It's enjoyable visit to the abbey and the Victorian walled garden, they're so beautiful. It was a…read moretypical Irish "soft day"-drizzling all day, we visited the abbey and the gardens, then walked around almost all the trails in 2 hours. These Cypress and sycamore trees are huge.

Stunning Kylemore Abbey!! Walking the gardens was so calming and heavenly! I imagined picking my…read moreown herbs for a grand dinner experience. Ahhhh I can dream... The castle was so lovely and I enjoyed walking through the worker buildings and imagining how people lived back in the day. This was such an enjoyable day!! Oh! I should mention if you don't want to walk from the castle to the gardens they do have a tram to drive you over. The shop and dining was great too!! The food was surprisingly good!! Love, love, love this place!

Loved it! Arrived at 4pm Sunday and they closed at 5, but it's a great museum with free admission…read more The grounds are lovely.

Set in the grounds of Turlough Park, this is a bright modern museum. There is no charge to visit…read morebut they do appreciate a five euro donation which in my opinion was well worth it. Covering three floors, there is a vast selection of items on display covering all aspects of country life, crafts, living, clothing, tools etc. it is set out well with plenty of information. There is also a video presentation. We really enjoyed our visit to the museum but the house itself was a bit of a disappointment. Only a few rooms are open to the public. So my advise is come for the museum, not the house.

This place is so cool. You drive up a tiny road along all these cliffs to a glass pyramid about…read morethree quarters of the way to the top. It's the visitor's centre. Inside there are cool exhibits, lots of info about the people who had been settled there and stuff about how being covered in bog preserved so much so well. It's really a neat bit of history. There's an observatory you can climb to at the top of the building that have amazing views looking out over the cliffs to the ocean. Then, outside you can walk about the grounds and look at the remains of houses from thousands of years ago and then go check out the edge of the cliffs. You can get pretty close and it's one of the most amazing things I've ever seen in person ever. I loved every second of it. It might not be the cliffs of Mohr, but that just means it's not as crowded or touristy. We nearly had the place to ourselves.

There are mysterious brown signs all over the country letting you know that something interesting…read moreis nearby. And while touring a long the north Mayo coast there was one for a Neolithic Site called Céide Fields. Intrigued we stopped in for a look. In front of you stands an impressive pyramid styled building. Behind you stands some rugged coastline. All around you bog heathland with shades of gold, brown, greens and purples. And with the strong wind that was blowing, it moved like a sea. A stunning site to see. 4 EUR in got you access to the exhibition, facilities, cafe and of course the site itself. There were guided tours included too if you wanted to really learn all you can about the site. We decided to wander around the site on our own. It's really fascinating the amount they archaeologist were able to glean and learn from all they discovered there. If I'm I am honest I was a little underwhelmed by the actual Neolithic site itself, but if you are into Neolithic sites it's probably the dogs. The highlight for me was the viewing point opposite the car park. Stunning views of the coastline and cliffs. This is were we spotted the sea stack of Downpatrick Head in the distance. A must if you are passing by, especially the views.

This very hard-to-find museum is really a labor of love - one man's personal collection. It's the…read moremost impressive collection you've ever seen. There are more voluminous collections (although all are famous), but none are this organized. All of the artefacts here are Irish, ranging from 19th century farm and home implements to early 20th century brand packaging and medicines, to a fully equipped schoolroom, bar, and kitchen, all with period implements. Like trains? Plenty of railroad gear. Plenty of highway signs. Plenty of agricultural equipment. And the owner just goes and collects all this stuff for his own joy, and arranges it so that he can share it with you. I highly, highly recommend this place. Use the location marker I gave you - it IS signed off L1412, but you have to figure out how to even get there first. It's just east of Meanus and northwest of Bruff, if that helps. It's worth the detour. You will learn more from this than you ever would from a traditional museum, as the owner leads you around, shows you different implements - you can touch and try some of them out! - and explains so much of the history. The personal touch is what makes this incomparable. It's a 7 euro admission but you'll want to donate even more after that.

Caher Cottage has a small gallery full up with Lis' watercolour paintings of the stunning Connemara…read morecountryside. Lis has now retired, so if not painting as much as she used to, but last time I visited there were some fantastic new oil paintings too. Lis is almost always happy to meet visitors, so please feel free to pop by and say hello, even if you are not planning to buy anything. I think the best time to appear is just before dusk, as Caher Cottage's view of the sun setting over the Atlantic is simply beautiful. Lis is also a bit of a history geek, and knows huge amounts about the Connemara area, its history and of course the best places for walks or beaches. If you have questions about the local area, definitely go and visit her for a cup of tea and a chat!! *In the interest of full disclosure I should mention that this is my mother's Gallery* ...but that does not stop me from thinking it is brilliant!!

People who visit Cong are usually here because they are fans of The Quiet Man movie. This cute…read morelittle cottage in Cong replicates the honeymoon cottage in the movie. Unfortunately the real 'White O'Morn' cottage is in ruin in a town about 45 minutes away, so this cottage is a nice opportunity to get a feel for what it was like during the movie. Props include hats and clothing reproductions, a tandem bicycle, furniture like Mary Kate's and a 'fine big bed'. There is information posted throughout explaining about the props and a video on loop with info on the film and locations nearby, as well as newspaper articles from the summer of 1951 during filming. Purchase tickets in the upstairs gift shop. This is a great gift shop! So many Irish and Quiet Man souvenirs in one spot! Magnets, hats and gloves, ornaments, books, signs, photographs, jewelry and on and on. I purchased a few items. Great to get the shopping done and support the museum. You don't have to be a movie fan to enjoy a town full of Irish pubs and restaurants or visit the cottage museum. Open 10am - 4pm. Parking in back for a small number of vehicles.

God forsaken and desolate, devoid of inhabitants apart from the odd rodent... "Someone is going to…read morehave to clean this tent" said my wife. I agreed but suggested we go and have a look at the Deserted Village instead. The village is close to Keel and definitely somewhere you should have a look at if you are in the area. It is the remains of an entire village on the hillside overlooking Keel. It comprises of nearly 100 stone cottages all deserted around the time of the great Irish famine (though I'm not so sure what was so great about it, it sounds awful). We were fascinated - the houses are all roofless and in severe disrepair but you get an idea of the cramped conditions in which people lived. I would love to have seen a reconstructed house - so we could get an idea of where the fire was and where people slept - there were no fire places or obvious cooking areas or chimneys or anything.

We stopped here on our way to Kylemore Abby. It was breathtaking and worth the side trip…read more Beautiful views, and make sure you watch out for the sheep!

On our way to Kylemore Abbey we passed Connemara National Park and so we took a pit stop to see…read morewhat it was all about. I was pleasantly surprised. The visitors centre is just lovely, a nice setup. There is a exhibition on the park, with one section describing bogs and turf making. There is also a Tea Room, a picnic area and a playground. There are three walks from the visitors centre up the nearest hill, Diamond Hill. All at different degrees of distance and difficulty. We decided on the quick walk as we didn't have a lot of time. Definetly worth a look if you are in the area.