Top ChoiceGardens in Enniskerry
Wicklow's most visited attraction is this magnificent 64-sq-km estate, whose main entrance is 500m south of Enniskerry. At the heart of it is an elegant Palladian mansion, but the real draws are the formal...
Top ChoiceHistoric Site in Brú na Bóinne
A startling 80m in diameter and 13m high, Newgrange's white round stone walls, topped by a grass dome, look eerily futuristic. Underneath lies the finest Stone Age passage tomb in Ireland – one of the most...
Top ChoiceHistoric Site in Cashel
The Rock of Cashel is one of Ireland's most spectacular historic sites: a prominent green hill, banded with limestone outcrops, rising from a grassy plain and bristling with ancient fortifications. Sturdy walls...
Top ChoiceHistoric Site in Skellig Islands
The jagged, 217m-high rock of Skellig Michael (Michael's Rock; like St Michael's Mount in Cornwall and Mont St Michel in Normandy) is the larger of the two Skellig Islands and a Unesco World Heritage site. Early...
Top ChoiceHistoric Site in Strandhill
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 in Welsh and English folk tales). The 40,000 tonnes of...
Top ChoiceArchaeological Site in South of Sligo Town
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 a few sheep, it's undeveloped and spectacular. Dotted with...
Top ChoiceChristian Site in Glendalough
Nestled between two lakes, haunting Glendalough (Gleann dá Loch, meaning 'Valley of the Two Lakes') is one of the most significant monastic sites in Ireland and one of the loveliest spots in the country, centred...
Top ChoiceNatural Feature in Kilcar & Carrick
The Cliffs of Moher get more publicity, but the cliffs of Sliabh Liag are higher (and free). In fact, these spectacular sea cliffs are among the highest in Europe, plunging some 600m to the ceaselessly churning...
Top ChoiceLibrary in Grafton Street & St Stephen's Green
Trinity's greatest treasures are found within the Old Library, built by Thomas Burgh between 1712 and 1732. The star of the show is the Book of Kells, a breathtaking, illuminated manuscript of the four Gospels of...
Top ChoiceArchaeological Site in 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 monuments, including passage tombs, stone circles and dolmens,...
Top ChoiceBeach in Streedagh
Curving, dune-backed, 3km-long Streedagh Strand occasionally sees parts of the Spanish Armada washing up on its shores from three wrecks offshore: La Juliana, La Lavia and La Santa Maria de Visón; over 1000...
Top ChoiceNatural Feature in Ballycastle
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 Ireland onto the stack on Downpatrick Head, leaving the...
Top ChoicePark in Killarney Region
Sprawling over 10,236 hectares, this sublime park is an idyllic place to explore. Ross Castle and Muckross House draw big crowds, but it's possible to escape amid Ireland's largest area of ancient oak woods, with...
Top ChoiceHistoric Site in County Longford
Don't miss the extraordinary Corlea Trackway, an Iron Age bog road built in 148 BC. An 18m stretch of the pavement-like oak track has been preserved in a humidified hall at the site's visitor centre, which...
Top ChoiceBeach in Maghera
This astonishing beach is a dream come true, especially if you are rewarded with a gorgeous sunset. Get here during lowish tide to explore the caves in the south end, where some spectacular geology awaits. If you...
Top ChoiceHistoric Site in County Offaly
Gloriously placed overlooking the River Shannon, 7km northeast of Shannonbridge, Clonmacnoise is one of Ireland’s most important ancient monastic cities. The site is enclosed within a walled field and contains...
Top ChoiceViewpoint in Ardara
On a narrow road from Glencolumbcille to Ardara, past remote mountain bogland, magnificent Glengesh Pass (Glean Géis; meaning 'Glen of the Swans'), scoured out aeons ago by implacably vast glacial forces, is...
Top ChoiceBeach in Killala
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 gorgeous bays. There's good surf here and plenty of places to...
Top ChoiceCathedral in Kilkenny City
Ireland's second-largest medieval cathedral (after St Patrick's in Dublin) has a long and fascinating history. The first monastery was built here in the 6th century by St Canice, Kilkenny's patron saint. The...
Top ChoiceMuseum in North of the Liffey
Once the world’s largest military barracks, this splendid early neoclassical grey-stone building on the Liffey’s northern banks was completed in 1704 according to the design of Thomas Burgh (he of Trinity...
