Ballina is a busy market town famed as a centre for anglers, who are drawn to the salmon in the River Moy.
There are a couple of interesting and little visited abbeys nearby and an excellent Dolmen which, unusually, is in the centre of the town.
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The biggest event in Ballinasloe’s year is the annual Great October Fair, Ireland’s largest horse fair and probably its oldest.
It’s a mid sized market town which for history buffs is worth detouring to for a visit to the Battle of Aughrim Interpretive Centre.
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In a relatively little visted part of Ireland, Belmullet is a perfect spot for those who want to get away from it all to a place with extraordinary natural beauty.
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One of Ireland’s fastest growing towns, mainly due to good road connections to Dublin, Carlow is a busy place with good shops and much of interest in the area.
The recent opening of a bypass has made it a much better place to visit and the courthouse and the old castle are both worth a quick detour from the motorway.
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Famed as a centre of lacemaking, Carrickmacross is located in an area rich in lakes and popular with anglers.
It’s not much visited by other tourists but there are some interesting places to visit and its an attractive town which is worth a short detour.
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A very pretty town with a popular marina much used by those cruising the Shannon-Erne waterway, life in Carrick-on-Shannon has always been tied up with the river.
It’s not heavily visited by tourists but is a wonderfully quiet and peaceful area to get away from it all, especially for those who enjoy walking.
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With a charter that dates back to 1247, Carrick-on-Suir is one of Ireland oldest towns and home to one of its longest established annual fairs.
Its worth a detour to walk across the old stone bridge which has stood for more than 500 years, and to visit nearby Ormonde Castle.
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A fairly large and busy town, Castlebar grew up around the de Barry castle and is a popular centre for anglers and walkers.
The town was home to the infamous Lord Lucan, whose house is now a school, and its worth taking a stroll though its streets if only for the excellent sculpture trail that will guide you.
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Home of the O’Reillys, many of whom still live there, Cavan is at the heart of Drumlin country, an area of low hills and innumerable lakes.
It’s well off the normal tourist trail, though popular with anglers, but visitors who want to experience ‘the real Ireland’ will find it a good place to stay a while.
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The capital of Connemara, Clifden is beautifully situated in the shadow of the Twelve Pin mountains, but has suffered somewhat from its popularity with tourists.
The town itself has maybe a few too many tourist trap stores, but the local area is majestic and a must to explore.
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Dundalk is not just an interesting town to visit, its a great base for touring the North-East of Ireland, a much overlooked region which deserves more attention.
You are close enough to both Dublin and Belfast for day trips and the beautiful Cooley peninsula can easily rival the better known coasts of Kerry and Antrim – and there will be no crowds.
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Now a booming town in Dublin’s commuter belt, Drogheda has a long and interesting history and is well worth a few hours exploration.
Only a few buildings from its medieval heyday remain, but the street pattern is intact and then there is the ghoulish prospect of seeing a preserved head in the Catholic church…
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