County Sligo
Sligo's ultimate rock pile sits atop a magical mountain hike. Knocknarea Cairn is popularly believed to be the grave of legendary Queen Maeve (Queen Mab…
Must-see attractions in Counties Mayo & Sligo
Carrowkeel Megalithic Cemetery
County Sligo
With a bird's-eye view of the county from high in the Bricklieve Mountains, it's little wonder this hilltop site was sacred in prehistoric times. But for…
Carrowmore Megalithic Cemetery
County Sligo
One of the largest Stone Age cemeteries in Europe, Carrowmore is finally receiving the renown it deserves and is Sligo's must-see attraction. Some 30…
County Sligo
Curving, dune-backed, 3km-long Streedagh Strand occasionally sees parts of the Spanish Armada washing up on its shores from three wrecks offshore: La…
County Mayo
An astonishing sea stack that's lashed by foaming sea, Dun Briste is Mayo's top natural sight. Legend attests that St Patrick drove all the vipers from…
County Mayo
Lackan Bay's beach is a stunning and vast expanse of golden sand – it's particularly beautiful as the sun goes down, making it one of Ireland's most…
County Sligo
Yeats was long believed to be buried next to the doorway of Drumcliff Parish Church, but recent evidence suggests that the bones shipped here from France…
County Mayo
Imposing Ballintubber Abbey is the only church in Ireland founded by an Irish king that remains in use. It's reputed to have been established in 1216 next…
County Sligo
The imposing ancestral home of the Gore-Booth family is one of Sligo's top sights. Revolutionary nationalist and socialist Constance Goore-Booth (Countess…
County Mayo
An exposed hillside 8km northwest of Ballycastle is home to one of the world's most extensive Stone Age monuments. So far stone-walled fields, houses and…
National Museum of Country Life
County Mayo
The extensive and engrossing displays of this riverside museum delve into Ireland's fascinating rural traditions and skills. It's set in a modern,…
County Mayo
St Mary's is one of Ireland's most transfixing holy wells. An apparition of the Virgin Mary has drawn pilgrims here for centuries, and today a tumbledown…
County Mayo
Tucked away at the far west of the island, Keem Bay is Achill's most remote Blue Flag beach. The crescent of golden sands sits at the foot of steep cliffs…
County Mayo
With towering walls engulfed in ivy and empty windows, Moore Hall is an astonishing and atmospheric ruin. Set beside Lough Carra, it was built in the…
County Sligo
Set around 6km southeast of Ballymote, these splendid limestone caves high in Keshcorran Hill make for a fun expedition. You can park near the bottom at…
County Mayo
Running 3km southeast from Keel, beautiful, Blue Flag, golden-sand Trawmore is among Achill's most photographed beaches. Be aware that there are dangerous…
County Sligo
The Model houses an impressive collection of contemporary Irish art including works by Jack B Yeats (WB's brother and one of Ireland's most important…
County Mayo
The chancel roof of 13th-century Clare Island Abbey is dotted with faded fragments of murals, dating from around 1500. Look out too for the tomb reputed…
County Mayo
The bleak remains of more than 80 houses in this deserted village at the foot of Mt Slievemore are slowly being reduced to rock piles, a poignant reminder…
County Mayo
At the O’Malley's factory, tours reveal just how the family magics Achill's mineral-rich waters into flavoursome flakes of crunchy salt. After seeing…
County Mayo
Just beyond Cong Abbey, the village abruptly ends and the woodlands surrounding Ashford Castle begin. First built in 1228 as the seat of the de Burgo…
County Mayo
Take a fascinating tour of this restored castle, built between 1825 and 1831 on the site of a medieval abbey. The castle was bought in the 1960s by fossil…
County Mayo
Built in 1730 on the ruins of Grace O'Malley's 16th-century castle, this charming Georgian mansion 2km west of the centre retains much of its original…
County Sligo
A 10-minute walk from a car park leads through pine-scented forest to this enigmatic court tomb. Dating from around 3000 BC, the crumbling structure is…
County Mayo
Bursting at the seams with worshippers on Sundays, this small church has a magnificent stained-glass window depicting a girl being lowered in a lifeboat…
County Sligo
The poet WB Yeats is among those who've fallen for this 15m tumbling torrent, set in the most beautiful area of Lough Glencar – it features in his poem…
County Sligo
Immortalised by Yeats in 'The Fiddler of Dooney' (1899), this fissured limestone knoll bulges awkwardly upward by the lough's southern shore. There's a…
County Sligo
Although you can't visit this photogenic neo-Gothic turreted pile, views of it against a dramatic backdrop of mountains and sea make for a terrific sight…
County Mayo
From a distance, the eerie shell of this wind-battered 1470-built Dominican abbey near the water is quite a sight. Leaving Newport in a northwest…
County Sligo
Just down from Ballymote train station, the immense shell of Ballymote Castle is a classic, imposing ruin. It was from this early-14th-century redoubt,…
County Sligo
Big-wave tow-in surfing competitions are regularly held off Mullaghmore Head. The area is becoming known as one of Ireland's premier big-wave surf spots…
County Mayo
Right at the centre of things and at the heart of Killala, the town's gorgeous 12th-century limestone round tower is perfectly preserved, although it was…
County Sligo
This gorgeous 5km stretch of sand is the real reason to visit Enniscrone, especially as the sun goes down. Cars can drive straight on to the beach; a…
County Mayo
A place of pilgrimage for decades, the Knock shrine includes five churches and a museum set amid landscaped grounds. The complex has evolved thanks to…
County Mayo
The evocatively weathered shell of Cong's 12th-century Augustinian abbey is scored by a cross-hatch of lines from centuries of exposure to the elements…
County Mayo
Carrigahowley Castle (also called Rockfleet Castle), an intact 15th-century tower off the N59, is associated with 'pirate queen' Grace O'Malley. She…
County Sligo
This pint-sized island lies tantalisingly close to the lough's southeastern shore, but, alas, can't be accessed. Still, it's visible from the shore. Its…
County Mayo
In the village of Dooagh's main car park sits a slender, inscribed stone noting the epic achievement of Don Allum, the first person to row across the…
Gortarowey Forest Recreation Area
County Sligo
The best way to walk around within the shadow of Benbulben is by visiting this area within Benbulben Forest. There are three trails: the looped longer…
County Sligo
The neatly stacked piles of rocks here stretch some 50m along and sketch a shape similar to a lobster's claw. They outline what is one of Ireland's finest…
