Michael O’Neill Jnr talks to Emma Connolly about growing up in Clonakilty’s Fernhill House

SITTING opposite Michael O’Neill Jnr in the lobby of his family-run hotel which celebrates its 200th anniversary this year, there’s one obvious question to get our interview started and it’s this: what’s it like to grow up in a hotel?

Breaking into a smile he beams ‘absolutely brilliant,’ recalling how as a child he and his brothers would sneak out of bed to peep in at weddings and do their best to grab a dessert on their way back out.

‘And I remember getting a drum kit one Christmas from Santa, and sidling up beside the band at a function and playing away,’ he said.

‘I’ve so many great memories. I never think of it as coming to work, but as “going in home”.’

What’s it like running a hotel though?

‘That’s also brilliant,’ revealed the 40-year-old, even if no two days are ever the same and could involve anything from fixing a TV in a guest’s room, to serving lunch, to catering a 350-person wedding.

We meet mid-morning by which time he’s helped out at breakfast for his 90 guests – it was a full house – after which he’s given most of them a history lecture about Fernhill House Hotel’s rich past, which he’s passionate about. His natural curiosity and love of people make him a born story teller.

The property was built in 1826, and purchased by his great grandparents MJ O’Neill and Bridget Walsh in 1946 – and it very nearly wasn’t a hotel at all.

‘My grandparents Mary and Cornelius O’Neill opened Fernhill as a hotel in 1967 but only after my grandmother, a Skibbereen woman who grew up in a butcher shop,  insisted it become a B&B when my grandfather wanted to knock half the house to extend the farm,’ he said.

His parents Teresa and Michael are at the helm now, with Michael Jnr and his brothers Neil and Gearóid.

The next generation of O’Neill’s Cornelius and Mary opened Fernhill as a hotel in 1967.

‘My mother is from Dunmanway and has the distinction of being one of the first female Irish assistant bank manager with Bank of Ireland. She’s been a huge driving force in the business coming on board in the 80s when the country was on its knees. Michael  is the ideas man. They were honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2026 weddingsonline awards, and got a standing ovation which was very emotional,’ said Michael.

Neil is the general manager, Michael (who studied business studies in UL) is over finance and marketing and Gearóid is the bar manager.

‘But really, lots of us can do a lot of things here,’ admitted Michael. ‘I worked in KPMG after college and have been here full time since 2008 which is when the bust happened. We had just done our gardens and upgraded our bedrooms – let’s just say there weren’t any wages for a while.’

The family recently invested €5m, building an extension of 16 rooms bringing their total room count to 43.

‘The plan is to upgrade the existing bathrooms from next January. It’s a big investment, and for sure there were sleepless nights but this is a family business, there are no plans to sell it, and it’s about thinking ahead and future proofing it,’ said Michael.

Married to Freda, a primary school teacher in Bandon, they’re parents of two boys and a girl aged eight, six and four called MJ, Fionn and Ada. His brother Neil has three children, Millie and Isabella (four and three) and just welcomed their baby brother Rian in time for Father’s Day.

‘They love it here as well and we’d often pop in to “granny’s house” after school for a bowl of ice cream,’ he said.

Fernhill House Hotel is part of the Blue Book Collection which Michael says has been ‘a great boost for business’.

He added: ‘But really we could have anyone staying here for example we’ve a group coming from the US on a linen tour at the end of the summer, we’ve a US group coming soon on a yoga holiday, a group of artists … it’s very diverse.’

Fernhill is of course renowned for its weddings, and it’s also a popular venue for West Cork families to celebrate Confirmations.

‘That’s actually the craziest day in the whole year – when people get their confirmation dates the phone just starts ringing and doesn’t stop. I feel awful when I have to tell people we’re booked out,’ he said.

Fernhilll House was built in 1826 and is celebrating 200 years this year. It was the most expensive house in Clonakilty during the 1830’s at £28.

The hospitality industry is demanding. No surprises there. Michael admits you’re never really off and he also covers a Friday night lock-up until 4am.

‘Customers are getting harder to please and that’s okay – we aim to please. If we get a bad review we learn from it, but what annoys me if it’s something we could have sorted for them while they were here, but they ever mentioned it – until they go online.’

What would help their industry?

‘The reversal of the VAT rate did help but I’d love to see more taxis in rural towns like Clonakilty. The taxi situation is a total disaster and the government need to look at subsidising their costs.’

Is that something he could mention to his friend FF TD Christopher O’Sullivan? Michael laughs. The pair actually shared a house when Michael was mayor of Clonakilty (the fourth generation of his family to hold the title) while Deputy O’Sullivan was county mayor.

‘There’d be far more spent in the rural night time economy if more taxis were available,’ Michael added.

When COVID hit, Michael was building a new house, mayor of Clonakilty, he and Freda had just had a new baby, on top of working in the hotel.

‘I remember thinking that something had to give – I just didn’t expect the whole world to shut down.’

Today, Fernhill is run by Michael and Teresa O’Neill who have won many awards, including ‘Best Business in West Cork’ at the Southern Star business awards, ‘Best Historic Wedding Venue in Europe’, a lifetime achievement award in the wedding industry, and inclusion in Ireland’s Blue Book.

But the  team used the lockdowns to their advantage – developing impressive art trails, a new gin, extending the gardens and more.

What’s next? ‘As well as the bathrooms upgrade next we’re developing an electrical substation mainly to enable more car chargers at a cost of over €100,000. But you’re never done, there’s no end point – there’s always something,’ he said.

But he loves it – proudly showing the wall hooks he painstakingly sourced for the new bridal styling lounge – the largest of its kind in Ireland.

‘The idea is that while we’re making all these improvements we’re not losing the sense of Fernhill that’s so important, it’s about improving what we already have,’ said Michael.

‘The hotel is like an extra member of the family –  that’s how I think of it. Our colleagues are very special to us too and we would not be where we are without them. The hope is that the next generation will want to take over from us, and we’ll be handing over something even better. That’s what keeps us going.’