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Ireland
Travel Guide, climate:
Best: May - Sept
Worst: Jan, Feb [cold, dull, rain, wind]
Length
of stay:
Minimum worthwhile stay, not incl. flights:
a long weekend, in and around Dublin.
Max: up to 3 weeks if you want a quiet, countrified get-away-from-it-all
kind of holiday.
Ireland
Festivals Guide:
* really special
* June, Music in Great Irish Houses Festival, mostly Dublin, plus
counties Wicklow and Kildare. Excellent.
June, Eigse Carlow Arts Festival, all kinds of music and street
entertainment.
June, Galway Pride, parades, fancy dress and general hard partying.
* July, Galway Arts Festival, all kinds of entertainment at this
great show.
Aug, Waterford Spraoi Street Festival
Aug, Muff Festival, wild and wacky 3 day street event.
* Aug, Puck Fair, a bizarre 3 day event.
Aug, Kilkenny Arts Festival, set in superb surroundings.
* Aug, Rose of Tralee Int. Festival, a massive party celebrating
romance!
Aug, Fleadh Cheoil, huge all-Ireland music competition, music everywhere,
Clonmel, County Tipperary.
Sept, Galway Int. Oyster Festival, with fun events of all sorts.
End of Oct, Cork Jazz Festival, 4 days
*Mid Oct-early Nov, Wexford Opera Festival, small but perfectly
formed.
For
some specific dates see: Eng'
Speaking Festivals
Ireland
Activities Guide:
Walking: Ireland is brilliant walking
country and there are 2,000 miles of waymarked trails such as the
Kerry Way and the Wicklow Way.
Fishing: You can fish almost anywhere
along Ireland's vast coastline and in the many rivers and lakes
e.g. Lough Derg, Erne and Gill. Fishing permits cost IR£5
but you need a national licence for salmon and sea trout.
Mountain biking: Hire bikes are available.
You can bike in the great walking areas as well almost flat areas
like the Ards Peninsula, or hills, rough tracks...whatever you fancy.
Mountain-climbing: Mt Gabriel on the
Mizen head Peninsula, Hungry Hill on the Beara Peninsula, and Croagh
Patrick near Westport
Horse Riding: all kinds of horsey holidays
are on offer, and all utilising quiet, pretty trails and beaches,
many in the south-west. Or...for a truly ethnic experience what
about a horse-drawn caravan holiday!
Sailing/kayaking: very popular round
the west coast, especially between Cork Harbour and the Dingle Peninsula,
the coast north and south of Dublin and on the larger lakes.
Windsurfing: Steady year-round wind
and good waves make this sport popular too.
Surfing: try the waves in Easkey in
County Sligo, the Castlegregory Peninsula and Barley Cove on the
Mizen Head Peninsula.
Self-Drive Inland Boating: Ireland
has over 400 miles of navigable rivers, lakes and canals that you
can explore by yourself with minimal instruction on a narrow boat,
with plenty of moorings and marinas en route.
Or take go on a cruise boat a let someone else do the driving.
Scuba: Yes, strange but true! From
March to October hardy divers explore the rocky coasts and colourful
fish courtesy of the Gulf Stream. |
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Why
Travel to Ireland?
Ireland is a lush place of striking coastlines and sweeping, unspoilt
country landscapes, perfect for outdoor people.
Interesting attractions range from castles and prehistoric sites
to the Guinness brewery.
The people are friendly and there are not too many of them, so Ireland
is a place where you really
can get away from it all.
Downside:
- The roads are often in poor condition, so if you go self-drive,
go slowly or go 4x4. Or both.
- Ireland is not cheap and you can be overcharged in touristy places
where some restaurants and hotels fleece unwary travellers.
- The weather is often wet, but wait a moment and it'll change.
Tour
operators offering tours to Ireland can be found in our listings
here: Ireland
Tours
Ireland
where to go Guide:
Dublin, a lively, beautiful Georgian city; see Dublin
travel guide.
Most tourists head straight for County Kerry.
This is a spectacular area of mountains and lakes. Killarney
is the most scenic spot in Kerry [pictures above].
Moving North, you should visit the Burren
in County Clare, which is an extraordinary limestone range
with a unique floral habitat.
Then there's the Aran Islands, across
the mouth of Galway Bay, where you can see rural Ireland as it was
centuries ago; the traditional way of life of the Aran islanders
has not been subject to modernisation and Irish is still spoken
there. You can reach the islands by ferry from Galway.
Connemara in County Galway has a wonderful
landscape of moorland and mountains and still supports pockets of
Irish speakers.
Clonmacnois, County Offaly, has a fascinating early monastic site.
Literary buffs will want to continue north into County
Sligo and visit Yeats country including the famous Ben Bulben
and the grave of the great poet.
Glendalough lies in a pretty valley
in County Wicklow and is the well-preserved site of an early Christian
settlement and includes a round tower and St Kevin's Church and
many ancient crosses.
Images
courtesy of the Irish Tourist Board
More
guides to English speaking places with great walks:
UK Travel Guide | Canada Travel Guide
New Zealand Travel Guide
Australia Travel Guide
USA Travel Guide
South Africa Travel Guide |
