Leading hotel Ashford Castle is back on the market -- but at an asking price just half of what it fetched only five years ago.

Located in Cong, Co Mayo, it was bought in 2007 for €50 million by property developer Gerry Barrett.

However, the hotel, which continues to trade successfully, has since gone into receivership. The estate agent Savills has now put a value on it of €25 million.

Ashford has been trading as a hotel since 1939. It has welcomed a long line of celebrities, including Oscar Wilde, John Lennon, Brad Pitt and Pierce Brosnan.

It has a total of 83 bedrooms, including six suites, and is located on 365 acres overlooking Lough Corrib.

Ashford relies heavily on the top end of the US tourist market and frequently attracts some of the highest room rates in the hotel sector - between €400 and €950 per night.

Last week it was voted the best resort in Ireland and the third best in Europe in the Condé Nast Traveller. It regularly figures in the top 100 hotels and resorts in the world.

Originally built as a crenellated castle in the 13th century and rebuilt as a hunting lodge by the Guinness family in the 1800s, Ashford Castle was converted into a hotel in 1939 and remains one of the finest and most luxurious castle hotels in Europe.

Sources: irishtimes - independent