On the Georgian main street of this lovely heritage town, Martin and Lorraine Kearns’ impressive guesthouse offers all the comforts and conveniences demanded by today’s travellers while also retaining its original period features.
It was o ... more...
Dubbed 'the world's most authentic Titanic experience', the restoration of the Harland and Wolff Headquarters Building (after lying empty and neglected since 1989) has created a uniquely fascinating destination hotel.
Given its extraordinary his ... more...
Although often seriously over-crowded with tourists in summer, this famous and genuinely characterful old pub in the shadow of Bunratty Castle somehow manages to provide cheerful service and consistently above-average food to the great numbers who pass ... more...
Nicky and Patricia Moynihan’s waterside establishment close to the both the car ferry across to Cobh and the Ringaskiddy ferries (France) has grown a lot over the years, with the restaurant and accommodation becoming increasingly important.
Bar ... more...
Everybody loves Burkes pub in Clonbur - this characterful old family-run pub is one of this attractive village’s greatest assets, well known for atmosphere, music and homely food.
It’s a friendly, welcoming place no matter when you might d ... more...
Open since 1964, and run by Grainne O’Connell since 1975, informal restaurant/bar was among the first to establish a reputation for good food in Kenmare, and is a daytime sister restaurant to Packie’s (see entry).
It’s a traditional ... more...
Hidden behind a thriving vine, which threatens to take over each summer, this charming 250-year old pub is soothingly dark inside making a fine contrast to the cheerful eccentricity of the current owner, Michael Hough.
A world famous music pub, it&rsq ... more...
In an imaginatively renovated Georgian townhouse just off St Stephen's Green, this was the original of Erik and Michelle Robson's 'series' of Ely wine bars and restaurants. Since it first opened in 1999, they have built on their commitment to offer som ... more...
Baking/Bakery / Café / Deli / Speciality Store / Wine Bar
Previously a butchers shop, with its original 1930s' tiled floor, high ceiling and facade, Noel Delaney and Patricia van der Velde's wonderful delicatessen, wine shop and continental style café is quietly situated on a side road, so the unexpect ... more...
This appealing Pan Asian restaurant in Galway city centre is loosely based on the ancient Chinese Tea House concept (a café centred around tea drinking) and decorated with furnishings from Asia, Cambodia and Thailand.
More sophisticated than mo ... more...
Pubs with B&B are familiar in Britain but less so here, where you’re likely to find something nearer an inn, or perhaps a restaurant with rooms that also has a bar. But it’s an appealing combination and makes for an especially relaxing laid-back atmosphere – well worth seeking out if you like to keep things casual.
The arrival of autumn brings with it a return to grown up pleasures after the long summer holidays – so what could be better than a short break with a great wine experience as the theme?
Caroline Hennessy and Kristin’s Jensen’s superb book Sláinte, The Complete Guide to Irish Craft Beer and Cider really does tell you everything you ever wanted to know about craft beer and cider in Ireland (plus a whole lot that you hadn’t ever thought about) and, among many other things, it details the brewpubs and craft breweries that have emerged since 1981. There are dozens of them and the number is growing all the time, so we’ve picked just ten to illustrat ...
Two iconic houses of great taste create the perfect blend this March when The K Club hosts a very special Laurent Perrier Champagne Dinner in the Barton Restaurant
Enjoy an overnight break with dinner at Great Southern Killarney. This package includes Overnight accommodation, Gourmet 4 course evening meal in the award winning restaurant, The Garden Room and full Irish Breakfast.
Denotes genuine Irish food culture, ie special Irish food products/companies/producers, and highlights the best places to shop for regional and artisan ...
With a rich historical and maritime legacy, East Cork has a truly unique variety of attractions to offer the visitor.
It is a haven for family holidays with a huge range of activities and attractions to keep the whole family entertained for hours.
In this extensive county, the towns and villages have their own distinctive character. In West Cork, their spirit is preserved in the vigour of the landscape with the handsome coastline where the light of the famous Fastnet Rock swings across tumbling ocean and spray-tossed headland. The county is a repository of the good things of life, a treasure chest of the finest farm produce, and the very best of seafood, brought to market by skilled specialists.
The town of Killarney is where the Ring of Kerry begins and ends for many, among the lakes and mountains where they are re-establishing the enormous white-tailed sea eagle, has long been a magnet for visitors. Across the purple mountains from Killarney, the lovely little town of Kenmare in South Kerry is both a gourmet focus, and another excellent touring centre. As one of the prettiest places in Ireland, Kenmare puts the emphasis on civic pride.
That Galway Bay coastline in Co. Clare is where The Burren, the fantastical North Clare moonscape of limestone which is home to so much unexpectedly exotic flora, comes plunging spectacularly towards the sea around the attractive village of Ballyvaughan.
Connemara, the Land of the Sea, where earth, rock and ocean intermix in one of Ireland's most extraordinary landscapes, and is now as ever a place of angling renown - you're very quickly into the high ground and moorland which sweep up to the Twelve Bens and other splendid peaks, wonderful mountains which enthusiasts would claim as the most beautiful in all Ireland. Beyond, to the south, the Aran Islands are a place apart.
Rivers often divide one county from another, but Fermanagh is divided - or linked if you prefer - throughout its length by the handsome waters of the River Erne, both river and lake. Southeast of the historic county town of Enniskillen, Upper Lough Erne is a maze of small waterways meandering their way into Fermanagh from the Erne'e source in County Cavan.
Co Cavan shares the 667 m peak of Cuilcagh with neighbouring Fermanagh. No ordinary mountain, this - it has underground streams which eventually become the headwaters of the lordly River Shannon, Ireland's longest river that passes south through many counties before exiting at the mighty estuary in Limerick. A magnet for tourism now with boating, fishing, cycling and walking-a-plenty.
Between the sheltered bays at the foot of the Glens of Antrim, the sea cliffs of the headlands soar with remarkable rock formations which, on the North Coast, provide the setting for the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge and the Giant's Causeway.
A selective companion guide to our famous broad-based online collection, the ‘glovebox bible’ includes a uniquely diverse range of Ireland's greatest places to ...