Eyre Square

For years the restoration of Galway's central public square turned the city's showpiece into a construction site and created traffic chaos. But the end result - an open green space with sculptures and pathways - is worth it. Its lawns are formally named Kennedy Park in commemoration of President John F Kennedy's 1963 visit to Galway, though you'll rarely, if ever, hear locals refer to it as anything but Eyre Sq.

The street running along the southwestern side of the square has now been pedestrianised, while the eastern side is taken up almost entirely by the Hotel Meyrick (formerly the Great Southern Hotel), an elegant grey limestone pile restored to its Victorian glory. Guarding the upper side of the square, Browne's Doorway (1627), a fragment from the home of one of the city's merchant rulers, looks like the remains from a carpet-bombing raid but is a classy touch nevertheless.