Clonmacnoise

Introducing Clonmacnoise

Gloriously placed overlooking the River Shannon, Clonmacnoise (967 4195; www.heritageireland.ie ; adult/child €5.30/2.10; 9am-7pm Jun–mid-Sep, 10am-6pm mid-Sep–Oct & mid-Mar–May, 10am-5pm Nov–mid-Mar, last admission 45min before closing; ) is one of Ireland’s most important ancient monastic cities. The site is enclosed in a walled field and contains numerous early churches, high crosses, round towers and graves in astonishingly good condition. The surrounding marshy area is known as the Shannon Callows, home to many wild plants and one of the last refuges of the seriously endangered corncrake (a pastel-coloured relative of the coot).