Counties Wexford, Waterford, Carlow & Kilkenny

Kilkenny is the Ireland of many visitors' imaginations. Built from dark-grey limestone flecked with fossil seashells, Kilkenny (from the Irish 'Cill Chainnigh', meaning the Church of St Canice) is also known as 'the marble city'. Its picturesque 'Medieval Mile' of narrow lanes and historic buildings strung between castle and cathedral along the bank of the River Nore is one of the southeast's biggest tourist draws. It's worth braving the crowds to soak up the atmosphere of one of Ireland's creative crucibles – Kilkenny is a centre for arts and crafts, and home to a host of fine restaurants, cafes, pubs and shops.

Brightly painted buildings ring Dungarvan's picturesque harbour, where the River Colligan meets the sea. This famously foodie town is home to some outstanding restaurants, a renowned cookery school and the annual West Waterford Festival of Food.

St Garvan founded a monastery here in the 7th century, but most of the centre dates from the early 19th century when the Duke of Devonshire rebuilt the streets around Grattan Sq. Overlooking the bay are a dramatic ruined castle and an Augustinian abbey.

Clonea Strand is a sandy beach, popular with families, located 6km to the east.

The appealing seaside village of Ardmore may look unassuming these days, but it was once one of the most important Christian settlements in Ireland. St Declan is thought to have introduced Christianity to southeast Ireland in the 5th century, well before St Patrick arrived, establishing his monastery on the hill above the harbour. The cathedral that was built here in the 12th century is among Ireland's most remarkable examples of Romanesque architecture.

Today's visitors come mainly to enjoy the beaches (both the town strand and secluded Ballyquin Beach), as well as water sports and bracing coastal walks.

One of Ireland’s finest Cistercian ruins, Jerpoint Abbey was established in the 12th century, with the tower and cloister dating from the late 14th or early 15th century. It is famous for its untypically large number of medieval stone carvings – look for the series of unusual and often amusing figures, both human and animal, carved on the pillars around the cloister. The abbey enjoys a lovely rural setting 2.5km southwest of Thomastown.

Soft white sand, gentle surf and lack of development are the big draws of the 11km-long, Blue Flag–rated Curracloe Beach. Families flock here on sunny days, but with its vast size you can easily find a half-acre of the beach to call your own. The strand doubled for Omaha Beach in the famous D-Day opening scenes of the movie Saving Private Ryan (1998). It's 11km northeast of Wexford, signposted at various points along the R741, R742 and R743.

Waterford (Port Láirge) is Ireland's oldest city – it celebrated its 1100th anniversary in 2014 – with a history that dates back to Viking times. Taking its name from the Old Norse vedrarfjord ('winter haven' or 'windy harbour' are just two of several possible translations), it remains a busy port city on a tidal reach of the River Suir, and is famous as the home of Waterford crystal.

Although the city has been extensively redeveloped, notably along the waterfront, it retains vestiges of its Viking and Norman past in the narrow streets and town walls of the so-called Viking Triangle, where three museums tell the story of Ireland's Middle Ages better than in any other city in the country.

One of Ireland's most magnificent landscaped gardens, Altamont covers 16 hectares on the banks of the River Slaney. Carefully selected plantings are arranged in naturalistic settings where peacocks, swans, squirrels and wild hare abound, surrounding an ornamental water-lily lake. The gardens are off the N80, 5km east of Ballon (there's no public transport to the estate).

The River Barrow, Ireland's second-longest river (after the Shannon), flows for 192km from the Slieve Bloom hills of Laois to meet the tide at St Mullins, and flow on into the sea at Waterford harbour. It was made navigable in the 18th century, and linked to Dublin's Grand Canal via the Barrow Line canal.

Its towpath is followed by the Barrow Way (www.irishtrails.ie). This national waymarked trail leads for 114km from Lowtown (near Robertstown) in County Kildare to St Mullins, with more than half of its length in County Carlow. It passes through a bucolic landscape of riverside villages, Victorian lock-keepers cottages, old stone bridges and boat-crowded quays, offering the chance of spotting wildlife such as otter, heron, little egret and kingfisher.

It would take four days to hike the whole way, but shorter sections make for a great half-day hike or bike route, notably the lovely 7.5km stretch between St Mullins and Tinnahinch (across the river from Graiguenamanagh in County Kilkenny; allow 1½ hours walking or 30 minutes cycling, each way).

Called 'coffin ships' due to their fatality rate, the leaky, smelly boats that hauled a generation of Irish emigrants to America are reimagined on board this replica ship on the New Ross waterfront. The emigrants' sorrowful yet often inspiring stories are brought to life by costumed actors during 45-minute tours. A 10-minute introductory film provides historical background about the mid-19th-century Ireland they were leaving.