Couples intending on tying the knot may have a new wedding option to consider if planning permission is granted for a development alongside the existing Galway Bay Golf Resort.

The Connacht Hospitality Group is seeking permission for a 300-seater function room and bar at Rinville West, Oranmore. A decision on the planning application is due in early November.

The planning application before Galway County Council seeks to provide the new wedding venue within the existing golf course complex which is adjacent to the boundary of the Marine Institute.

The venue is located around three miles from Oranmore and around ten miles from Galway City – and it is anticipated that, if planning is granted, that guests will also use the golf and hotel facilities that are currently on site.

The proposed new wedding venue would overlook the existing golf club and Galway Bay beyond given its elevated position.

According to the developers, this will be an extension to the existing facilities and would strengthen and ensure the long-term survival of the Galway Bay Resort as a hospitality destination.

The proposed design of the wedding venue is, according to the developers, conscious of creating a destination experience that is unique to its coastal countryside location.

The traditional design of the development comprises a cottage-style bar that is connected to a larger mill-style building that will be linked to the lobby and pre-function area.

The function room will be located within a timber-style mill building that will feature high vaulted ceilings and will open out onto two outdoor spaces – a covered external area and a larger courtyard.

According to the planning file, it is considered that the proposed new wedding venue will be run in conjunction with the hotel, and it is expected that the vast majority of the wedding guests will be hotel residents.

A traffic and transportation assessment has been prepared as part of the application and this takes into account improvements that have been carried out on the Maree Road and at the Rinville Road junction.

The assessment states that the proposed development will not create additional traffic flow in the area than what is already existing.
“The wedding venue will be an ancillary facility to the hotel, and it is considered highly probable that the guests attending the wedding venue will stay in the adjacent hotel.
“This will not result in an increase in traffic that would be expected to the area if the development was a stand-alone facility,” it added.