A branch of the National Museum, which concentrates on clothing, tools, toys and other household items giving an insight into day to day living in Ireland’s past.
There is a year round schedule of events here which makes it an always lively and interesting place to visit. Kids, even those not normally enthused by museums, love this one.
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Ireland’s largest and best collection of rare trees and shrubs is found on Fota Island near Cork city. For those who love trees it’s an essential place to visit and, as you might expect, the Autumn is a great time to go.
The house, which is open to the public, is also well worth visiting.
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Lakemount is a beautifully kept herbaceous garden which is evidently owned by someone with a huge love of plants.
The garden is the work of one man, Brian Cross, and is a domestic garden, albeit a particularly large one. So, if you have an anyway decent patch of ground, you could have a garden like this too. In theory.
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A lush, green garden full of surprises, Garnish is on an Island in the Gulf Stream off the coast of Cork. Its unique climatic conditions mean it grows plants and trees not seen elsewhere in Ireland, many normally more at home in the tropics.
The Island is reached by boat, an adventure in itself, and you’ll almost certainly spot seals basking on the rocks on the short journey from Glengarrif.
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The Cliffs of Moher is one of the most visited places in Ireland, featuring on almost every tour itinerary. Once it was remote, lonely and savage place, but a lot has changed with the building of a multi-million Euro visitor centre.
Some would say it’s been spoiled by this centre, and it certainly has lost something, but it’s definitely still worth a visit.
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Home to Franciscan Monks for almost 800 years, the town of Ennis in Ireland grew up around Ennis Friary which was once home to over 1000 monks and their followers.
Though ruined now, a visit still reveals much about the lives lived by the congregation of monks and their place in the community around them.
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Ailwee Caves are Ireland’s largest cave system, deep beneath the Burren in Co Clare, and can be explored during a guided tour.
There is a good cafe on the site and an excellent farm shop outside – which I highly recommend for tasty treats to sustain you up on a hard day’s touring!
There is also an excellent farm shop here.
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Bunratty is often the first stop for visitors to Ireland, located as it is close to Shannon Airport. It’s a large park, which will take at least half a day to explore, and includes many typical Irish dwellings, a 19th century village and of course the castle itself.
In the evenings the castle plays host to guests attending the famed Medieval Banquets.
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Teddy bear paradise in Ireland at this workshop and exhibition space where visitors can see teddy bears being painstakingly created by hand.
It’s a delight for kids (of all ages!) and a must-see for teddy bear lovers.
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Cavan County Museum will primarily be of interest to those with a connection to the area, but it is a good local museum which tells the story of Co Cavan through many historic items discovered or collected locally.
In addition to the museum there is a good craft shop and a particularly nice cafe that’s worth dropping into if you are in the area.
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Altamount Gardens is a place apart, a wonderland of interconnecting gardens, riverside walks and woodlands of incredible beauty and peacefulness.
It change remarkably through the seasons, and is particularly lovely in late Spring, when the rhododendrons are in bloom, and early Autumn when the trees are in glorious colour.
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A 19th century castle built in a Norman style, Gosforth in Co Armagh is surrounded by excellent walks and trails trough its gardens, woodlands, arboretum and rare breeds farm.
The castle is one of the largest ever built in Ireland and although it looks Norman was in fact built by a relatively impoverished nobleman with big ideas in the 19th century.
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