Traditional and luxurious Dutch barge liveaboard experience in Galway – live lavishly amongst the classic opulence this 1929 classic exhibits.
Newly refitted Mar’23 – The regal Lady Norrie K is a classic Dutch cargo ship built in 1929 and retains all the memorabilia of this era. We carefully restored and retained the marvellous and iconic fittings one would expect from this period. The accommodation is exclusively yours and is moored in our private historic Dock on the Long Walk in Galway City centre.
The space
I have done my best to recreate the atmospheric and cozy living accommodation of a Dutch skipper and his family from 1929.
This is a very exclusive and special space comprising of a few compartments – the shower and toilet located forward of the steering house, the steering hut with two very comfortable pilot seats overlooking the river estuary, the main saloon with the kitchenette and the compact and charming sleeping cabin.
You and your partner will have exclusive use of this accommodation with private access. The cargo bay is not accessible.
Access is through the Starboard door off deck. The gangway lands on this deck and is shared by two guests who may be staying on the Pink boat which is moored 3meters from the ship (See boarding plan).
I decided to leave open a steel hatch over the main engine and when you enter the ship you can look down on the original air started Deutz motor through the glass floor. The ship is kept in running order.
Interestingly – she was converted to Hybrid in 2012 and she can also run on her electric motor.
There are two comfy pilot chairs in the steering house – I’ve often sat here in the evenings with a glass of wine and watched the ships pass into the Port or more likely – watch the rain!
The main saloon is aft down a stairs and features a stove fitted by the last skipper.
Heat is provided by a wonderful Webasto warm air heater which is under your control, the heat permeates up to the steering hut but there is a separate heating unit for the shower and toilet. Overall, it is a warm and cozy ship.
The main saloon is lovingly restored to its original condition with polished teak parquet floor and mahogany furniture. I retained much of the original tat and hand sewn lace curtains. It is very atmospheric, romantic and cozy. The saloon has a head height of 1.9m or 6’3”
The kitchenette has a cooker, fridge and microwave however I cannot allow frying or smelly cooking due to the lingering smell.
The gorgeous polished mahogany panelled sleeping cabin is compact and the bed measures 190cm x 160cm or 6’3” x 5’5” – naturally with a top of the range mattress and 750tc bed linen. It may not be ideal for claustrophobic land lubbers.
The shower and toilet are through the steering hut and although the shower is a standard 90cm x 90cm the height is 1.9m or 6’3”. The shower is equivalent or better than most household showers.