Thing to do in Midlands and East Ireland
Birr Castle & Demesne
Castles & Great Houses Co Offaly, Birr
Home to the Earls of Rosse, the most famous of whom was the 3rd Earl who in 1845 built what was then the largest telescope in the world. The telescope has been carefully restored to its original condition and is on display in the Science Centre in the...
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Castletown House
Castles & Great Houses Celbridge, Co Kildare
Building of Castletown House commenced in 1722 when William Connolly, Speaker of the Irish House of Parliament, decided he needed a house of suitable style and grandeur located close to Dublin. To create this great house he hired Florentine architect...
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Emo Court
Castles & Great Houses Co Laois, nr Portlaoise
Emo Court was built by the Earl of Portarlington in 1790 and is the only private house designed by James Gandon, the architect who designed the Custom House in Dublin. It is a huge neo-classical mansion, formal and symetrical in its design and with beautifully...
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Trim Castle
Castles & Great Houses Trim, Co Meath
If this imposing castle, set in water meadows beside the Boyne river, looks oddly familiar, it is probably because of its appearance in the movie Braveheart, where it was used for the scene of the Scottish assault on York. Aerial Photo by valentiatrim...
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Tullynally Castle
Castles & Great Houses Castlepollard, Co Westmeath
It's impossible not to be impressed by the elaborate Gothic revival exterior of Tullynally castle, with its castellations, turrets and battlements. It is in fact a facade, added in 1803, converting what had been a late 17th century house into the...
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Glendalough
Churches & Monasteries Co Wicklow
Glendalough, or 'the valley of two lakes' is a place with which almost everyone is vaguely familiar even before they visit, so famous and iconic are the images of its high round tour. But being there, walking though the ancient monastery surrounded by...
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Mount Usher Gardens
Gardens Co Wicklow, Ashford
The 22 acre gardens at Mount Usher were designed by the famous Irish garden designer, William Robinson, in the late 1800's. More than 5000 varieties of trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants from all parts of the globe are planted in harmony with the...
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Co Louth Golf Club (Baltray)
Golf Co Louth, Links Course
The Irish know about this great links course, not all that many visitors do. Over 100 years old the course changes with the weather - sometimes seeming straightforward but always ready to catch the unwary. There is no easing you in gently at Baltray, with...
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Glasson Golf & Country Club
Golf Co Westmeath, Parkland Course
A relatively new and beautifully maintained course on the shores of Lough Ree in the very centre of Ireland, Glasson provides enjoyable golf at every level. Designed by Christy O'Connor, the first half of the course is built around Lough Ree and the...
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Portmarnock Golf Course
Golf Co Dublin, Links Course
A famous links course close to Dublin, Portmarnock is surrounded on three sides by water with the course set in lovely scenery. The Irish Open has been held here many times and the course while very challanging is known as a fair test for golfers of...
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Royal Dublin
Golf Co Dublin, Links Course
This is about the closest to a city centre Golf Club you could get, just 5km from the centre of Dublin and a short hop to the airport - a good place for a last morning of golf before you fly home! It is different from other links courses in that it is...
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The Island Golf Club
Golf Co Dublin, Links Course
Did you ever find somewhere you wanted to shout about but at the same time keep to yourself? This place is something of a cherished secret among golfers, a classic and challanging links course over 100 years old which deserves to be far better known....
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The K Club
Golf Co Kildare, Parkland Course
Part of a very luxurious country club, this parkland course played host to the Ryder Cup in 2006. There are two championship courses, the carefully groomed Palmer Course and the wilder and more watery Smurfit Course, both designed by Arnold Palmer and...
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Calliaghstown Riding Centre
Horseriding Rathcoole, Co Dublin
This long established centre offers trekking and trail riding in the Wicklow mountains on enjoyable well schooled horses and ponies. Equestrian holidays are a speciality here, with the five day trail ride taking you on a journey of some 195km though...
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Devil's Glen Equestrian Village
Horseriding Co Wicklow, Ashford
This is a modern and very well run centre with excellent facilities and very good horses and ponies. Short treks of an hours duration through the Wicklow Mountains are very popular with visitors and is available for all levels of rider, who will each...
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An Dun Transport and Heritage Museum
Museums Ferbane, Co Westmeath
A privately owned Transport and Heritage Museum which displays a magnificent collection of vintage cars, trucks, tractors and other agricultural machinery. Highlights include a 1920's Bullnose Morris Cowley, a Shelvoke & Drewry truck from the...
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