Apply for Caretaker Role on the Great Blasket Island

The Great Blasket Island is accepting applications for its caretaker role ahead of the 2024 season. Billy O’Connor and Alice Hayes, who own the holiday cottages and coffee shop on the Great Blasket Island off the coast of Co Kerry, seek two people who are “hardworking, responsible, and trustworthy” and “have great people skills and initiative” for the caretaker role.

The deadline to apply is January 18. Learn more about the position and application process >

The caretaker role for the couple runs from April 1 through October 1, and includes managing the coffee shop and the four holiday cottages. The living is simple – there is no electricity or hot running water on the island. Staff sleep above the coffee shop and share the main bedroom (hence why looking for a couple) and use the coffee shop kitchen and toilets as their own. Laundry will be collected and washed on the mainland, and food shops will be delivered daily. Billy and Alice caution: “Please be aware this is not a holiday job. The season can get very busy and you will be on your feet for most of the day.”

The Great Blasket Island has a deep connection to the Springfield, MA area. The vast majority of emigrants from the island settled in this area, and formed a tight communities where Irish was still spoken. To this day, this area maintains its connection to the Great Blasket and Ireland in general, with the Irish language continuing to be taught and spoken, and Irish culture continuing to be celebrated.

ICC President Sean Cahillane encourages people in our community to think about applying. “I ask people from Western New England to apply for this adventure of a lifetime, if Dingle and the Basket Islands are near and dear to them.”

Learn more about Springfield’s connection to the Great Blasket Island >

The Great Blasket Island. Photo by Kathleen Doe.