How We Switched Off From Reality At Samsú’s Analogue Cabin In The Woods

Nestled in the woods in Westmeath’s Ballincollig Estate, Samsú’s Saoirse cabin does what it says on the tin – gives you freedom.

To cook, to sit, to read, to write, and to, well… just breathe. The nature of my job (and general life) involves me being on my phone a lot. I won’t divulge my screentime but it’s hefty enough. My thumbs are used to scrolling and my eyes used to viewing constant content that doesn’t really have any bearing on my day to day.

Such is my life, and probably yours too.

My weekend at Samsú was the first time I had gone without social media in about 12 years. Yes, really. In the Saoirse cabin you’re encouraged to go analogue – lock your phone away, play music from a radio, and boil yourself water for a cup of tea on the stove.

I didn’t lock my phone away fully (I wanted to take photos and videos for this review), but I did avoid social media entirely, communicating only via WhatsApp and staying firmly in my camera app.

Host Rosanna provides guests with an instant camera and film – a lovely touch and a means of capturing those special moments if you do decide to abandon your phone entirely.

The cabin is full of these small gestures; an umbrella for the Irish summer, organic shampoo and conditioner, a torch for finding your way in the night. There’s even a stack of books on love and mindfulness, if your own reading list isn’t quite doing it for you.

Myself and my friend settled into our first night in the cabin with a bag of pasta, a bottle of sauvignon blanc, and Van Morrison on the radio. It was raining lightly so we stretched out on the bed, glasses of wine in hand, and enjoyed a much needed catch up while the night wore on.

We woke the next morning to the sounds of cows crossing in a field nearby and the sun peering through the trees. The cabin is the perfect sun trap, and on that morning the clouds had disappeared so we started our day with a fresh coffee and egg on toast outside.

Later on, we went on a stroll through the forest in search of the lake. We were eager for a dip but not so eager that we didn’t take our time wandering through the trees, listening to the birds, and basking in the sun.

Samsú guests have full access to Ballincollig’s lake, a stunning body of water surrounded by greenery and overlooked by the castle itself. It’s like something from a movie, and as we paddled around the water (surprisingly warm for Ireland), it felt like we were the only people for miles.

All of that swimming (light bobbing) tired us out, so we made our way back to the cabin for some pizza. Yes, pizza! Guests are encouraged to bring enough groceries they’ll need for their stay (the cabin is equipped with hobs for cooking), but you can also rent a pizza oven for a little extra.

Our ingredients had been delivered before our arrival the previous day – stretchy mozzarella, fresh basil, dough, and delicious tomatoes straight from Nonna’s Kitchen. Who is Nonna? We didn’t know, but she made some good sauce.

We enjoyed our pizza out by the fire pit and chased it with a cheese board and some rosé. The rain stayed away for the evening and we made good use of that fire pit, keeping it going until the sun had fully set and we were ready for a bedtime read.

The weather gods must have been looking after us because the second we climbed into bed it started bucketing down outside. Settling in for another peaceful snooze with our sleep sprays and eye masks, we drifted off listening to the pitter patter outside.

The journey back to the reality was less than ideal for a couple of reasons: we were no longer at Samsú, and we choose to get public transport (if you’re travelling down, make sure you drive).

@stellarmagazine Team Stellar was invited for a stay in @samsucabins to live the analogue life and all we can say is – wow ✨ Read our full review on stellar.christmas now 💛 #samsucabins #ireland #staycation #analogue #fyp #invite ♬ Everything is romantic – Charli xcx

But despite the return to real life, the DMs I had missed, and the knowledge that I had work in the morning, I like to think I took a bit of Samsú with me and will make that bit more of an effort to switch off in future.

You can find out more about Samsú here. 

*This writer was offered a free stay in exchange for a fair and honest review.

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• samsu
• travel