Things to Do in Ireland

Sea cliffs rising to 601 metres — nearly three times the height of the Cliffs of Moher — on the southwest Donegal coast.

A Victorian castle on the shore of a remote mountain lough, surrounded by 16,000 hectares of Donegal wilderness — the walled gardens have rhododendron walks and the herd of red deer is one of Ireland's largest.

The largest megalithic cemetery in Ireland — over 30 passage tombs in an open landscape below Knocknarea, the oldest dating to 4,300 BC.

A working lighthouse on a Donegal headland between Lough Swilly and Mulroy Bay, guiding ships since 1817. The surrounding coastline has sea caves accessible at low tide and views south over Portsalon's Blue Flag beach.

A Greek Revival mansion on Sligo Bay where W.B. Yeats spent childhood holidays — best known as the family home of Constance Markievicz, the first woman elected to the British Parliament and Ireland's first female cabinet minister.

Private steam baths filled with hot Atlantic seawater and freshly harvested kelp, in a purpose-built bathhouse directly on Strandhill beach. The best seaweed bath experience in Ireland — a Sligo tradition since the 19th century.

Surf lessons on one of Ireland's most consistent and beautiful beach breaks, with Benbulben and Knocknarea as the backdrop. Strandhill has been forming Irish surfers since the 1960s — the waves are powerful enough to be real surfing, manageable enough for beginners.

The restored tower house and Jacobean manor of the O'Donnell clan, dominating the centre of Donegal Town. One of the finest examples of medieval Gaelic lordship architecture in Ulster — and still standing in the middle of a working market town.

An outdoor folk museum of thatched cottages representing Donegal rural life from 1700 to 1900, founded by Fr James McDyer in the 1960s as a community development project. Set in one of the most remote and beautiful valleys in Ireland — the glen runs to the sea stacks at Glen Head.

A boat trip from Teelin harbour under the 600-metre face of Slieve League — the tallest accessible sea cliffs in Europe. From the water you see the full scale of the cliffs in a way the clifftop path cannot give you.

Ireland's first long-distance greenway — 42 km of traffic-free trail from Westport to Achill Island through Connemara foothills, coastal bog and the shores of Clew Bay. One of the finest greenways in Europe.

Ireland's national museum of rural life — free entry, housed in a striking modern building within the Victorian grounds of Turlough Park outside Castlebar. Covers 150 years of Irish country living from 1850 to 2000, with exceptional textile, tool and craft collections.

Hawk Walks and falconry sessions in the ancient woodlands of the Ashford Castle estate — the oldest and most established falconry school in Ireland. You carry a Harris hawk through old-growth forest beside Lough Corrib; no experience needed.

Family-run boat tours from Blacksod Pier at the tip of the Mullet Peninsula — sea safaris to the uninhabited Inishkea Islands and along the wild Erris coast, with seals, dolphins and seabirds.

Ireland's most northerly point — a windswept Donegal headland with a Napoleonic signal tower, sea stacks called the Devil's Bridge and Hell's Hole, and the raw North Atlantic weather that puts Malin in the shipping forecast.

A 526-metre flat-topped mountain above Sligo Bay — W.B. Yeats country, with the poet buried in its shadow at Drumcliffe churchyard.

An Iron Age stone ringfort on a hilltop above Lough Swilly — seat of the O'Neill kings and one of the best-preserved hill forts in Ireland.

A 327 m hill above Sligo Bay topped by a massive Neolithic passage tomb — Queen Maeve's Cairn is visible from most of the northwest and the 45-minute ascent gives views over Strandhill beach, Sligo Bay and Benbulben.

A dramatic Atlantic headland overlooking a perfect horseshoe harbour, with Classiebawn Castle (former home of Lord Mountbatten) rising above the beach. On big winter swells, Mullaghmore becomes one of the world's premier big-wave surf spots.

A 15-metre waterfall tumbling into a wooded ravine on the Sligo–Leitrim border — the waterfall immortalised by W.B. Yeats in "The Stolen Child". Free to visit, with a short walk through old woodland from the car park.

A 300-metre mountain pass cutting through the Slieve Tooey range between Ardara and Glencolmcille — one of the most dramatic and least-visited scenic drives in Ireland. The road descends in a series of switchbacks into the valley with views that open suddenly at the top.

A quartzite headland rising to 180 metres above the Atlantic on the northwest Donegal coast, with views from Malin Head to Slieve League on clear days. The cliff drive around the head is one of the finest 10 km circuits in Ireland.

A 7 km cliff-edge loop at the northernmost tip of the Mullet Peninsula — one of the most remote headlands in Ireland, with views north to Donegal and west toward Iceland on clear days. No entry fee, no facilities, just raw Atlantic edge.

A free man-made tidal sea-water pool on Blacksod Bay at Belmullet, built in 1984 by the women of the local swimming club — a beloved year-round swimming spot at the gateway to the Mullet Peninsula.