Whole four-star hotel up for grabs in charity raffle

How would you like the run of an entire hotel – including its gym, cinema and concierge service – for you and your extended family for a whole weekend this summer for less than the price of a main course for one?

That’s the prize on offer from Cork International Hotel, which plans to give itself over to the winner and up to 30 of their family in the middle of July, just before it reopens to the general public.

The four-star hotel has 5,000 €20 tickets available for the draw, which aims to raise €100,000 for the Rainbow Club: Cork Centre for Autism, a charity that helps families living with the condition.

The package includes a two-night stay on July 10th and 11th, with breakfast each morning in the hotel’s Atlantic restaurant, and a family concierge. The prize will also include a dinner, with a pianist thrown in, for up to 30 guests on the Saturday night. There will also be access to the hotel’s Aviator playroom.

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"This is a once-in-a-lifetime prize," says the hotel's general manager, Carmel Lonergan; she adds that the hotel had been disappointed not to be able to raise more money for the Rainbow Club, its charity partner, this year and decided to donate the entire proceeds of the raffle to it.

The centre was founded by Karen and Jon O’Mahony, whose sons Sean and Stephen have autism. “The Covid-19 crisis has had a big impact on our organisation,” says Karen O’Mahony. “We are very worried about funding, but even more so we are worried about the social impacts the restrictions are having on those who use our service.”

Eighty-five per cent of its income normally comes from the fundraising that has largely disappeared during the coronavirus pandemic. “We support 458 children and have 300 families on our waiting list. We are delighted that the Cork International Hotel is offering up this amazing prize, as all money raised will be greatly appreciated by us.”

You can enter the competition by donating €20 to the Rainbow Club.