Sea Rod Inn
+2 photosAbout Sea Rod Inn
Sea Rod Inn is a Fáilte Ireland approved 2-star guest house in Ballina, on the Mayo coast, listed on Fáilte Ireland’s official register of quality-assured accommodation. It is a smaller, owner-run house of 9 rooms, the kind of place where you deal with the people who actually run it.
Is this your B&B?
Claim this listingStaying in Ballina
The salmon capital of Ireland, a river town on the Moy where north Mayo’s cliffs, abbeys and beaches begin.
Ballina is north Mayo’s big town, built along the River Moy a few kilometres above Killala Bay, its centre crossed by two handsome 1830s bridges. Fáilte Ireland formally named it the Salmon Capital of Ireland, and no title in Irish tourism is better earned: the Moy is one of the most prolific salmon rivers in Europe, and its most famous beat, the Ridge Pool, runs through the middle of the town.
For a B&B in Ballina, that river is the show. Anglers come from around the world for a rod on the Moy, the Salmon Festival each July has run since 1964 and is billed as Ireland’s oldest community festival, and even a non-fishing guest can watch salmon anglers working the Ridge Pool from the bridge with a coffee in hand.
The town is also the natural base for north Mayo, one of the least crowded corners of the Wild Atlantic Way. Downpatrick Head, the Céide Fields and the heritage coast around Killala are each about half an hour away, and the beach town of Enniscrone, with its Edwardian seaweed baths, is just across the estuary.
Things to do near Sea Rod Inn
The River Moy and the Ridge Pool
The Moy’s rod catch runs to thousands of salmon a year, making it one of Europe’s great salmon rivers, and the state-run Moy Fishery manages the famous town-centre beats. The Ridge Pool, right below the bridges, is often called the most famous pool in Irish salmon angling.
The Ballina Salmon Festival
Running each July since 1964, the Salmon Festival is billed as Ireland’s oldest community festival, a week of street entertainment, music and events along the river. It is the liveliest time of year to have a bed in the town.
Belleek Woods and Belleek Castle
On the edge of town, riverside woodland walks surround Belleek Castle, a neo-Gothic manor of the 1820s that is now a small hotel with a remarkable museum: an armoury, fossils, and a bar built from timbers salvaged from a Spanish Armada wreck in Killala Bay. The museum tours are open to visitors.
The Jackie Clarke Collection
A Ballina businessman quietly assembled over 100,000 items spanning 400 years of Irish history, including an original 1916 Proclamation and letters of Michael Collins, and the collection is now displayed free in the town’s old Hibernian Bank. It is one of the best small museums in the country.
Downpatrick Head
About half an hour north, the headland at Downpatrick drops sheer to the sea beside Dún Briste, a 45-metre sea stack cut off from the mainland in a storm in 1393, its layered rock face standing just offshore. It is one of the defining images of the Wild Atlantic Way.
Rosserk and Moyne
Two 15th-century Franciscan friaries stand near the Moy estuary north of town, and Rosserk in particular is among the best-preserved in Ireland, its church, cloister and carvings largely intact in a field by the water. Killala’s fine medieval round tower is minutes further on.
Killala and 1798
The French general Humbert landed near Killala in August 1798 with over a thousand troops, took the town and then Ballina, and won the Battle of Castlebar before the rising failed. The story is written all over this coast, and Killala’s harbour village wears it well.
Enniscrone and the seaweed baths
Across the estuary on Killala Bay, Enniscrone’s long beach comes with Kilcullen’s Bath House, in the same family since it opened in 1912, where hot seawater and seaweed baths are taken in the original Edwardian tubs. There is no better recovery from an Atlantic day.
Getting to Ballina
Ballina has its own railway station with Dublin connections via a change at Manulla Junction, and Bus Éireann’s Expressway runs several direct Dublin services daily along with routes to Galway and Sligo. Ireland West Airport at Knock is about forty minutes away. The N26 and N59 link the town south toward Dublin and west along the north Mayo coast.
Booking Sea Rod Inn direct, and what the rating means
A real, assessed guest house
Sea Rod Inn holds a 2-star guest house rating under Fáilte Ireland's National Quality Assurance Framework, assessed against the bedrooms, bathrooms, breakfast and welcome rather than self-declared. It's an independent signal you can trust before you book, separate from any platform's own review score.
No fees, no middleman
Ring the owner, or use the contact details on this page, and arrange the stay with the house rather than through an app. No booking fee added to your bill and no commission taken from the owner, so the room rate you agree is the room rate you pay.
A better stay, direct
Owners answer the questions a booking platform never will: whether the room at the front is quieter, how early breakfast can be served, or where to park for a few days. Speaking to the house directly is how B&Bs in Ireland were booked for decades.
Still deciding where to base yourself? Browse more B&Bs in Mayo.
Check availability at Sea Rod Inn
Send the owner the details of your stay and they will come back to you directly. No booking fee, no platform in between, just Ballina on the other end.
Sea Rod Inn, common questions
Where is Sea Rod Inn?
Sea Rod Inn is at Doohoma, Ballina, Co. Mayo (Eircode F26 V9V3). Give the Eircode to your sat-nav to find the door.
How do I book Sea Rod Inn?
You contact the owner directly, by phone or the enquiry form on this page. DirectBnB adds no booking fee and takes no commission, so you arrange the stay with the house itself and pay the room rate with nothing on top.
What star rating does Sea Rod Inn have?
Sea Rod Inn is a Fáilte Ireland approved 2-star guest house under Fáilte Ireland's National Quality Assurance Framework, and guests rate it 4.9 out of 5 across 127 Google reviews.
Is Sea Rod Inn suitable for families?
Yes, Sea Rod Inn is listed as family friendly. Ask the owner directly about room configurations and cots when you book.
How many rooms does Sea Rod Inn have?
Sea Rod Inn has 9 rooms. As a smaller, owner-run house it is worth booking ahead, particularly in summer and over weekends.
More in Mayo
See more B&Bs in Mayo
Browse every checked B&B and guesthouse in County Mayo, and book each one direct with the owner.