Ireland Travelers Recommend

Held each March 17th in honor of the patron saint of Ireland, St Patrick’s Day is not only celebrated in its home country but all around the world. Taking a trip to Ireland is the obvious choice for celebrating St Patrick’s Day with parades and street parties all around the country. The 5-day St Patrick’s festival in Dublin is the biggest and culminates in an enormous St. Patrick’s Day Parade, featuring dancers, marching bands, acrobats and street entertainers. Make sure to sample the national brew at the Guinness Storehouse, experience the best of local culture on a pub crawl, or step back in time on a Celtic Heritage day trip to Boyne Valley. You don’t have to stay in the capital though – over 50 towns host St Patrick’s Day parades. Combine a trip to the magnificent UNESCO-listed Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland with a visit to the Belfast St Patrick’s Day Festival. Wherever you choose to spend St Patrick's Day, it’s the perfect opportunity to rediscover your Irish roots.

If you take a map of Ireland and draw a horizontal line more or less across the middle, you’ll find Dublin on the eastern side and Galway Bay to the west. That means the celebrated charms of Galway’s Atlantic coastline are easily accessible from the Irish capital, once you’ve journeyed through the Emerald Isle’s heartland by road or rail. There are numerous options for exploring this area: see the highlights of Galway and Connemara on a day trip, or stay a few days to really get the best out of West Ireland. From modern cities to wild primeval landscapes and stirring historical sites, you’ll be amazed at what the region can pack in. The city of Galway is as Irish as Ireland gets. It is renowned as a proud stronghold of Irish culture and language, its winding medieval streets lined with pubs where you’ll hear everything from traditional folk music to indie rock. It also makes a great base for exploring the region.

Oh to be in Dublin – where do you start? So much history to explore, so many famous sights…the easiest approach to take is leaping on a Dublin City hop-on hop-off bus tour. This is a great way to get the lay of the land – the historic buildings, the major attractions and the vibrant nightlife. Dublin is famous for its hospitality, so get yourself a big slice of it by spending the evening at a good old Irish house party – it's the perfect introduction to Dublin. Great atmosphere, music, food, and stories. Let the good times roll! History, literature, photography, architecture – whatever your obsession, you could easily structure a walking path around Dublin that would feed those passions. Why not strap on your walking shoes for a Dublin City Walking Tour to get yourself started? See the main shopping streets, historic Georgian and Victorian quarters, Trinity College and Temple Bar. Spend the afternoon on a leisurely cruise down the River Liffey.

Historic Cork is one of Ireland’s loveliest cities. Only Dublin beats it in size, and Cork has a strong character and sense of identity, celebrating Irish poetry, theater, song and dance. The city is on Ireland’s south coast in the province of Munster, 252 km (156 miles) south-west of Dublin. Limerick lies to the north, with Waterford further along the coast to the east. Cork’s Georgian-era city center is on an island formed by the River Lee, with the harbor and port on the eastern stretch of the Lee. Shopping and food are celebrated here, and there’s stand-out sightseeing at St Finbarre’s Cathedral, pedestrianized St. Patrick’s Street, the English Market and the medieval Red Abbey. Cork is only 8km (5 miles) from medieval Blarney Castle, famous for the Blarney Stone – few visitors miss the opportunity to hover upside-down to kiss the legendary stone, said to grant the gift of eloquence to those who pucker up.

Get your bearings and soak up some of Galway’s rich history on a walking tour of city. Stroll along the quay beneath the legendary Spanish Arch, remembering to pop into the Galway City Museum overhead, then marvel at the eclectic architecture of Galway Cathedral, located right on the River Corrib. In the evening, head to the nearby village of Doolin, celebrated as the traditional music capital of Ireland, where you can wile away the hours sipping Guinness in one of the historic pubs and listen to some of the world’s best Irish folk musicians. Pay a visit to the mighty Cliffs of Moher, where you can take in spectacular views over the Galway Bay, The Twelve Pins and the northern Maum Turk Mountains. Hike the famous cliff walk, a hair-raising pathway towering 214 meters over the Atlantic Ocean, or take a ferry out to the nearby Aran Islands, a collection of three historic islands, where the villages are still inhabited by Gaelic-speaking communities.

In Summer, the Emerald Isle can finally enjoy sunny skies and even more eager travelers. Visitors who want to make the most of their trip to Dublin have numerous options to dig deep into the culture and history of this iconic destination. Thirsty travelers who want to take part in one of Dublin’s most iconic brewery experiences can tour the Guinness Storehouse and even opt for the advanced connoisseur tasting. A great option for a look at daily life can be had on a pub crawl through some of the city’s top pourhouses, complete with traditional Irish music. Visitors who want to go a bit further afield can venture on various trips and tours showcasing the best of the Irish countryside, whether you want to journey to the picturesque Cliffs of Moher, kiss the famous Blarney Stone and check out Blarney Castle, or spend a day touring the city of Cork. There are even opportunities for Game of Thrones fans to hit the highlights on specialized adventure tours.

With many of the country’s most popular attractions right on its doorstep, the vibrant city of Galway makes an obvious base for exploring West Ireland. Cliffs of Moher The rugged beauty of the famous Cliffs of Moher has become an iconic image for postcard Ireland, soaring 214 meters over the Atlantic Ocean and offering views across Galway Bay and the distant Twelve Bens mountain range. The Burren Ireland has no shortage of natural scenery, but the peculiar topography of the Burren is one of its most unique landscapes – a giant jigsaw of rocks, stretching over 160 square km. Connemara Just west of Galway city and sprawling along the foothills of the famous Twelve Bens mountain range, the Connemara National Park is a hotspot for hikers and mountain bikers. Doolin A visit to Doolin is often combined with a tour of the nearby Cliffs of Moher and The Burren, but to fully experience the lively coastal village.

1. Malahide Castle & Dublin Bay Malahide Castle is one of Ireland's oldest, built on land given to Richard Talbot, a knight who accompanied King Henry II of England to Ireland in 1174. The Talbot family resided in the castle for nearly 800 years, until 1975, when one of the last heiresses gave it to the state. On a day trip from Dublin, combine a tour of the castle with an exploration of Dublin Bay. Trace the Talbot’s history through portraits, artifacts and stories. The most interesting rooms of the castle include the Oak Room, filled with decorative carvings, and the Great Hall, lined with paintings of the family. Keep your eyes and ears open as you wander– rumor has it the castle has not one ghost, but five.

With just about everywhere in Ireland reachable by train from Dublin, the capital makes a great launch pad for exploring the country’s highlights. Whether you’re looking for a high-speed train to whisk you around the sights or a slow-chugging steam train to take you the scenic route, there are plenty of options for day and multi day rail trips from Dublin. Less than 3 hours away by train, Cork makes a popular day trip destination with many travelers stopping off to kiss the famous Blarney Stone at Blarney Castle, along the way. Further south, trains also link Dublin and Cork to Killarney where you can explore the rugged wilderness of the Killarney National Park and combine it with a coach trip around the iconic Ring of Kerry scenic route. Or why not head north into Northern Ireland, with a rail trip to see the famous Giant’s Causeway, a spectacular UNESCO World Heritage site?