateway to Ireland’s wild west. It opened last year and has already proven its worth after winning the Best New Hotel title from Hospitality Ireland’. The star treatment has to be the signature massage delivered by French masseuse Mathilde and her absolutely magic hands. For somehow successfully untangling the impossible knots in my scrunched-up shoulders, this woman truly deserves a medal. Her amazing talents alone are worth the journey to Galway’. ‘With the promise of so many great
walks, you won’t want to leave your true best friend at some, and the good news is that this is a pet-friendly hotel, with specialised services to make it a holiday for your hound too’. Saturday Independent
 
“Outside the city in Bearna, the team behind the long standing Twelve Pins Hotel (now The Twelve) are working hard to do their own thing, with an in-house bakery turning out excellent pain de champagne, a sommelier-cum-manager nurturing a vast cellar and a Chef striving to capitalise on prime local produce.” 
Food and Wine
 
‘It’s Ireland’s answer to LA, and now the west coast’s got so much cooler with a luxury boutique hotel, The Twelve, wowing visitors to Galway’. ‘You too can live like a Californian rock star in one of Ireland’s ultimate living areas, Suite XII’. 
Evening Herald
 
“It’s always great to see new beauty venues in the city and The Twelve comes up trumps with their glorious in-room treatments. You get to kick back and relax in one of their sumptuous suites while you receive a luxurious Voya treatment from a top therapist. I had the pleasure of being invited to try out the Twelve Signature Ritual, a three hour long relaxation fest which leaves you walking in the air. Definitely recommended.” 
Galway Now Magazine, Limerick Now Magazine and Cork Now Magazine
 
“The Twelve Hotel in Bearna offers a combination of a seaweed bath and full body massage which, though not a medical treatment, might as well be tailor-made for arthritis sufferers.” “At the twelve the bath is prepared in the privacy of the hotel bedroom. After this a full body massage with a special Voya oil, the worlds only seaweed oil, will ensure that any knots or aches are ironed out.” 
Galway Independent
 
“The Twelve, a hotel in the picturesque Co. Galway village of Bearna, is a slice of luxury. If you didn’t go this bank holiday, go next.” 
Irish Times ‘Go’ Magazine
 
“Recover from the rigours of the oyster-opening championship and get ready for the glamorous balls of the festival at The Twelve, a recently revamped boutique hotel, where you can enjoy spa treatments form the calm of your own hotel.” 
The Gloss
 
“Fergus O’Halloran is the type of person for whom the phrase “well travelled” was coined. Having left Galway to study hotel management in Switzerland, he rose through 
ranks to become one of Canada’s top sommeliers, before returning home to work as general manager of the Malt House, the opening of the Radisson in Letterkenny and now The Twelve, his latest hotel project.” 
Image Interiors
 
“The Twelve Hotel in Bearna is a special boutique oasis where history and tradition meet luxury and style. Just a stones throw from Galway, the hotel is set in the celebrated beauty of the west of Ireland on the fringe of Connemara. The proprietors spent a year creating an environment that allows for a new way of seeing things, catering to many diverse breeds of guest, and placing culinary delights at the top of the menu.” 
Social and Personal
 
 

Some Frequently Asked Questions


The twelve hotel is just 7 km to Galway city, about a 15 minute drive.

There is free underground and secure ground parking at The Twelve.

The Twelve is located in the fishing village of Bearna and just a 200 metre stroll to the oceanside for beautiful walks and swimming.

Endless from walking, jogging, horse-riding, windsurfing, swimming, cultural tours of Galway city, castles and Abbeys, tourist attractions such as the Aran Islands, cliffs of Moher, food tours in the gastromic capital of Ireland, sightseeing driving tours of Connemara, painting workshops, the buzz of Galway city and Salthill and many restaurant choices in Bearna.

The Galway Cathedral,Saint Nicholas' Collegiate Church, The Galway museum, The Spanish Arch, Salthill Promenade, Barna woods, Silver strand, Galway’s shop street and its buskers, etc.
When is the perfect time to visit the Twelve Hotel in Galway? Any time of year is good. There is always something happening in Galway and The Twelve is always bustling and buzzy. It all depends on which season you prefer. Come during each!

The Twelve is built on the site of an old bar and restaurant which dated back to the 1940’s which was called The Twelve Pins taking its name from the Connemara mountain range of the same name. This was demolished in 2005 to make way for today’s acclaimed The Twelve Hotel and restaurants.

There are 4 restaurants/dining options within The Twelve – The nationally famous West gourmet restaurant and The Pins GastroBar. There is also a pizzeria named Pizza Dozzina and The Twelve’s own Bakery and Coffee shop.
Breakfast begins at 8am, there is all day lunch and dinner finishes at 10pm. The bar is open for drinks nightly until late.

Whenever there is an event taking place in Galway, The Twelve is involved in some manner.

All of the above and more – The usual Twelve ingredients!

Walking, jogging, swimming, wind surfacing, Leisure land, pure skill, gyms, sightseeing, bars, dining…

Yes, we are happy to book tours for you to attractions such as The Aran Islands, Cliffs of Moher, Kylemore abbey, Bridget’s gardens, Trad on the prom, Food tours, private chauffer driven tours of Connemara.

We supply ponchos as the weather in Galway is always light and unpredictable. But May is a beautiful time to drive through Connemara as the rodendrums come to life.

2 restaurants, pizza take away, bakery and gift shop, pet friendly suites, spa, seaweed baths, 47 rooms of which half are suites and all rooms can become 2 bedroom apartments, a penthouse suite, concierge facilities, a private dining room for up to 100 guests, a boardroom, meeting and conference facilities, food, tours, pizza making classes and cocktail classes.