The world’s longest coastal route along the west coast of Ireland literally spoils visitors for choice! Here’s just some of the charming beauty towns from County Donegal to Cork.

The world’s longest coastal route with the invigorating force of the sea to one side and forty shades of green that is Ireland’s countryside to the other, the Wild Atlantic Way is a one-of-a-kind adventure with so much to offer visitors are literally spoiled for choice. With 1,550 miles of coast, 157 sites of interest and over 1,000 attractions along the way you might well wonder what towns you should visit along the Wild Atlantic Way.

Stretching from County Cork to Donegal no matter how you travel along the Wild Atlantic Way, in a group tour, by bike or even hiking you’re sure to encounter charming towns and villages with much to offer in terms of character as well as plenty of delightful shops, cafes, restaurants and, other attractions.

Here is Tourism Ireland’s top choices for the major towns along the Wild Atlantic Way:

Letterkenny, County Donegal

Letterkenny is a gateway destination and one of the fastest growing towns in Europe. The town has seen a dramatic growth in new attractions, entertainment venues, shopping centers and accommodation over the past number of years.

Letterkenny offers year-round entertainment and is the perfect destination to explore the rich social, cultural and historical tapestry of Donegal and the northwest of Ireland. Located at the mouth of the deep and lovely Lough Swilly, the town grew in the 17th century from a small fishing village to a prosperous town.

Bundoran, County Donegal

Bundoran has evolved into Ireland’s premier seaside resort with a host of modern facilities for visitors and yet still remains true to its roots with its own special brand of hospitality and warmth.

Bundoran is a seaside resort with never ending appeal. With a wide variety of attraction, activities, quality accommodation, entertainment and places to eat and drink you will have no difficulty filling your itinerary. It also has some of the best surfing in Europe!

Read more: Into the west of Ireland - the Wild Atlantic Way story

Westport, County Mayo

Westport in Irish is Cathair na Mart, meaning “stone fort of the beeves”. Located at the south-east corner of Clew Bay, in County Mayo, Westport is one of Ireland’s most popular towns. It is a heritage town, a planned town and once of Ireland’s tidiest towns.

Westport House itself was originally built by Richard Cassels, the German architect, in the 1730s, on the site of the original Ó’Máille Castle – home of the pirate queen Grace O’Malley (Gráinne Uaile). The house and its parklands are open to the public and are a magnet for families.

The Westport area offers a wide range of sporting adventure and outdoor activities from golf to sailing, to angling, to surfing, with something for everyone. The most recent addition to Westport’s outdoor activity facilities is the Great Western Greenway, Ireland’s first off-road walking and cycling trail which is 42 km (26 miles) long and runs from Westport to Achill Island.

Lahinch, County Clare

Lahinch is one of the West Coast’s premier beach resort towns and a hive of activity in the summer months. As well as its stunning beach, the town has an international reputation for two distinct activities – golf and surfing.

Golfers have been coming to play the famous championship links course since the late 19th century. For surfers, Lahinch is renowned as a world-class surfing location, and there are also a number of quality surf schools to cater for all levels of experience. But the town offers so much more.

Located in the middle of the Atlantic-facing promenade is Seaworld, featuring family friendly activities including an indoor swimming pool and an aquarium. The town is also the trailhead for the spectacular 123km (76 miles) Burren Way walking trail. With a wide range of accommodation, lively pubs, and restaurants to suit all tastes, Lahinch is the heartbeat of North Clare.

Kenmare, County Kerry

Kenmare is an elegant 17th century market town called “Neidin” or “the nest” in Gaelic. This welcoming, lively place buzzes with five-star hotels and chic spas, B&Bs, smart restaurants, arty shops, cozy cafés and dozens of friendly pubs with live traditional music sessions and festivals all year round.

Yet – even in the center of this heritage town along this southerly stretch of the Ring of Kerry– you’re still surrounded by nature and are only ever moments away from peace and tranquility. This is great walking country, with lakes, rivers and open sea, and mountains all around – heather and gorse covered slopes to the north, and dreamy views across the Bay to the blue peaks of the Beara Peninsula. And it’s crowded with early history – stone circles, stone forts, standing stones, bullaun stones and ring forts. Visitors take to the water too – on sea Safaris out into the Atlantic or staying in the shelter of the bay to kayak, fish, swim and sail.

Read more: Which way first on the Wild Atlantic Way? 

Dingle, County Kerry

At the very edge of Europe, as far west as you can go in Ireland, is the breath-taking Dingle Peninsula, once described by National Geographic as “the most beautiful place on earth”. It’s a place of spectacular seascapes and landscapes shaped by the elements, with a wild and rugged coastline of steep cliffs and wide sandy beaches.

The Dingle Peninsula is a place the Irish love to visit, but it’s still largely undiscovered by people from elsewhere. Apart, that is, from the artists, musicians and writers who come from across the world to live, eat and breathe authentic culture: real food, real talk, real stories, and real “ceol agus craic” (music and fun) at music sessions and festivals across Dingle’s tiny settlements.

This is a land rich with ancient history, with pre-historic sites and early Christian heritage - Celtic crosses, monastic ‘beehive’ huts and Ireland’s oldest stone-roofed church. It’s a long way to come. But it’s here that you’ll find the real Ireland: in the Peninsula’s thriving and unbroken traditions of language and music, folklore and storytelling, arts, crafts and artisan food. And off Slea Head - the most westerly tip of the Peninsula – lies a deserted village with a poignant past, on an archipelago that gave birth to Ireland’s greatest born-storytellers: the mystical Blasket Islands. The Dingle Peninsula has one of the largest Gaeltacht (Gaelic-speaking) communities in Ireland.

Whatever it is, the Dingle Peninsula inspires, it connects, it “catches the heart off-guard”, and it stays with you.

Kinsale, County Cork

The historic town of Kinsale has an important role in Irish tourism and is known as the ‘Gourmet Capital’ of Ireland. It is also one of the most successful and popular visitor destinations in Ireland.

Kinsale has many popular attractions, which include heritage, gourmet restaurants, sailing, deep-sea angling and golf and has been designated an Irish heritage town.

Early settlers in Ireland came to live in the area, which we now know as Kinsale. The Old Head of Kinsale has been attributed as the site for some of the earliest settlers in Ireland.

Every visitor to Kinsale is captivated by its beautiful setting, with the long waterfront, narrow winding streets and Compass Hill rising sharply behind the town. The old fortifications of Charles Fort and James Fort guard the narrow entrance to Kinsale from the sea. The town has poignant memories of the sinking of the liner ‘Lusitania’ in 1915.

Clonakilty, County Cork

Clonakilty is an extraordinary multiple award-winning town positioned on the coast within the heartland of West Cork. The town, with its blue flag beach Inchydoney, has an enviable reputation for itself as a choice tourist destination.

In 2003, Clonakilty became Ireland’s first ever official Fairtrade Town. In 2007 it was awarded the status of European Destination of Excellence by the European Commission and is Ireland’s first recipient of this prestigious title.

Clonakilty has a thriving musical and artistic community. Several of its pubs are noted for great impromptu music sessions with many big-name acts taking part.

Michael Collins, who was leader of the IRA, which campaigned for independence from Britain in the 1920-1921 periods and later the Free State movement, lived in Clonakilty and attended the local boys’ national school. He is widely regarded as one of Ireland’s leading historical figures. Clonakilty is also known for its black pudding. The famous Clonakilty black pudding originated in Twomey’s butcher shop on Pearse Street. The secret spice recipe has been handed down through the generations since the 1880s.

Have you visited anywhere along the Wild Atlantic Way? Where would be your must-visit spot? Let us know below.

* A version of this article was originally published by  Tourism Ireland.

From tracing your Irish roots, traveling the Wild Atlantic Way, drink driving and Donald Trump advice from a local especially for you.

The lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer have at last arrived in Ireland after a long hard winter, and if this piece is also a little bit lazy, hazy and maybe a bit crazy too then forgive me, dear readers, for having to reflect the pragmatics of the Celtic reality nowadays as best I can.

I know well this yarn is tripping all over the place but, believe me when I say I am trying to be helpful in a genuine way, especially to those among the diaspora about to undertake your first trip to the Emerald Isle or those who have not been back to the homeland for some time. It is maybe worth perusing for some practical guidance about how to make your Irish break more enjoyable and secure.

For many of you, including the returnees, the realities have changed quite sharply here in the last five or six years especially. The majority of the changes are very positive, but it is well to be aware of them all.

Read more: Traveling to Ireland? Top Ireland travel tips from visas to cell phones

Many of you have family roots in the west of Ireland, given that the Famine struck more harshly hereabouts in our terrible past. You are fortunate, therefore, that your holiday is likely to begin at Shannon Airport or Cork Airport, both of those located along the scenic stretch of the PR triumph that has been the Wild Atlantic Way, stretching all along the ruggedly striking Atlantic coastline from Cork and Kerry all the way up to Donegal in the North.

Today, as always, the scenery is as dramatic as the coastal communities are warmly welcoming, especially maybe to American tourists, but basically to all comers.

Read more: What towns to visit along the Wild Atlantic Way

Down the years many visitors with Irish blood in their veins, however, diluted by emigration of ancestors on the coffin ships of the Famine, have told me with some awe how much they felt truly at home once they set feet on the birth island of their ancestors. Expect, probably and hopefully, some element of that kinda spiritual impact.

Getting down to those pragmatics after you leave the airport to begin your adventure, I cannot stress strongly enough how vital it is that you do not drink alcohol in any of the merry pubs you want to visit and relish, and then drive home afterwards in the relaxed way that was possible during your last visit 10 or 15 years ago.

The drunk driving laws, using breathalyzer systems, are now extremely harsh. Even one pint of beer can put you over the legal limit and land you in the police station.

The old police of the past have been replaced by modern patrol professionals with targets to meet and none of the old understanding. If you are heading to a bar for a night out, make sure that one of your group is a sober designated driver for the night or make other arrangements.

It is a reality today that taxis are scarce in remote rural areas (where the merriest and best pubs are often located!) so be aware of this fact too. Above all, don’t drink and drive.

Be aware everywhere you go that most of us here at home down the decades believed that our friends and relatives in the U.S. were staunch Democrats who always voted for that party. We are still amazed and more than a little shocked that America elected Donald Trump as its leader.

Do not be surprised at the level of interest everywhere about that political situation. Be aware also that if you voted for Trump you should not fear telling Irish people why you did so.

We, as a nation, are highly interested in politics and political matters and any person who speaks with you on the subject of your president -- whose company owns a golf resort in Co. Clare -- will be genuinely interested in your political views.

Finally, maybe the best advice of all. I have learned over the years that the majority of you, especially Americans, land in Ireland locked into a planned schedule, shot by your mileage standards, aimed at “doing,” Ireland, from Cork to Donegal, in two or three days. Can I strongly suggest you must abandon that schedule if, somewhere along the way, you discover a place where your marrowbones and spirit feel most at home? Check it out later, and there is often a genetic connection of real worth.

I’m gone now up to Willie Walsh’s great pub, my local and second home, for a walking home pint under a full moon. Goodnight to you all.

Read more: What to do when you touch down in Ireland

What advice would you give to someone visiting Ireland for the first time? Let us know in the comments section below.

Tourists are still taking advantage of the new low-fare transatlantic flights and making their way to Ireland in their droves.

March 2018 and the time around St Patrick’s Day, in particular, may have seen a burst of tourists flocking to Ireland but with thanks to the new options on the transatlantic-flight scene, it appears that there will be no let-up in the increase of travelers making Ireland their prime destination in 2018.

April also saw great increases in the number of travelers from all over the world who graced our shores with the largest increase coming from the US and Canada. Overall, the figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show that compared to April 2017, this year had an added 66,600 trips, increasing by 8% to 899,900 trips in total.

Trips from the US and Canada increased 14.7% to 178, 600 while trips by UK residents increased by 3.3% to 322,700.

Read more: What to do when you touch down in Ireland

"We particularly look forward to seeing the impact of  new long-haul flights on Irish Tourism this summer - including the new Aer Lingus service from Seattle to Dublin, which began earlier this month, as well as the Hainan Airlines flight from Beijing and the Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong, both due in the in the coming weeks,” said Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland.

The large increase in North American visitors is welcomed as the weakened Sterling and Brexit seem to have affected the number of Brits traveling to Ireland from 2016. Since the referendum, the number of trips from Britain has been in decline, falling in 2017 by 6% to 4.7 million visits.

Read more: How to plan an unforgettable family trip to Ireland

“The fall in the value of sterling has made holidays and short breaks here more expensive for British visitors and has made Britain more affordable for visitors from many of our top markets,” Gibbons warned.

Are you planning a trip to Ireland this summer? Let us know where you plan to visit in the comments section, below.

While we could name 1,000 things to do before you die in Ireland (we could name a 1,000 just in Northern Ireland alone), here are the top ten things to do in the Emerald Isle before you pass. 

We've all seen or heard about the movie where Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman play two old codgers who decide on a bucket list of things to do before they die. Here is our best shot at an Irish bucket list of places you might want to see before heading into the wild blue yonder.

1. Slea Head drive, Dingle, County Kerry

Watch the majestic Atlantic sweep in and see the sun's rays glance off the towering mountains and witness scenes unchanged for centuries. Watch as the little fishing boats make their way to the sea and the early morning stillness is broken only by the seagulls' cries. In the distance see the starkly beautiful Blasket Islands. 

2. Stroll down Dublin's Grafton Street on a Saturday morning near Christmas 

All of Dublin comes alive with buskers, street artists, bustling crowds. School kids sing Christmas hymns, the festive fare is everywhere and all is well with the world.

3. Visit WB Yeats's grave

William Butler Yeats, the greatest poet arguably in all of literature, is buried in a quiet grave "under Ben Bulben's head" in Sligo. See the little church where his family worshiped and feel the presence of the great master.

His epitaph has inspired for decades: "Cast a cold eye on life, on death – Horseman pass by."

4. Visit Kilmainham Jail in Dublin

Here you will find the stories of the last moments of many of the men who led the Easter Rising 1916 and the incredible bravery they showed in the face of death. Stand in the actual cells they waited in before their execution. A sacred place. 

Read more: How the Irish teach us to live, love, and die

5. The Ulster American Folk Museum in Omagh

Witness how the great migration of the Scots-Irish began from this very area in the 18th century. See the uncanny reproduction of the era from the schoolhouse to the little town to forge. 

6. Spend an afternoon in the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin

Home to over 2 million artifacts, dating from the Stone Age. Learn about the incredible culture from earliest Celtic days to the dawn of Christianity and beyond. Marvel at the genius and creativity instilled deep in the Celtic soul. 

7. Witness Newgrange at the winter solstice

Just twenty or so miles from Dublin, where the ancients built their equivalent of the Egyptian pyramids, which they predate, the winter sun passes through the burial chamber at the winter solstice.

8. Visit Hill of Tara, County Meath

Where the high kings of Ireland were crowned and where the great assemblies of the Irish race took place. A lonely windswept hill where you easily step back in time and imagine what the ancients felt. 

Read more: Long journey home for an Irish emigrant after a family death

9. Take the Doolough Famine walk, County Mayo

Every year a tragic walk is recreated when hundreds of starving Irish peasants in Mayo had to walk 12 miles in desperate conditions to seek relief. Many women and children died along the way and a Famine cross remembers their sacrifice. 

10. Go to the Guinness Storehouse, Dublin

After all the history time to enjoy a pint and where better than at the home of the Black Stuff. A fun tour well worth taking to finish up your bucket list trip! 

Got some ideas? Compile your own bucket list in the comment section below and let us know what are your must-dos in Ireland.

* Originally published in 2013.

From The Quiet Man to boycotts, to the Argentine Navy beautiful County Mayo in the west of Ireland has a wealth of history, wonderful landscapes, and truly interesting titbits.

County Mayo, Ireland’s third-largest county, has a rich and fascinating history. Here are 10 of the most interesting facts.

1. The name originates from the Irish “MhaighEo.”

The Irish MhaighEo translates to “Plain of the Yew Trees,” originating from the village of Mayo, known today as Mayo Abbey. The yew tree is one of the few evergreen trees native to Ireland. ­

2. The term “boycott” originated in Co. Mayo.

The word derives from Captain Charles C. Boycott, a 19th-century British land agent for an absentee landlord, Lord Erne. Boycott was frozen out by his local community in Ballinrobe, Co. Mayo during the Irish Land War as a part of the Irish Land League's campaign of ostracism.

3. Mayo was the birth-place of one of the most fearsome and famous Irish pirates.

The Pirate Queen (c. 1530 – c. 1603) was Grace O’Malley of the famed O’Malley clan of Mayo. Her father was a chieftain and sea trader and she learned how to handle herself on his ships.

Striking out on her own, she became known as the Pirate Queen capturing English ships and taking their cargo.

The English moved against her, but she went to London and met the Virgin Queen, Elizabeth the First, who recalled her armies and released O’Malley's family, who were being held by the English. She lived to a ripe old age.

4. The oldest-known field system in Europe is found in Co. Mayo.

Céide Fields dates back five and a half thousand years and is one of the largest Neolithic sites and field systems in the world. The fields – which include megalithic tombs and houses – were covered over with bog-land in time, and were then re-discovered in the 1930s, when a Co. Mayo school teacher, Patrick Caulfield, discovered a pile of stones as he was cutting turf.

5. Some of the best-known stories from early Irish literature come from County Mayo.

TainBoFlidhais– “The Mayo Tain” is a tale from the Ulster Cycle and includes one of the most enduring early Irish cattle raid (Táin Bó) stories, the Táin Bó Cúailnge. Legendary heroes Queen Maedbh (Maeve), the Queen of Connacht, Cú Chulainn and Fergus mac Róich all feature.

6. “The Quiet Man” was filmed in Cong, Co. Mayo.

The film, starring Maureen O’Hara and John Wayne, won director John Ford the Academy Award for Best Director and Best Cinematography at the time, but the movie won itself a place in the world’s heart due to the lush photography of the Irish countryside and the slightly comic fist-fight and rows between the characters.

In 2013 the movie was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “critically, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

And it’s certainly that. More than 50,000 tourists seeking to take in the sights and sounds of the beloved movie visit the town of Cong each year.

7. Ireland’s first female president was born in Co. Mayo.

Mary Therese Winifred Robinson was born May 21, 1944, in Ballina and served as the seventh, and first female, President of Ireland from 1990 to 1997, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, from 1997 to 2002.

8. Two of Ireland’s best-known pilgrimage sites are in Co. Mayo.

Knock Shrine is a Catholic pilgrimage site and National Shrine. In 1879 some locals said that they had observed an apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, John the Evangelist, angels, and Jesus Christ.

Croagh Patrick (Cruach Phádraig, meaning "Saint Patrick's Stack”) is a 2,507 ft mountain and an important site of pilgrimage in County Mayo. It is the third highest mountain in County Mayo after Mweelrea and Nephin. It is climbed by pilgrims annually on Reek Sunday, which is the last Sunday in July.

9. The largest Irish island is off the coast of Co. Mayo.

Achill Island is the largest island in the country (15 x 12 miles) and is accessible from the mainland by a bridge. Achill has a long history of human settlement, and there is evidence that Achill was inhabited as many as 5,000 years ago. Today it has a population of 2,700.

10. The founder of the Argentine Navy was from Mayo.

William Brown was born in Foxford on June 22, 1777. His family immigrated to Philadelphia around 1786 when William was nine years old. His father died shortly after the family arrived, launching William into an early career at sea.

Brown's victories in the Argentine Independence War, the Cisplatine War, and the Anglo-French blockade of the Río de la Plata earned the respect and appreciation of the Argentine people. Today he is regarded as one of Argentina's national heroes. Creator and first admiral of the country's maritime forces, he is commonly known as the "father of the Argentine Navy."

Are you planning a trip to Ireland? Why not book with IrishCentral Tours.

* Originally published in 2015.

Thinking about moving to Ireland? The walled city of Derry, aka Londonderry, is one of the oldest continuously inhabited places in Ireland, yet still a perfect fit for newcomers to the Emerald Isle.

Whether you're actively planning a move to Ireland or just daydreaming a little, IrishCentral has you covered at the start of each week with #MovetoIrelandMonday. This week: Derry.

Planning a visit or moving to Ireland? Why not book some day tours of top sites here on IrishCentral

As the second largest city in Northern Ireland, the walled city of Derry is a culture-rich, prominent municipality that spans the banks of the River Foyle. The city is also approximately 50 miles (80 km) away from the Giant's Causeway.

Thanks to the popular TV show "Derry Girls", the area is enjoying the spotlight once again. Although, Derry is no stranger to popular culture: renowned poet Seamus Heaney was born here, as were The Undertones of "Teenage Kicks" fame, and playwright Brian Friel grew up in the surrounding countryside. 

What you'll find in Derry

Renowned travel resource guide Lonely Planet previously called Derry the fourth best city in the world to see in a 2013 countdown.

The city is famed for its historical architecture, depicting late Georgian, Victorian, and Edwardian buildings. Significant churches also make up an important part of Derry's framework. St. Columb's Cathedral was the first post-Reformation Cathedral built for an Anglican church. The Roman Catholic St. Eugene's Cathedral, ad St. Augustine's Church which sits on the city walls are also major points of note. 

Derry is abundant with museums, like the Amelia Earhart Centre and Wildlife Sanctuary, the Apprentice Boys Memorial Hall, the Harbour Museum, the Workhouse Museum, and many more. 

Where to live in Derry

Even after being named as the UK City of Culture in 2013, house prices remain relatively low in Derry. The average house price is listed at £125,000 ($166,000). 

The Cityside area is full of narrow grids of Victorian terraced homes within and outside the 17th Century city walls. Fahan Street, High Street, Kennedy Street, and Elmwood Street are good points of reference. Larger, more spacious properties and Georgian terraced homes are more likely to be found on Marlborough Street, Creggan Heights, and Aranmore Avenue. When it comes to suburbs, Rosemount, The Collon, and Northland Falls are sought-after areas. 

The Waterside is more synonymous with bungalows - in Abbeydale and Manning Way - and family homes in Caw Hill Park and Rosswater. 

Families should consider quiet cul-de-sacs estates in areas such as Waterfoot Park and Clooney Road.

What to do in Derry

Aside from the aforementioned museums, Derry has a wealth to offer.

The city's night life is abuzz on Waterloo Street and Strand Road, where you can expect both modern watering holes, and Irish traditional pubs offering live music.  

Although the famed Austins (the world's oldest independent department store established in 1830) closed down in March 2016, there is plenty of retail therapy on offer. The Foyleside Shopping Centre, the Richmond Shopping Centre, Lisnagelvin Shopping Centre, and the Quayside Shopping Centre keep shopaholics content.

Traverse the Peace Bridge, opened in 2011. The symbolic cycle and foot bridge begins from the Guild Hall in the city centre and stretches to the peaceful St. Columb’s Park on the far side of the River Foyle.

A visit to Free Derry Corner in the Bogside neighborhood which has been immortalized in poem, song, and film is also a historically and culturally significant excursion. The landmark commemorates the self-declared autonomous nationalist area of Derry that existed between 1969 and 1972. A nearby wall also carries a renowned mural commemorating those Bobby Sands and others who died in hunger strikes in 1981, while other memorials pay tribute to those who died engaging in paramilitary activity as part of the IRA.

The Museum of Free Derry also tells the story of the area in both historic and contemporary contexts.  

For more information on Derry

To learn more about Derry, see VisitDerry.com,  DiscoverNortherIreland.com, and Zoopla.co.uk

From the Cliffs of Moher to the Burren - stunning views to ancient mythology these are the tourist attractions that will make your vacation in Ireland worthwhile.

Ireland has plenty of tourist sites and places to visit but there are some that you just can not travel to the country without seeing. Here's a look at the places you must visit in Ireland, especially if you're visiting for the first time. 

Places every tourist in Ireland should visit: 

The Burren

The Burren, from the Irish Boíreann meaning “a rocky place,” is a limestone-laden region in northwest County Clare. The area encompasses 155 square miles, bound by the Atlantic Ocean and Galway Bay. A small portion earns the distinction as one of the Republic of Ireland’s six national parks.

In 1651, one of Oliver Cromwell’s army officers remarked, “It is a country where there is not water enough to drown a man, wood enough to hang one, nor earth enough to bury them. This last is so scarce that the inhabitants steal it from one another and yet their cattle are very fat. The grass grows in tufts of earth of two or three-foot square which lies between the limestone rocks and is very sweet and nourishing.”

Read more: 11 places in Ireland you have to visit

The Giant’s Causeway

The Giant’s Causeway in Co. Antrim comprises 38,000 interlocking basalt columns, the result of ancient volcanic activity throughout the area. The cliffs maintain a stepped appearance due to the succession of five or six lava flows through geological time. Their average height is 328 ft. Currently, it ranks as the most popular tourist destination in Northern Ireland.

Read more: The myths and legends of the Giant’s Causeway (PHOTOS)

The Dingle Peninsula

The Dingle Peninsula, located in southwest Co. Kerry, features steep, seaside cliffs, sandy beaches, and rolling mountains. National Geographic Traveler once described the Dingle Peninsula as “the most beautiful place on earth,” and Trip Advisor recently ranked the locale as the second best destination in Ireland.

The Sperrin Mountains

The Sperrin Mountains, sprawled across Counties Tyrone and Derry, is designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty by the Northern Ireland Environment Agency.  Recently, National Geographic included the location in its Top 101 Most Scenic Drives.

As one of the largest, yet least explored mountain ranges in Northern Ireland, the Sperrin Mountains provide a picturesque backdrop for many indoor and outdoor activities.

Binevenagh, County Derry

Binevenagh, located in Co. Derry marks the western extent of the Antrim Plateau. Its steep cliffs, formed by molten lava, extend for six miles across the peninsula of Magilligan and dominate the horizon over villages such as Bellarena and Downhill. Like the Sperrin Mountains, it has been labeled an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It offers views over Lough Foyle and County Donegal. It is a popular destination for hang-gliding, fishing, and motorsport.

The Ring of Kerry

The Ring of Kerry, or Iveragh Peninsula, is a tourist trail that has attracted visitors for hundreds of years. It is renowned for its serene beauty and stunning views. Notable attractions include the Gap of Dunloe, a narrow mountain pass between Macgillycuddy’s Reeks and Purple Mountain.

The Wicklow Mountains

The Wicklow Mountains are spread throughout Wicklow. Carlow, Wexford, and Dublin. Composed primarily of granite, they form the largest continuous upland are in Ireland. The Wicklow Mountains are designated as a Special Area of Conservation and as a Special Protection Area under a European Union law.

Cliffs of Moher

Located in Co. Clare, the Cliffs of Moher are one of Ireland’s top visitor attractions. They rise 390 feet above the Atlantic Ocean at Hag’s Head and increase to 702 ft. just north of O’Brien’s Tower. The cliffs host approximately 30,000 birds, representing more than 20 species.

Bundoran Beach, County Donegal

Co. Donegal’s Bundoran Beach experiences wild and raging waves that continuously pummel its tan, sandy banks. Its steel blue water blends seamlessly into the horizon, offset by clouds that straddle its location on the northwest coast of Ireland. The beach has hosted the European Surfing Championships three times (as recently as 2011).

The Glencar Waterfall, County Leitrim

The Glencar Waterfall is located in Co. Leitrim, approximately 7 miles from Manorhamilton. It is 50 feet high and flows into Glencar Lough.

Irish poet W.B. Yeats wrote of the waterfall: “Where the wandering water gushes/ From the hills above Glencar/ In pools among the rushes/ That scarce could bathe a star/ We seek for slumbering trout/ And whispering in their ears/ Give them unquiet dreams/ Leaning softly out/ From ferns that drop their tears/ Over the young streams.”

What are your must-visit spots in Ireland? Let us know in the comments section, below. 

* Originally published in 2013.

Located in a quiet rural area yet still close to the bustling village of Athea, this bright and cheerful Limerick cottage could be yours for a steal. 

Every Tuesday, IrishCentral spotlights affordable properties across Ireland. This two bedroom (one double and one single) property is sure to put a smile on your face with its sunny hue.

Read More:Irish cottage straight out of storybook tale for sale in Co. Waterford

The cottage, which boasts oil fired central heating, double glazed windows, is also situated on enough land should the potential owner consider expanding.

While the home is nestled in a peaceful area, it is a mere few minutes of a drive to get to local amenities like shops, pubs, a school, church, and pharmacy.

The market town of Abbeyfeale near the boundary with Co. Kerry is only 14km away, and ten minutes in the car would take you to the heritage town of Listowel.

The hall and sitting room of the property are fitted with timber laminate flooring, while the kitchen has tiles and the bathrooms are carpeted.  

The current asking price for this quaint cottage is €55,000 ($64,357).

For more information, see daft.ie

Read More: US woman swaps life in sunny San Diego for dream cosy cottage in Donegal

Read more: Documenting Ireland’s beloved thatched cottages before it’s too late (PHOTOS)

Read More:Your dream picturesque Irish cottage - just $127K

Read more: An Irish cottage for $29.5k – the ultimate Christmas gift

The Galway Cathedral stands as a landmark for the city of tribes. It was built on the site of an old jail. Although controversial at the time, it put a lot of Irish to work and got the attention of Catholics worldwide, including U.S. President John F. Kennedy.

Work began in 1958 and was completed in 1965. It is the last great stone cathedral to be built in Europe. And President Kennedy visited in June of 1963. It was a visit that lasted an hour but that is said to have changed the lives of many Galwegians forever.

“He came here himself, he did, in to see it when it, and he helped promote what we were doing and why. And that generated funding fro America for us,” says Father Peter Rabbitte. “He was assassinated just months after he came here (November 1963) and like the rest of the world, we were devastated. It was decided that this cathedral would honor him. That is how the mosaic came to be.”

It depicts America’s 35th president praying. It is in an alcove of the famous cathedral and it is often the first thing Americans visiting the Galway Cathedral ask to see.  

“This is a special place, for those who are religious and even for those who are not,” Father Rabbitte says. “President Kennedy did a lot to support our effort in building this wonderful space, we remember him to this day and so do all those who come here.”

Hear the story of the Galway Cathedral from Father Rabbitte by following this link.

Erin Meehan Breen is an Emmy award-winning writer currently based in Galway. You can find her work and her podcast, Erin's isle, at ErinMeehanBreen.com

Falling in love with rugged and majestic Donegal is easy and their motto, "Up here, it's different", is certainly true.

I am unapologetically stealing the motto from West Virginia to describe County Donegal in Ireland. Yes, they have their own motto, which is “Up here, it’s different.” This motto applies just as well, but it doesn’t convey the sheer lonely and stark beauty of the place, in my opinion.

I fell in love with Donegal the first time I visited, in 2011. Its tracts of forsaken beauty and pockets of friendly, charming villages spoke to me of all that I had imagined Ireland to be. I’d already been to Ireland several times before this – it was my fourth trip, after all. And there are parts of Ireland that are teeming with culture, people, and industry. There are other parts that are well-touristed and full of amenities for droves of said tourists. There are also parts that are lonely and beautiful, just like Donegal… but this is a whole county of it!

Tucked into the northwest corner of the island of Ireland, the only part that is farther north than Northern Ireland, Donegal feels cut off from the mainland in more ways than one. Only about 160,000 people live in this area of almost 1900 square miles, the fourth largest county in Ireland. Before the Potato Blight in 1846, the population was almost twice that. A few modest cities and tons of villages and hamlets dot the land, scratching out a living from the bogs and the rugged coastline.

If the isolation gets too much, Letterkenny is a decent sized city, with about 20,000 people, and offers all the normal amenities. If you need something more, go across the border to Derry for a larger city (around 85,000).

Several towns are worth visiting, such as Donegal Town, with it’s Triangle downtown of touristy shops, Buncrana on the scenic Inishowen peninsula, or Bunbeg in the Gaeltacht.

However, the true charms of Donegal are its wild places, in my opinion. Some of my favorite experiences include:

Driving the Inishowen 100, a scenic road around the northern peninsula.

Exploring Glenveagh National Park, a 35,000-acre nature reserve with mountains, boglands, lakes, woods, and its own castle.

Grianán of Aileách, a 6th-century tower with a commanding view of the surrounding countryside, built by the Uí Néill clan.

Sliabh Liag cliffs (Slieve League) on the southern coast, 900-foot sea cliffs that make you feel as if you are on top of the world, surveying all before you.

Glencolmcille, a folk village set up with cottages portraying life in several time periods.

The Wild Atlantic Way, a 1500 mile scenic drive around the rugged and labyrinthine coastline of west Ireland, offering stunning views and pristine beaches. It starts in Malin Head of Donegal and ends in County Cork in the south.

Read more: Donegal named coolest place in the world by National Geographic

Malin Head, the northernmost point of mainland Ireland, the point of which is called Banba’s Crown. Banba was one of the mythical queens of Ireland, one of three sisters who halted the Celts as they came to the land. Banba's Crown is just off the Inishowen 100.

Fanad Head, a lovely, stark corner of the northern coast with a fantastic lighthouse.

Donegal Castle guards the river Eske and dates to the 15th century. Fully restored and with guided tours, it was built by the O’Donnells.

Carndonagh High Cross dates from the 7th century, flanked by two carved stones on pillars, depicting Goliath and David.

Ardara Town, a charming village with a history of making tweed, is near to Maghera beach, sea caves and Assaranca falls. Ardara Town is also home to Nancy’s Bar, the most welcoming place I’ve known, owned by at least four generations in one family. I loved the place so much, I even set a good chunk of my first novel in this town, in 1846.

Beaches, so many beaches! It’s hard to list them all, but there are some beautiful (cold!) beaches in Donegal. Tramore, Culdaff Bay, Fintra, Stroove, Portsalon, Rossnowlagh, Carrickfinn, Maghera.

Doagh Famine Village, an open-air museum with thatched cottages set up about the 19th century, and the results of the potato famine.

Dolmens and stone circles, such as Beltany Stone Circle and Kilclooney Dolmen, offer a window into the Neolithic history of the area, a step back 5,000 years.

Tory Island, the northernmost Gaeltacht area has its own king, round towers, and forts.

Leo’s Tavern, if you are a fan of Clannad or Enya, is where they got their start. In fact, the owner, Leo, is the father of both Enya and Maire Brennan, the lead singer of Clannad.

Mount Errigal is an eminently climbable and photographable mountain near Gweedore.

Celtic Prayer Garden in Muff is delightful to escape to, a lovely place filled with plants, dedications to Irish saints, and a good dose of peace. Even in November, it was a beautiful place.

Muff is the traditional home of the O’Donnell clan, or the Clann Ó Domhnaill, second in power only to the O’Neill clan in Ulster. They ruled the area until the 17th century, and the Gaelic influence is still strong. Several areas are still considered Gaeltacht, places where Irish culture and language are still strong. I was able to speak Irish to some folks in these areas, and they were kind enough to not laugh (loud enough for me to hear, at any rate) at my feeble attempts and horrible accent.

If you travel to Ireland, please do yourself a favor and sample this incredibly stunning landscape. Meet the people, taste the food, and enjoy the wild landscape. It’s well worth the trip.

---

Christy Nicholas, also known as Green Dragon, is involved in many fields including digital art, beaded jewelry, writing, and photography. In real life, she's a CPA, but having grown up with art and around her (her mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother are/were all artists), she was also drawn to that realm.  "I love to draw and to create things. It's more of an obsession than a hobby. I like looking up into the sky and seeing a beautiful sunset, or a fragrant blossom, a dramatic seaside. I then wish to take a picture or create a piece of jewelry to share this serenity, this joy, this beauty with others. Sometimes this sharing requires explanation – and thus I write," Christy said. "Combine this love of beauty with a bit of financial sense and you get an art business. I do local art and craft shows, as well as sending my art to various science fiction conventions throughout the country and abroad."

For more information visit www.greendragonartist.net or follow her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/greendragonauthor. Visit her publisher's website here.

* Originally published in December 2015.

Rumors that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle would take a mini-moon in Ireland before their official honeymoon appear to be correct - according to local reports, they are posted up at the world-famous Ashford Castle in County Mayo. 

Locals in Cong, Co. Mayo knew something was up when security in the area dramatically increased and Ashford Castle suddenly closed to the public. 

It has long been rumored that the couple would take a short "mini-moon" in Ireland, and it makes sense that they would choose Ashford Castle as their destination. 

The five-star hotel and Victorian castle has been named the best hotel in the world on multiple occasions and has also been heralded as the most romantic place to propose. It sits on over 350 sprawling acres and featured sumptuous rooms fir for royalty - especially handy when royalty comes to visit. 

Newlyweds Meghan and Harry, the Duchess and Duke of Sussex, tied the knot on May 19 and are in now in very good company among the rich and famous who chose Ashford Castle for a romantic getaway. 

Golfer Rory McIlroy - one of Meghan Markle's exes - tied the knot there last April with Erica Stoll. And actor Pierce Brosnan also got married there in 2001. The property was once owned by Lord and Lady Ardilaun of the Guinness family. In the past it has welcomed royalty, celebrities, and heads of state including George V (then Prince of Wales), Ronald Reagan, Brad Pitt, John Wayne, Fred Astaire, Barbra Streisand, John Travolta and many more.

Should Harry and Meghan wish to venture outside of the castle walls, the area is steeped in history and stunning scenery and is a hot spot for fans of the Maureen O'Hara and John Wayne classic film The Quiet Man. 

My in-laws can confirm, there are Royals at Ashford Castle. I hope they take embarrassing photos of themselves with the John Wayne statue like I did https://t.co/PQfvjA8vOS

— Tom Sutton (@tomsuttontv) June 7, 2018

However, some tourists are not pleased that they can't visit: 

The first time I go to ashford castle and we couldn’t get into the actually castle and around it because the ROYALS are within...🙄🙄

— Rachel Forde⭐️ (@RachelForde2823) June 6, 2018

What are the most popular places to visit in Ireland? Failte Ireland has just released the top 10 free and fee attractions tourists flocked to in 2017. 

For an island that can fit inside the state of Pennsylvania with room to spare, Ireland has an absurdly wonderful and vast array of attractions and experiences to offer. 

Failte Ireland has just released the top 10 most popular destinations for tourists in Ireland in 2017, and some of the results may surprise you. 

The ranking is divided into fee-to-enter and free-to-enter sites, but the most popular among them all - despite being a fee-to-enter attraction - is the Guinness Storehouse at St. James' Gate in Dublin.

The Guinness Storehouse has long topped the list, a trend that shows no sign of slowing down as 2017 saw its figures soar by 64,000, up to 1,711,218 from 2016. 

The most popular free attraction? The National Gallery of Ireland, also in Dublin. It boasts a stunning collection of Irish and European art from the old masters and modernists alike and is a wonderful place to spend the day - 1,065,929 people agreed last year, upping the gallery's total yearly visitors by a whopping 41%. 

Here's the full list. How many of these have you been to? Do you have a favorite? Tell us on Facebook or in the comment section. 

Top 5 fee-charging attractions in Ireland for 2017:

1) Guinness Storehouse - 1,711,281 (+4%)

2) Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience– 1,527,000 (+7%)

3) Dublin Zoo– 1,264,300 (+10%)

4) National Aquatic Centre – 1,099,756 (+6%)

5) Book of Kells - 983,410 (+10%)

Ireland’s top 5 free to enter attractions for 2017:

1) The National Gallery of Ireland– 1,065,929 (+41%)

2) Castletown House Parklands– 666,541

3) Glendalough Site – 639,826

4) National Botanic Gardens– 569,652 (-2%)

5) DLR LexIcon (Dun Laoighaire Rathdown) – 525,708 (+12%)

In late 2017 one town in County Clare won the title of the "Friendliest Town in Ireland"... now you know where to go for the finest Céad Míle Fáilte (Hundred Thousand Welcomes).

And the friendliest town in Ireland is… step forward Ennis, County Clare, the heart of the Midwest region, home of Irish traditional music and famous for the Fleadh Cheoil, an annual music festival that the town regularly hosts.

Ennis was chosen by the Retail Center for Excellence group, which awards the friendliest town to visit or do business in.

Ennis is also famous for the 'Siege of Ennis' and if you think that was a battle you’d only be half right. The 'Siege of Ennis' is a ceilidh favorite, one of the finest jigs in Irish dancing.

Hurling, the ancient Irish game, is very popular in Ennis and many of the best players in Ireland hail from there. Two of Ireland’s great politicians represented Ennis and Clare. Daniel O’Connell, who first won his seat in parliament in 1828. and Eamon de Valera, who won his in 1917.

The history of Ennis is also a powerful draw. Brian Boru’s family, the O’Briens, hailed from the region and of course, it was he who defeated the Vikings.

Biddy Early, one of the most famous witches in Irish history who cursed all who crossed her, came from near Ennis and her name is still spoken in fear.

Shannon Airport is only a twenty-minute drive away through gorgeous countryside and you can reach Dublin with easy due to the improved road systems.

Muhammad Ali’s Irish ancestors lived nearby and the greatest boxer who ever lived came on a visit in 2009.

The winner of the friendliest town was selected based on county councils and local enterprise offices' nominations.

CEO of Retail Excellence, David Fitzsimons, says Ireland is a friendly place but that Ennis tops the lot. “Ennis and Clare County Council can be proud of this achievement and the team at Retail Excellence would like to commend them for their very significant efforts.”

Here’s a promo video from Fleadh Cheoil 2016 to give you a taste of Ennis:

If you can, you should really try to spend Bloomsday, June 16, in Dublin once in your life - you'll never forget it, and you'll never see Dublin like this on any other day. 

It’s 10 in the morning on June 16, 2015 in Dublin, but the second I turn the corner on to North Great Georges Street, any clear indicators of exactly which year or decade it is disappear.

Ladies and gentlemen – it would feel wrong to describe them any less formally – mill about, dressed in straw boaters, crisp linen suits, Victorian-era skirts and blouses, parasols in hand. Spectators and tourists brandishing iPhones stand taking photographs at the crowd gathering outside the James Joyce Center at number 35.

It’s Bloomsday in Dublin, the day when the worlds of Joyce’s Dublin of 1904 and the Dublin of today collide for one glorious, very often raucous, celebration.

How Joyce himself would feel about the day the world, and his home city in particular, celebrates his novel, is a matter of great if somewhat futile debate. The premise of Ulysses – a novel taking place across only one day – was revolutionary at the time. Joyce chose the specific day, June 16, 1904, because it had special meaning for him. It was the date when he first ‘went out; with Nora Barnacle, the woman who would become his wife and his muse.

When Joyce first got word of a Bloomsday celebration – so named for the protagonist of Ulysses, Leopold Bloom – in 1924, he treated it with measured amusement. "There is a group of people who observe what they call Bloom's day – 16 June,” he wrote in a letter on June 24, 1924 to his benefactor, Harriet Shaw Weaver.

It must have been strange, knowing that, in his home country, where he had not set foot since 1912, where his book was banned and burned, the place from which he considered himself an exile, there were people celebrating June 16 as “Blooms day.”

Thirty years later, the most famously documented Bloomsday excursion was planned and (half) executed by a group of Dublin writers, thinkers and drinkers including Patrick Kavanagh, Brian O’Nolan and John Ryan – half executed because, as this film testifies to, they were too inebriated to continue past Ryan’s pub, The Bailey.

Nonetheless, for Joyce fans – or even just for people who enjoy a good party – Bloomsday is a treasured occasion to talk about “Stately, plump Buck Mulligan” coming down the stairs of the Martello Tower; to eat ‘nutty gizzards, a stuffed roast heart, liverslices fried with crustcrumbs, fried hencods’ roes or grilled mutton kidneys’; to buy lemon soap; to feast in a pub on gorgonzola sandwiches and burgundy wine, to sing songs about those lovely seaside girls, and to repeat that famous last line – “Yes, I said, yes I will, yes,” – over and over.

I’d celebrated Bloomsday before – with my seven-person Ulysses seminar in college; at the Ulysses Bar on Stone Street in Manhattan’s financial district; at Symphony Space on the Upper West Side, where Fionnula Flanagan takes the crowd late into the night with her incomparable reading of Molly Bloom’s soliloquy, the final chapter of Ulysses.

But I’d long heard stories, read articles about, and ogled over photos of Bloomsday in Dublin, and, finally, that summer I was fortunate enough to be there as part of a journalists’ tour hosted by Tourism Ireland.

In New York, we have the Fourth of July, we have St. Patrick’s Day, we have New Year’s Eve. But I’d never experienced anything quite like a city rallying in celebration around a novel and its legacy.

In Dublin, the Bloomsday festival spans six fabulous days. In 2015, being there for only three of them, June 14 – 16, still provided ample time to enjoy a whirlwind of Joycean activities. Most of these activities – and many more – are back by popular demand for this year’s Bloomsday festival, which began on June 4 and runs through to Bloomsday itself, June 16. Visit the festival website for full 2017 details and to reserve tickets.

It started with a jaunt around the James Joyce Center, housed in a stately Georgian townhouse, which includes an array of permanent exhibitions, from the original door of No. 7 Eccles Street, the house where Leopold Bloom lives in Ulysses, to artifacts from Joyce’s life right up to his incredibly detailed death mask.

Exiting, we were met with a self-proclaimed Bizarre Bloomsday Brunch and Street Party, which filled North Great Georges Street with picnic tables, song and dance.

The Center also offers a Bloomsday breakfast on the day itself, complete with the aforementioned fried kidneys, other offal and singing seaside girls, as well as guided walking tours, in which a Joyce enthusiast who knows more about Ulysses than likely 90% of the people celebrating in Dublin will take you on a tour of the North Side of Dublin, stopping in front of relevant buildings and corners to read aloud passages.

This is perhaps the most surreal thing about Bloomsday in Dublin. It’s been over 110 years since the events of Ulysses took place and were adapted into novel form, and Dublin and Ireland have changed immeasurably since then.

But you can still walk the streets Joyce described, still visit many of the places Leopold Bloom and Stephen Dedalus wandered, as well as the spots Molly Bloom reminisces about as she thinks to herself in bed in the early morning hours.

No Bloomsday experience – or, arguably, any experience in Dublin – would be complete without the award-winning Dublin Literary Pub Crawl, led by actor Colm Quilligan for over a quarter of a century. The tour takes visitors to famously literary pubs in the Dublin City Center – The Duke, O’Neill’s, The Old Stand, and Davy Byrne’s, which itself features in Ulysses (“Nice quiet bar. Nice piece of wood in that counter. Nicely planed. Like the way it curves,” Leopold Bloom describes it.)

Joyce’s life and words impact the tour, but almost more impactful is the sense you get of his predecessors, contemporaries and successors, such as Yeats,Wilde, O’Casey, O’Brien, Behan. These same spots – Davy Byrne’s in particular – are packed to the rafters during the day on Bloomsday with patrons in Victorian garb.

Also essential, both for Bloomsday and for any trip to Dublin, is a tour of Glasnevin Cemetery– perhaps one of the most fascinating and historic places in the whole city, due to the vast expanse of lives both ordinary and luminary that rest there eternally.

Glasnevin features prominently in Ulysses – in the sixth chapter, Hades, Leopold Bloom, friends and acquaintances travel via carriage to Glasnevin for the funeral of Paddy Dignam. In addition, real-life figures who impacted Ulysses are buried there, including Joyce’s father, John Stanislaus Joyce.

Joycean tours of the cemetery are available, and on Bloomsday itself the Hades episode is read right there in Glasnevin where it takes place.

Take an excursion to Howth, the quaint, foodie-paradise fishing village on the outskirts of Dublin, and clamber up to Howth Head, the cliff-side trail overlooking the sea. Here, nestled in the flowers and the gorse, is where Molly Bloom recalls Leo proposing to her at the end of her soliloquy.

Lastly, another unmissable seaside venture for Bloomsday is the Martello Tower in Sandycove, where Joyce lived for a short time in real life with Oliver St. John Gogarty, and where the first pages of Ulysses unfold with their stand-ins, Stephen Dedalus and Buck Mulligan.

Officially known today as the Joyce Tower Sandycove, the building houses a museum containing letters, photographs and personal possessions of Joyce.

On Bloomsday, the single spiral staircase that runs between the floors is jammed with various tour groups and revelers attempting to reach the roof, where Joyce aficionados give dramatic readings of various passages with a view of Dublin Bay in the background.

If it’s a warm, sunny day you’ll likely catch the hilarious juxtaposition of kids in shorts and bikinis leaping into the water as men and women in suits and lace blouses stroll past under parasols.

But wherever your day takes you, make sure you end up back in the City Center for Bloomsday night. Whether it’s popping into one of Dublin’s literary pubs, walking along the Liffey towards the James Joyce House on Usher’s Island, the house from Joyce’s short story “The Dead,” where you can book a “Dead” dinner experience, going to one of the planned panel discussions or the festival after party, it will be a night to remember.

Check out more of the events for Bloomsday here.

TripAdvisor recently came out with a list of countries ranked in terms of excellent service, with Ireland coming in at the number two spot for travelers.

The Emerald isle has long been the land of Céad Míle Fáilte, or a hundred thousand welcomes, which can easily be seen through the great service synonymous with the country and countless positive traveler reviews.

Ireland named 'Best European Destination' at Group Travel Awards https://t.co/bWTvLfj6Hu

— Tourism Ireland (@TourismIreland) June 6, 2018

The report also ranked the UK in the third spot and Iceland in the number one spot among countries renowned for excellent service in terms of accommodations, restaurants, and experiences that have consistently achieved great reviews. Surprisingly enough, the U.S. did not even place on the list but made it on the cities list with Key West coming in first for hospitality.

Read More:Beautiful spots in Ireland that every tourist should visit

Dublin came in sixth place among other cities on the list for excellent services such as Marrakech and Amsterdam, coming in fourth and fifth respectively. As for those with great restaurants, Key West also came in first place with Reykjavik, Bali and Cabo San Lucas following it.

Dublin came in 9th place for cities with great restaurants, which is not much of a surprise considering that the city has amazing pubs on nearly every corner.

All in all, Ireland is a must-visit place that should be on every traveler’s radar for the future, given that Irish hospitality is a world-renowned tradition.

What review would you give Ireland if you’ve been? Are you more likely to visit given Ireland’s rankings?

Read More: Irish bucket list: Things to do in Ireland before you die

Dzogchen Beara – Clearing the Mind and Rejuvenating the Body at a Buddhist Retreat Centre on the Wild Atlantic Way in West Cork

"The vast and empty sky does not hinder the clouds from coming or going."                     -Shitou Xiquian

The picture window in the shrine room opens up on to a vista of endless sea and sky.  It is impossible to tell where one begins and the other ends:  clouds drift by, ocean waves rise and fall and my wild-horse mind, ordinarily galloping here and there is remarkably quiet.

Eight months earlier, in November, I had, by synchronicity or by chance,  come across an online auction sponsored by the Shambhala Sun Foundation, a Buddhist charitable organization.  One of the items on offer was “Dzogchen Beara:  One Week’s Rest and Renewal in Southwest Ireland”.  I had just returned to Canada from Ireland two months before, and I suppose I was feeling a little nostalgic.  The accompanying picture of a white-washed building perched on the edge of a cliff, oversize windows facing out to the sea was irresistible.  I placed a bid just slightly over the minimum and promptly forgot all about it.  When I received an email in December letting me know that I had won, I was surprised and thrilled and I set about planning my visit for the following June.

I arrived late on a Sunday afternoon, tired and stressed.  A steady drizzle earlier in the day had given way to lashing rain and hurricane force winds.  Visibility was poor and twice I had to negotiate around downed trees. I was happy that I had rented a car with an automatic transmission the day before at Dublin airport after the long red-eye from Canada.

Although I can drive a stick if pressed, the little extra money was worth the peace of mind and I could give my full attention to the road.  I almost missed the small sign for Dzogchen Beara barely visible from the roadway.  I turned off onto a narrow track that stretched for about a half-mile across the barren landscape, praying that no vehicle would meet me going the opposite way. A sharp turn took me under an archway and past large multi-coloured prayer flags onto the property. I parked up in the gravel lot. 

As I got out for a look, I encountered a young woman hunched over, in full storm gear huddled against the weather.   On closer inspection, she was staring into her mobile phone.  She explained that there was no public wi-fi in the facility and any reception at all was to be found here in the parking lot.  When I asked the way to the Care Centre, she directed my up a pathway and a set of stone steps.  I grabbed my bag and struggled up the muddy path.  When I came to the centre, I discovered a paved parking lot I must have missed on the way in that would have saved me the exercise and a good soaking.

Dzogchen Beara was originally founded on a piece of land bought and developed by former Londoner Peter Cornish and his late wife Harriet in the 1970’s.  Peter, a gifted visual artist was on a life-long spiritual quest that led him at last to this barren cliff top at the edge of the world on the road between Castletownbere and Allihies in the wilds of West Cork.  Over the next thirty years, the couple blasted, dug, filled, imported flowers and trees and carved an Eden out of the furze and bedrock. 

In 1992 the land and buildings were created as a charitable trust with the express purpose of providing a spiritual place for people of all religions and beliefs (or none) and given over to the care of the Rigpa Buddhist organization, under the direction of the Tibetan teacher, Sogyal Rinpoche.  "Dzogchen", pronounced "zawg jen" is the Tibetan translation of a Sanskrit word meaning "Great Perfection".  It refers to the teaching of the realization of original mind, similar to Zen. 

The retreat centre consists of the Care Centre, a hostel, a spiritual centre and a bookshop/cafe, as well as a number of cottages for guests, staff, practitioners and long-time retreatants.  Both the care centre and the spiritual centre have meditation spaces with an expansive view of the sea.   Despite its remote location, Dzogchen Beara is a busy place. There are workshops and events scheduled throughout the calendar year as well as a two-week summer retreat. The centre is about to get much busier with the anticipated completion of a new temple building in 2019 that is intended to house resident monastics.  Dzogchen Beara is now also included on the Wild Atlantic Way attracting many new visitors.

The Care Centre was opened by President Mary McAleese in 2007. Inside the doors there is a plaque dedicated to the memory of Harriet Cornish who passed away in 1993 and whose vision it was to provide people in need with a respite from the outside world, and an opportunity to heal, whether from illness, disability, trauma or from personal loss. In addition to providing accommodation, the Care Centre staff offer one-to-one counselling. 

Inside, I was met by Christine, the Spirtual Care Centre Manager who directed me to my room.  The Care Centre has both private and shared accommodation, a beautiful open kitchen and conservatory,  a large meditation space and some offices and meeting rooms. Even with the miserable weather outdoors, the space was warm, open, light and airy.  My ensuite twin room was modest, but bright and clean-- more than ample and very comfortable for one anchorite for a week. I unpacked my small bag and headed out to the kitchen. I was all alone, hungry and tired.  I had been told that I was welcome to anything in the fridge that wasn’t labelled.  I found a brick of cheese and some wheaten bread and set about making myself a sandwich and put on the kettle for a cup of tea. 

The following day the weather had cleared somewhat.  After a complimentary continental breakfast of boiled eggs, toast and tea, I wandered across the hallway for the morning guided meditation.  Two other people, presumably from the hostel were also in attendance.  I took a seat on a mat and looked out onto the expanse of sea and sky that was Bantry Bay.  The sharp clang of the gong told me the meditation had begun and the staff leader guided us through meditation, helping us to focus on our breath.  A second gong signalled that the meditation was ended and I sat for a few minutes, soaking in the view and the silence.

The scenery and serenity of this remote oasis in the heart of the Beara Peninsula is stunning. Imagine a fragment of James Hilton’s Shangri-La plucked from the Himalayan vastness of his epic adventure novel and grafted onto the steep cliffs overlooking Bantry Bay.  If there is an earthly representation of heaven, surely this is it!

As I pulled open the door to the bookshop and café, the smell of coffee and fresh-baked scones permeated the room. I ordered a latte and a scone (second breakfasts are allowed I told myself).  The bookshop is well-appointed with books of an inspirational nature.  On display was a biography of Peter Cornish, “Dazzled by Daylight” that tells of Peter’s journey from childhood to his destination in Dzogchen Beara.  How could I resist?

The fresh-ground coffee was delicious and the scone to die for. I took my new book and wandered out to explore a little and to enjoy the good weather.

I wound my way down the narrow path along the cliffs until I found a small green patch of clover overlooking the undulating carpet of waves as far as the eye could see.   I sat cross-legged on the soft grass and left my thoughts to wander like the meandering sheep, plucking their path along the craggy headland, while I calmly dissolved into the elements.

Just after noon, a vegetarian lunch (available for a modest fee) was served up in the hostel:  a green salad with fresh tomatoes and a vegetarian lasagna, hearty and delicious.  I sat in the garden and chatted with some of the residents:  a young man from Dublin who had chanced upon the place a year earlier and, captivated by the experience had never left. A senior practitioner from Germany who had been a student of the Rinpoche for many years and was serving by teaching and doing administrative work. 

My daily, largely monastic routine, was punctuated by the two public guided meditations, one in the morning and, one mid-afternoon.  Before and after, I was free to explore, to wander and to dream.  In addition to my local meanderings, I did take some time to explore surrounding countryside.

To the east, just west of Castletownbere, lies the homeland of the O’Sullivan Beare clan and the ruins of Dunboy Castle.  An historical plaque commemorates the long march of O’Sullivan Beare, his retinue of 400 soldiers and 600 civilians who in the year 1602 began a 600-mile march to escape certain death at the hands of English invaders and to seek shelter in the north.  After 14 days, numerous battles and constant harassment by the English, Daniel O’Sullivan found safety in Leitrim.  Out of the original thousand there were only 35 survivors.  Today, a hiking trail, the O’Sullivan Beara trail traces the fateful journey.  Close at hand, there is a 2 hour walking loop out to the Sheeps Head Lighthouse and a beautiful view of Mizen Head and Bantry Bay.

To the West and North, the village of Allihies, once the centre of a vibrant copper mining industry from the early 19th to early 20thcentury has some lovely pubs and restaurants.  You can trek to the abandoned  turn of the century engine houses left over from the mines and you can also visit the Copper Mine Museum in the town.  In June, the town comes alive with the Martin Dwyer Memorial weekend Annual Traditional Music Festival in memory of the renowned late Tin Whistle& Fiddle player.  The town swells with visitors from as far away as Kenmare in County Kerry and Glengarriff and the pints and music flow freely.

One sunny afternoon, at the recommendation of another guest, I drove west of the centre, turning off the road before Allihies to reach the tip of the Beara Peninsula.  Here I took a ride on Ireland’s only cable car over a narrow gap with a roaring tide to Dursey island.  A small island with few inhabitants it makes for a spectacular walk if the weather is favourable as it was for me that day.  Quick tip: Take water and a snack.  There are no amenities on Dursey. 

Thursday week saw the Centre come alive with participants arriving for a three-day Photography and Meditation Workshop.  I also met a quiet middle-aged practitioner who was coming off an eight-month silent retreat and was giving herself a chance to acclimatize before returning home to Australia.

Then, suddenly the week was over. The morning of my departure was sunny, warm and clear.  Within a ten-mile drive of Dzogchen Beara heading east, I passed the site of two recent crashes, one a tourist van completely on its roof and the other a red Toyota squeezed like a giant accordion.  No passengers or emergency vehicles were to be found.  I was sorely tempted to turn the car around and head back to the refuge of Dzogchen Beara, but I decided that it would have to wait for another time.  My cellphone was buzzing and the noise of the outside world was already beginning to fill in the silent, blissful void between my ears.

In the days and months to follow I would echo the words of the poet, William Butler Yeats from "The Lake Isle of Innisfree" when he wrote: " I will arise and go now, for always night and day I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore; While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey, I hear it in the deep heart’s core.

Dzogchen Beara Buddhist Meditation Centre is located on the Wild Atlantic Way 75 miles west of the Cork City and 63 miles south of  Killarney.  For more information on the centre: accommodations, events, public meditation hours, café/bookstore hours, temple construction, directions, transportation links or to make a donation contact Dzogchen Beara , email info@dzogchenbeara.org  or telephone +353 (0)27 73032

The unspoiled beautiful Irish islands dotted around Ireland’s coast from Mizen to Malin Head

Ireland’s many islands remain as popular as ever for tourists. The unspoiled beautiful islands are dotted around the country’s coast from Mizen to Malin Head. Here’s the best of what to see if you decide to go offshore on your trip to the Emerald Isle.

The South

Cape Clear Island

Cape Clear Island, located just off the beautiful southwest coast of Ireland, is one of the 15 Gaeltacht islands where Irish remains the primary spoken language of the local population. Ferries are available from coastal towns Schull and Baltimore.

The Cape Clear Island International Storytelling Festival takes place on the island the first Friday each September and an annual Walking Talking Festival began in 2010.

Most islanders eke out a modest living engaging in traditional methods of farming. Like many Irish islands, the island has a deep-rooted connection with Irish literature. An extensive program of tours and guided lectures take place there during the summer.

Read more:Norwegian announce 24 new flights at $72 fare to Cork, Shannon, Dublin, Belfast

Sherkin Island

While traveling the south coast, nearby Sherkin Island also warrants a visit. The island is the ancestral home of the O’Donovan clan, but nowadays is best known for its popular sailing regatta, usually held on the third weekend in July.

The island was once one of the more populated islands, with a population once numbering close to 1,000, but numbers have steadily dwindled ever since the Great Famine.

The island boasts many excellent tourist amenities, including camping spaces.

Read more: $69 US to Cork flights on Norwegian Air finally cleared for take-off

Skellig Michael

Further West one is led to Skellig Michael, the site of an ancient monastic settlement, which has since been opened to tourists and is currently seeing massive interest after being featured in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Despite some recently voiced safety concerns, the island remains a popular destination for tourists and affords magnificent vistas out to see. A UNESCO World Heritage site, it is accessible by boat only.

The West

The Aran Islands

Undoubtedly the most famous of Ireland’s islands are the three Aran Islands, located off the country’s west coast, accessible by ferry from Ros a’Mhil, a port 23 miles west of the city of Galway.

There are three islands in the chain: Inis Mor (the largest of the three), Inis Meain, and Inis Beag. All three islands are serviced by small airfields which Aer Aran Islander still services.

The islands are steeped in a rich cultural and literary tradition and have left an indelible mark on the Irish psyche. All three islands are Gaeltachts. Popular tourist activities involve visiting the islands’ many pubs, seeing the many scenic vistas, and buying a traditionally-made Aran sweater.

The North

Tory Island

Tory Island, located off the Donegal coast, is Ireland’s most remote Ireland, situated 12 kilometers (8 miles) from the mainland. Its population numbers about 130, making it one of the larger islands by demographics.

It features an impressive array of facilities, from cafes to B&Bs, to restaurants, there’s something for every tourist on the island.

Interesting historical sites include a round tower that once protected monks from Viking raids, the ruins of St. Colmcille’s sixth-century monastery and the intriguing Tau Cross that suggests early seafaring links to the Coptic Christians of Egypt.

The island also boasts an abundance of rare bird life and wildflower species as well as a rich submarine landscape that can be explored through the local diving center.

Rathlin Island

Rathlin Island, off the North-East coast, was one of the country’s first inhabited islands. A popular writers’ weekend takes place there in September.

The island is wild, extremely rugged, and boasts an Iron Age fort, standing stones, Robert the Bruce’s Castle, Mc Donnell's tower house, Manor House, heritage center, lighthouses, bird sanctuary and a seal colony among its attractions.

The East

Ireland’s Eye

An early Christian monastic site, now uninhabited, Ireland’s Eye lies just off the Dublin coastline.
St. Nessan founded a monastery here in the sixth century and today the remains of an eighth-century church can still be seen. In the early 19th century a Martello Tower was built to defend against attack from France.

It’s now best known for bird-watching, with birdwatchers flocking to the island in droves between late spring and late summer.

* Originally published in 2011.

Irish attractions, including the Cliffs of Moher, Titanic, among Ireland's wonders ranked on the "Ultimate Travel List."

Six Irish attractions made it onto a list of the world’s top 500 must-see sights of all time, compiled by guidebook publisher Lonely Planet.

The listings, which also included Grand Canyon National Park and Machu Picchu (see top 20 below), are from the publisher’s book “Lonely Planet’s Ultimate Trave List.” It was compiled by the company’s travel experts and authors on the ground who rated the world’s best mega-sights and hidden gems.

The Irish sites included in the listing include:

1. Giant's Causeway, County Antrim (#103)

The Giant's Causeway is 40,000 interlocking basalt columns stretching out into the sea. They are the result of an ancient volcanic eruption.

Most of the columns are hexagonal, although there are also some with four, five, seven or eight sides. The tallest are about 12 meters (39 ft) high, and the solidified lava in the cliffs is 28 meters (92 ft) thick in places.

2. Bru na Bóinne (The Boyne Valley), County Meath (#224)

Brú na Bóinne is the largest and one of the most important complexes of Megalithic sites in Europe, dating to the Neolithic period. The complex is situated on a wide bend in the River Boyne.

It’s most well-known large passage tombs are Knowth, Newgrange, and Dowth, built some 5,000 years ago in the Neolithic or Late Stone Age. There are about 90 additional monuments recorded in the area.

Read more:Travel through the mysteries of the ancient Boyne Valley (PHOTOS)

3. The Cliffs of Moher, County Clare (#378)

The Cliffs of Moher, located at the southwestern edge of the Burren region in County Clare, rise to their highest point of 214 meters (702 ft) just north of O'Brien's Tower.

From the cliffs, visitors can see the Aran Islands in Galway Bay, the Maumturks and Twelve Pins mountain ranges to the north in County Galway, and Loop Head to the south. The cliffs rank amongst the top visited tourist sites in Ireland and receive almost one million visitors a year.

4. Titanic Belfast (#424)

The Titanic Belfast is a visitor attraction and monument to Belfast's maritime heritage on the site of the former Harland & Wolff shipyard in the city's Titanic Quarter where the RMS Titanic was built.

The museum tells the stories of the ill-fated Titanic, which hit an iceberg and sank during her maiden voyage in 1912, and her sister ships RMS Olympic and HMHS Britannic. The building contains more than 12,000 square meters (130,000 sq ft) of floor space, most of which is occupied by a series of galleries, private function rooms, and community facilities.

5. Trinity College, Dublin city (#468)

Trinity College Dublin is a research university right in the heart of the city center. It was founded in 1592 as the "mother" of a new university, modeled after the collegiate universities of Oxford and of Cambridge. It is one of the seven ancient universities of Britain and Ireland, as well as Ireland's oldest university.

6. The Rock of Cashel, County Tipperary (#497)

A spectacular group of Medieval buildings set on an outcrop of limestone in the Golden Vale including the 12th century round tower, high cross and Romanesque chapel, 13th-century Gothic cathedral, 15th-century castle and the restored Hall of the Vicars Choral.

Speaking about the Lonely Planet listings, Fáilte Ireland Head of Communications, Alex Connolly said “The Irish sights which made it onto the list reflect the range of attractions Ireland has to offer and demonstrate that for a small country, Ireland is certainly punching above its weight internationally.

“The Lonely Planet is one of the premier sources of information for people all across the world when researching a holiday and lists like these quite literally put Ireland on the map and in the mind’s eye of thousands of potential visitors.”

Ireland was listed among some seriously impressive tourist attractions around the world.

Here’s the top 20 from the Lonely Planet travel list:

1. Temples of Angkor, Cambodia

2. Great Barrier Reef, Australia

3. Machu Picchu, Peru

4. Great Wall of China, China

5. Taj Mahal, India

6. Grand Canyon National Park, USA

7. Colosseum, Italy

8. Iguazu Falls, Brazil-Argentina

9. Alhambra, Spain

10. Aya Sofya, Turkey

11. Fez Medina, Morocco

12. Twelve Apostles, Australia

13. Petra, Jordan

14. Tikal, Guatemala

15. British Museum, England

16. Sagrada Familia, Spain

17. Fiordland National Park, New Zealand

18. Santorini, Greece

19. Galapagos Islands, Ecuador

20. Museum of Old & New Art, Australia.

* Originally published in August 2015. 

Over the past few years there have been a number of aerial videos of Ireland posted online, but this one, “Atlantic Light” posted by Cork photographer Peter Cox, is really breathtaking.

For a start, it’s certainly the clearest video we’ve seen posted. In fact, the clarity of the aerial shots taken along the west coast of Ireland makes it seem surreal.

On Vimeo Cox writes, “For over a year now, I've been working on a project to produce a new book of aerial photographs of Ireland's west coast. While making these images, I've also been shooting video with a view to producing a short film.

“This represents a highlight reel of the journey to date along the Wild Atlantic Way. "

To check out Cox’s Kickstarter fund click here.

It seems that this isn’t the first time that Cox has had success with crowdfunding. Back in 2012, Cox raised almost $40,000 to created his book “The Irish Light.” His initial goal had been just $11k.

Here’s his Kickstarter video for his current project:

For more visit www.petercox.ie.

* Originally published in March 2015.