Things to do in  Western Ireland

Towering 702 feet (214 meters) above the Atlantic Ocean at their highest point and stretching for 5 miles (8 kilometers) along the water, the famed Cliffs of Moher define the raw beauty of the west coast of Ireland. They’re also one of the country’s most popular tourist attractions, with tours from Dublin, Galway, Cork, Limerick, Killarney, and Doolin.

Covering an area of more than 115 square miles (300 square kilometers), the Burren is a vast, otherworldly expanse of scarred and fissured limestone rock, naturally sculpted through acidic erosion. Though it may look barren from afar, this rocky plateau is anything but lifeless. In spring and summer, wildflowers and rare plants thrive here.

Sitting on an outcrop jutting into Galway Bay, the 16th-century Dunguaire Castle appears like a fairy-tale vision to drivers traversing the coastal road, prompting many to pull over and reach for a camera. The site housed prominent local clans for centuries before famous Irish surgeon, poet, and playwright Oliver St. John Gogarty bought it in 1924. He then turned it into a hangout for Ireland’s literary elite, including Lady Gregory, W.B. Yeats, Seán O'Casey, and George Bernard Shaw. Today, most travelers admire the castle from afar, though some do venture inside.

Flowing in from the Atlantic Ocean on Ireland’s west coast, Galway Bay laps the shores of some of the country’s most picturesque stretches of coastline. With the three windswept Aran Islands at its periphery, the bay meets land at the artsy city of Galway and numerous fishing villages, coastal cliffs, and beaches.

Standing along the edge of Kylemore Lake, the neo-Gothic Kylemore Abbey and Victorian Walled Garden is every inch a storybook castle. Built in 1868, the abbey’s construction employed grateful locals still reeling from the Irish Potato Famine. Today, the resident Benedictine nuns welcome the public into parts of the abbey and the grounds.

Wild, beautiful, and sparsely populated, Connemara, extending from Galway to the Atlantic Ocean, is Ireland at its most rugged and elemental. The indented Atlantic coastline is interspersed with beaches and seaside hamlets, while the interior encompasses bog, mountains, lakes, and empty valleys where sheep outnumber people.

A Galway landmark on the banks of the River Corrib, the Spanish Arch is the remains of a late 16th century bastion designed to protect the city. Located in the heart of Galway, the Spanish Arch is a short walk from other city landmarks including the Claddagh and the Galway City Museum.

One of Ireland’s most-photographed ancient sites, the Poulnabrone Dolmen—comprising a long slab of rock placed horizontally on top of several upright slabs—has stood on this lonely limestone plateau for 5,000 years. It marks the site of a mass grave containing the remains of ancient people buried here between 3800 and 3200 BC.

Even though it’s only 10 miles (16 kilometers) long, Clifden’s Sky Road feels like a journey through all of Connemara. This winding, rural road offers birds-eye views of the town of Clifden and its two spires, which are backed by the Twelve Bens Mountains—an image you’ll see on plenty of postcards. As the drive loops away from town, views stretch out across the Atlantic.

Constructed in the 1960s, Galway Cathedral is among the youngest cathedrals in Ireland and one of Europe’s youngest stone cathedrals. While it’s a relatively modern build, the cathedral borrows elements from architectural eras past, with Renaissance, Romanesque, and Gothic detailing combined with Irish artwork and adornments.

Stretching for 69 square miles, Lough Corrib is a lake in the west of Ireland that straddles County Galway and County Mayo. It is a famous place for fishing, especially for its wild brown trout and salmon. The lake has inspired many writers and artists over centuries, including Oscar Wilde’s father—the historian William Wilde—who wrote a book about Lough Corrib.

Dunguaire Castle’s Medieval Banquet offers an evening of music and storytelling along with traditional food and wine. Once the home of noble medieval lords, the 500-year-old castle sits on the southeastern shore of Galway Bay. Today, the picturesque fortress’s medieval-themed banquet hall is the place to go for a fun night of revelry.

Dún Aonghasa (Dun Aengus) is the most-visited of several prehistoric forts around the Aran Islands, which lie west of Ireland’s Atlantic coast. Perched on the cliffs overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, and named after a mythical Irish king and pre-Christian god, the semi-circular stone fort dates back to the Bronze Age and offers insight into ancient Ireland.

Set in green fields next to the River Shannon, this monastic complex was founded in the 6th century by St. Ciarán and served as a center for Christian learning in Ireland. An air of spirituality still hangs in the air amid the scattering of stone ruins; among them a cathedral, churches, round towers, high crosses, and grave markers.

This museum focuses on the history of Galway, with exhibitions covering everything from the traditional Galway hooker boat to local literary figures. Among the items in the collection are prehistoric stone ax-heads, a medieval cannonball, and an execution warrant for Myles Joyce, a local who was wrongfully hanged for murder in 1882.