County Meath
Newgrange is one of the most remarkable prehistoric sites in Europe, famous for the illumination of its passage and tomb during the winter solstice sun…
Must-see attractions in Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
County Meath
Slane Castle is a 300-year-old sprawling estate on the banks of the River Boyne in County Meath. The neo-gothic castle and grounds are open to visitors…
County Meath
At Ireland’s only permanent theme park you can ride Europe's largest wooden inverted roller coaster, Cú Chulainn. Just 45 minutes from Dublin city center,…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
Crowing ravens lend an eerie atmosphere to Monasterboice, an intriguing monastic site down a leafy lane in sweeping farmland, which contains a cemetery,…
County Meath
Proof of Trim's medieval importance, this remarkably preserved edifice was Ireland's largest Anglo-Norman fortification. Hugh de Lacy founded Trim Castle…
County Meath
Northwest of Newgrange, the burial mound of Knowth was built around the same time. It has the greatest collection of passage-grave art ever uncovered in…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
In its Anglo-Norman prime, this abbey, 1.5km off the main Drogheda–Collon road (R168), was the Cistercians' first and most magnificent centre in Ireland…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
Just 3km south of Blacklion, within the Cuilcagh Mountain Park and traversed by the Cavan Way walking route, this other-worldly megalithic site was…
County Meath
At Carnbane East, Cairn T is 35m in diameter, with numerous carved stones. One of its outlying kerbstones, the Hag’s Chair, is covered in gouged holes,…
County Meath
Built in a spiral design echoing Newgrange, this superb interpretive centre houses interactive exhibits on prehistoric Ireland and its passage tombs. It…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
Overlooking Drogheda, Millmount is an artificial hill that may have been a prehistoric burial ground like Newgrange, but has never been excavated. The…
St Peter's Roman Catholic Church
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
Displayed in a glittering brass-and-glass case in the north transept, the shrivelled head of St Oliver Plunkett (1629–81) is this church's main draw (the…
County Meath
Triple-cask-matured whiskey made on-site at Slane Castle was first released in 2017. The castle's 18th-century horse stables are home to a visitor…
County Meath
You can see how the other 1% lives at Dunsany Castle, 5km south of Tara on the Dunshaughlin–Kilmessan road. The residence of the lords of Dunsany, it's…
St Mary's Abbey & Talbot Castle
County Meath
Across the River Boyne from Trim Castle are the ruins of the 12th-century Augustinian St Mary's Abbey, rebuilt after a fire in 1368 and once home to a…
County Meath
About 1km north of Slane village is the Hill of Slane, a fairly plain-looking mound that stands out only for its association with a thick slice of Celto…
County Meath
South of Tara's church, the Royal Enclosure is a large oval Iron Age hill fort, 315m in diameter and surrounded by a bank and ditch cut through solid rock…
County Meath
The circular mound at Dowth is similar in size to Newgrange – about 63m in diameter – but is slightly taller at 14m high. Due to safety issues, Dowth's…
Patrick Kavanagh Resource Centre
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
Acclaimed poet Patrick Kavanagh (1904–67) was born in the picturesque little village of Inniskeen, 10km northeast of Carrickmacross. The Patrick Kavanagh…
County Meath
The Protestant church of St Columba has a 30m-high 10th-century round tower on the southern side (today without its conical roof). In 1076 the high king…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
Sprawling over 240 hectares, Killykeen Forest Park, 12km northwest of Cavan, has various nature trails (from 1.5km to 5.8km) that lead you through the…
County Meath
More than 60,000 soldiers of the armies of King James II and King William III fought in 1690 on this patch of farmland on the border of Counties Meath and…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
In the town's former cattle yards, a local cooperative runs this thimble-sized lace gallery, where you can see lace-making demonstrations and check out…
County Meath
Centred on a collection of thatched cottages, the Loughcrew Megalithic Centre encompasses a museum detailing the megalithic wonders hereabouts, as well as…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
The border between the Republic and Northern Ireland runs along the ridge of Cuilcagh Mountain, the distinctive tabletop summit of Cuilcagh Mountain Park,…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
Crumbling remains of the Rossmore family's 19th-century castle, including its entrance stairway, buttresses and the family's pet cemetery, can still be…
County Meath
Loughcrew Gardens incorporates 2.5 hectares of lawns, terraces and herbaceous borders along with a lime avenue, yew walk, canal and 'grotesque grotto'…
County Meath
Far from the beaten track, this extraordinary passage tomb dates from 3000 BC and, like Newgrange, is aligned with the winter solstice. The mound is 19m…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
Travelling along the Cooley Peninsula from Carlingford to Newry in Northern Ireland, a quick 3km detour rewards you with sweeping views of Carlingford…
County Meath
Tara's Protestant church grounds and graveyard spill onto the remains of this triple-ringed fort where some of St Patrick's early synods (meetings)…
County Meath
One for the kids, this hands-on, family-run 135-hectare working farm allows visitors to feed the ducks, lambs and goats, milk a cow, pet a rabbit and take…
County Meath
This quaint cottage, 1km east of Slane on the N51, was the birthplace of poet Francis Ledwidge (1887–1917). A keen political activist, Ledwidge was…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
In a commanding hilltop position this neo-Gothic Catholic cathedral with stepped buttresses, turrets and an 81m-high spire was built from local grey…
County Meath
The extraordinarily preserved yet little-visited ruins of Cistercian Bective Abbey are off the R161, 7km northeast of Trim. Founded by Murchadh O'Melaghin…
County Meath
Tara's most unusual feature is a rectangular earthwork measuring 230m by 27m along a north–south axis. Tradition holds that it was built to cater for…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
More than 70,000 artefacts from the Stone Age to modern times are housed at this excellent regional museum. Its crowning glory is the 14th-century Cross…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
Tours of this craft brewery, 8km southwest of Carlingford on the R173, start with a sample, then take you through the brewing process (one to 1½ hours)…
County Meath
Gráinne was the daughter of King Cormac, the most lauded of all high kings. Betrothed to Fionn MacCumhaill (Finn McCool), she eloped with Diarmuid, one of…
County Meath
That huge steeple you see belongs to St Patrick's Cathedral Church, parts of which date from the 15th century, although it wasn't granted cathedral status…
Counties Meath, Louth, Cavan & Monaghan
Different floors in this worthwhile museum are dedicated to the town's early history and archaeology, and to the Norman period. One floor deals with the…
