If you enjoy history that involves the burning of a fortress by design to keep it out of the hands…read moreof the 15th century English, put this castle on your itinerary! My family and I visited here during our stay in Donegal and probably walked less than a quarter of a mile from the town square to reach this historical site. With no prior knowledge of the castle's background story, I was taken in by the remnant and the restored portions. Information panels inside provide interesting stories of the varied history of the original and successive owners. I appreciated the craftsmanship and engineering of the trusses and beams of the restored roof. The massive fireplaces and large rooms permitted me to imagine, just a little, what life was like in the castle a long time ago. Additional tidbits: I found the price of admission fair for a family. Guided tours are available. The castle has plenty of steps and no elevators. Bathrooms are available on the lower level.

Rather small but well staffed and well maintained. It takes maybe 30-45 minutes to see the entire…read morecastle. Not the biggest castle in Ireland but Donegal isn't the biggest town either.

First off, a visit here is FREE! There is no charge to enter and walk around the beautiful abbey,…read moreall outdoors. We came on a rainy day and it was still super fun. We used the laminated guide cards and took ourselves on a tour, then bought a few postcards. We spent about 45 minutes here. There was someone playing tunes on a ukulele for guests, too, which was nice. Clean bathroom facilities.

Place is amazing. Built in 1253, torched a few times and rebuilt. Last time it was torched was in…read more1641 during the Ulster Uprising when the Irish were fighting the English oppressors. The monks moved out in the 18th century. Its like walking through history and great photos can be taken from any angle. Give yourself at least half an hour to see this place...

Really love the easy drive from Sligo to this waterfall. Very easy to walk off the road and to see…read moreit the goats everywhere make it so charmed also easy to get an Uber from Sligo to here. And a cute café makes it easy trip. The café makes it nice for a coffee and snack . If just going here I'll plan only an hour to see the sites not much else to do unless you walk to the devil's chimney then plan three hours for everything.

I'd thought, wrongly, that this waterfall was in county Sligo; nope, wrong again matey, the sign…read moresays it's inside county Leitrim and only just. It's a beautiful place and designed for walks and picnics. It has toilets and you can potter around the lake area to the coffee bar, but you'll need a fair level of fitness to go to the top of the waterfall as it's quite steep. The water is so clean with a peaty hue given Ireland has wonderful peat bogs - an incredible eco system of its own. Now it ain't the falls of Angel, it ain't Niagara nor Dunn's River; this waterfall reaches 50ft high and is situated at Glencar Lough, and it inspired perhaps Ireland's greatest poet William Butler Yeats who put it much better than me in his poem 'The Stolen Child' 'Where the wandering water gushes From the hills above Glen-Car, In pools among the rushes That scarce could bathe a star' Glad we went, once. Paradise Ireland style.

Definite must stop when you are touring the northern coast of stunning county Donegal, the most…read morebeautiful place on earth. We paid a fee to tour the lighthouse. We got to walk tp the top via a winding staircase as the tour guide told us stories of ship wrecks and smugglers. It was a bright, beautiful day and the view was incredible. There are a few food trucks parked in the parking lot in the summer, or you can bring a picnic, and enjoying eating outdoors. We had a blast and enjoyed every minute!!

The Fanad Head Lighthouse is a popular destination along the Wild Atlantic Way. I was with a group…read moreand we had walked about a mile from our lunch location. We were waiting in the small parking lot for the person with the tickets and noticed a number of folks jumping a nearby fence to sseemingly avoid paying the entrance fee. But it wasn't possible to get to the actual lighthouse that way. The views were pretty amazing. Once inside the lighthouse, a guide will provide a history of the lighthouse -- and there is a lot of original memoribilia to ask about. Especially the wooden box labeled Carnegie Library System of Ireland. Apparently the lighthouse keepers were avid readers and Carnegie Library had rotating boxes of books that got shared. It is possible to await your turn to walk to the top -- I did not do so, but those who did remarked on the view from the top. The grounds include a guesthouse where you can lodge.

We were on the CIE Scots Irish tour and were driving through Londonderry. Ooh! Pretty building!…read more Ooh! We're stopping for potties at the pretty building. WOAH!!! It's really, really nice! Thank you to the nice lady who said there are more potties on the second floor ... what if I had never seen the top floor? It was sooo pretty! So much stained glass! So much cool history. ... and lots of things to take photos of! Whee! ... and a gift shop * happy tourist * I probably should make some of the bread mixes we bought. We bought all 3! That is not a souvenir that we should keep forever ... * nods *

Guildhall is a neo-Gothic building and is one of Derry-Londonderry's most iconic landmarks. The…read morecity's own John Hume, awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1998 for his efforts in the peace process, is on display at Guild Hall. I had never seen a Nobel Peace Prize in person before. The stained glass windows are gorgeous. This deserves a stop.

5 Stars - Definitely worth the time and effort!…read more We chose Slieve League Cliffs as one of our destinations because of its relatively short distance to Donegal, the town where our lodging was. Little did we know what breath-taking views awaited us at the end of a long and hilly walk from the visitors center. The cliffs are arguably the tallest in Europe at around 2,000 feet. I felt small looking down from a great height at the waves crashing against the rock face below. The view to the south allowed us to see the bay and opposing coastline. The steady breeze from the Atlantic seemed only appropriate for such a setting. The beauty of the sheer grandeur remains fresh and awe-inspiring. The trek to the cliffs can be challenging in spots since it's only a winding, narrow road. No trail. No shoulder to move away from cars. Rocky fields and grazing sheep provide a bucolic setting. A pay-to-ride shuttle is available at the visitor center and it drives to the overlook. Another option is to drive your car to the parking lot about halfway up, and pay to park. On the clear day we visited, a souvenir truck and an espresso-ice cream truck parked in the cul-de-sac at the end of the road. The double shot of espresso certainly helped me finish the walk back to the visitors center. Apple Pay connected even far away from obvious cell towers! 5 Stars Definitely worth the time and effort.

One of the most beautiful landscapes we saw while in Ireland even though we caught it on a CRAZY…read morewindy and rainy day it was still breathtaking! The roads are very narrow, but it is worth it! We saw lots of goats crossing the street too.

The City of Drumshanbo and the surrounding County Leitrim area, is a beautiful conversion of what…read moreuse to be Ireland's coal mining area. Today there are many lakes now used for water sports and the nearby Carrick on Shannon is a major Stags & Hens destination. My extended family has lived in this area for centuries and it was fun visiting, "where it all began, so to speak".

The Fintown Railway is now the only operational railway in Co. Donegal. It's set in spectacular…read morescenery overlooking Lough Finn, the railway (3 m/5km) is a restored section of the former County Donegal Railway. Their advertising says that the setting prompted international playwright Brian Friel to say "What is on offer is a unique journey along the shores of a lake as grand as any in Switzerland or Minnesota" but I think this is a bit of exaggeration; poetic licence. The railway certainly runs deep in the heart of grand mountainous scenery in an area steeped in tradition, myth and folklore. It runs along the brown trout waters of Loch Finn. It's a noisy three mile return trip right along the shores of Loch Finn, the wooden carriage is very old and it's very creaky too. It's worth the €8 price and the novel return journey takes about 40 minutes.