Fascinating Attractions Around Galway

By Author: Bonny Kominek
Total Articles: 230
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Galway is a coastal city of the west coast of Ireland. A truly picturesque town with much to explore, it is bursting with the literary, music and arts cultures that Ireland is famous for. Well worth a trip on your arrival is a visit to the local tourist information centre, where you can find details of the latest of the regular arts events and festivals that tale place in the city each year.

A truly unique experience awaits you just two miles from Rossaveal Harbour at the heart of Connemara. The Seawinds Nursery and Tropical Butterfly Centre allows you to walk amongst some of the rarest butterfly species in the world, as well as a collection of some of the rarest exotic plants in a series of tropical garden enclosures.

As a city on the coast, you can expect the finest seafood in Galway. In fact, each year in September Galway celebrates its seafood with its local Galway Oyster Festival. A competition on the first day gets things off with a swing, with Oysters from all over the world available for you to try.

Eyre Square in Galway City itself, now known as John F. Kennedy Park, is a beautiful spot to relax ...
... from the hustle and bustle of the city and watch the world go by. It is a popular spot, especially with summer picnic makers and features a statue of the much-loved local writer Paraic O Connaire.

As well as Galway City, there is much to explore in the surrounding area. A beautiful coastal drive along to Spiddal affords breathtaking views across Galway Bay, especially as the sun goes down, and continuing along this route west allows you to explore the mountain range of the Twelve Pins of Connemara.

Fans of W. B. Yeats must take a trip to Thoor Ballylee at Gort. A Norman tower house, it was purchased by Yeats as his summer home in 1916 and has been open to the public each Easter to October since 1965. Guided and audio tours are available too.

A short drive from Galway sees you at the fantastic medieval town of Athenry. This was founded in the 1200s by Meiler de Birmingham and was surrounded by a wall and moat. The wall still stands, making this the only walled town remaining in the whole of Ireland.

Ireland is a country famed for its literary figures, and many of them convened near Galway at the former home of Lady Gregory, founder of the Abbey Theatre. A close friend of W. B. Yeats, the home of Lady Gregory at Coole Park in Gort no longer stands, but the estate is open to the public, with picturesque gardens as well as a tree bearing the autographs of such luminaries as George Bernard Shaw and John Masefield. This guide to fun Galway attractions was written by Bonny Kominek, whos an experienced tourist guide. They recommend checking out the Octopus Travel website for the best deals on Galway hotels all year round.