Ireland Activities

Dublin
Travelling around Dublin with kids is easy – the city centre is very compact and the Old Town is fascinating and fun for all ages. This is a great place to explore with children. You will find many shops, market stalls, old stone houses and ships bringing in goods from all over Europe. Check out Christ Church Cathedral and at its entrance, pick up a copy of "A Young Person's Guide to Christ Church Cathedral". Don't miss Dublina (next to Christ Church) - a hands-on history of medieval Dublin. Kids can step into a medieval fair – be sure to try on some chain mail clothing at the clothing stall, have a snack at the pie stall, the medicine tent will “treat your afflictions” with medieval medicine, guess the spice at the spices stall, make a rubbing at the scribe's stall, play a drum or juggle and much more! Also in the Old Town are the lovely Dubh Linn Gardens where the grass is designed like a big Celtic knot. Also worth a tour is Dublin Castle. Climb up Saint Michael's Tower, for great views of Dublin all around!

Walk along the River Liffey – If anyone in your family loves bridges, this is the place to go. The river is criss-crossed by all sorts of bridges – pedestrian bridges, wide car bridges, elevated train brides, and each one is different. Walk west along the river, checking out each bridge.

Viking Splash Tours – For an hour long tour around town, this is great fun. Ride in an amphibious vehicle through the city, ending with a big splash in the Grand Canal Harbour. Pick up the tour at Saint Stephen's Green (Grafton and Dawson Streets) or at Bull Alley Street by Saint Patrick's Cathedral.

National Aquatic Centre – Need an afternoon to relax in a huge indoor water park? It takes a car to get there, but the National Aquatic Centre has a wave pool, water slides, surfing machine, giant flume, water coaster and lazy river. Fun for the whole family. Visit this site for more information: www.nac.ie/
 

Cooking Courses
Impress your friends back home with an authentic Irish meal! Ireland has recently become a popular destination for food lovers. Cooking courses are available throughout the country from formal teaching schools which offer year round classes, to smaller, informal courses run by enthusiastic chefs in rural restaurants. Enquire at your hotel or favourite restaurant.

Cycling
Although some of Ireland's coastal areas are mountainous, the sheltered valleys and the gently undulating central plain are excellent for easy cycling. Roads are well-maintained and most are very quiet. Inland, the landscape is dotted with small farms, and one is never too far away from some form of civilization. There are a surprisingly high number of pre-Celtic monuments in solitary places that make for fascinating discoveries. The Boyne Valley alone contains over 300 of them. Tailor-made tours with a local guide can be arranged through Walking Cycling Ireland (www.irelandwalkingcycling.com).

Fishing
Being blessed with many rivers and streams and over 5500km of coastline, Ireland offers excellent fishing. There is no closed season for freshwater angling, but March to October is the most suitable time for bream, rudd, roach, dace and perch. The brown trout season is usually from mid-February or March until the end of September. Open salmon season is 1 January to 7 September, depending on the region. The best sea trout period is from June through September or mid-October in some areas. Salmon permits also cover sea trout. Along the Atlantic coast, sea angling is possible from piers, rocks, in the surf or during a day's boat excursion, which can be organized locally.

Golf
There are 350 golf courses run by the Golfing Union of Ireland, and many people come to Ireland specifically for a golfing holiday. Green fees are relatively inexpensive when compared with the UK. Beautiful courses are set both by the sea and inland.

Hiking
Ireland's vast countryside makes it ideal for walkers of all levels. Plus, the mild climate means that the mountains are accessible all year round. The beautiful scenery of the Wicklow Mountains is just one hour's drive from Dublin. More adventurous hikers may want to tackle Ireland's highest peak, Carrauntoohil (1041m) in Macgillycuddy's Reeks, in the far southwest of the country. Other notable mountains include Croagh Patrick (765m) near Westport in Co Mayo, a holy mountain and, on the last Sunday in July, a place of pilgrimage. The 12 Bens in Connemara offer lovely hill walking, with views over towards the jagged coastline. Tailor-made tours with a local guide can be arranged through Walking Cycling Ireland (www.irelandwalkingcycling.com).
 

Horse Riding
Whether for leisure or profession, horse riding is one of Ireland's principal tourist attractions. Facilities are found all over the country, offering a range of beautiful trail rides as well as exciting racecourses for spectators. The principal racecourses are at Leopardstown, Fairyhouse (Irish Grand National every year), The Curragh (Irish Sweeps Derby) and Punchestown (an international cross-country and three-day-event riding course).

Ireland is a farming country noted for its meat, bacon, poultry and dairy produce. The surrounding sea, inland lakes and rivers offer fresh fish including salmon, trout, lobster, mussels and periwinkles. Dublin has a wide selection of restaurants and eating venues to suit every taste and budget, as do the other major towns.

National specialties include Dublin Bay prawns, oysters served with Guinness and wholemeal bread, Irish stew (made with mutton, lamb or juicy beef, and usually served with potatoes, stock, onions, carrots and garlic), Crubeens (pigs' feet), Colcannon (a mixture of potatoes and cabbage cooked together), soda bread, and Soufflé made with carrageen (a variety of seaweed). The potatoes in Ireland are fresh and fabulous – try delicious "chips" (like hearty fries). In the afternoon, take a break for tea. You'll find delicious apple pie with thick cream, cakes, and fruit desserts in delightful tea shops all over Ireland. ‘Tea' is often almost a full meal with sandwiches and cakes.

Pubs, of which Ireland has plenty, are sometimes called ‘lounges' or ‘bars'. The measure used in Ireland for spirits is larger than that used in Britain, for example an Irish double is equal to a triple in Britain. National drinks are, of course, Guinness beer – a meal in itself, lighter ales such as Smithwick's, Irish coffee, stout and whiskey. 

It is customary to tip 10-12%. Many hotels and restaurants include this in the form of a service charge indicated on the menu or bill. It is not customary to tip in bars unless you have table service then a small tip is advised. Tipping porters, taxi drivers, hairdressers, etc is customary but not obligatory.

Most towns have clubs and pubs with live music. It is quite common to find pubs holding seisun, playing traditional Irish music with traditional instruments. The dancehalls and discos of previous eras have now been replaced with clubs similar to those found throughout the UK and Western Europe. Special events and themed nights often take place at special attractions such as the medieval banquet at Bunratty Castle.

Shopping in Ireland is a treat as there are many fine handmade products. Handmade clothing and linen is of high quality. The famous Aran sweater is sold throughout the country, though it's found in most abundance in County Galway. How to tell a handmade Aran sweater from a machine made one? The hand-knitted variety costs significantly more than the machine made counterpart.

County Donegal is famous for its tweeds which can be purchased in lengths or finished as jackets, shirts or caps. Magee & Company has a large selection (www.mageeclothing.com). Counties Dublin and Wicklow also produce fine tweeds.

Irish linen comes in the form of everything from blouses to handkerchiefs and table cloths, with the main centres in the North. Irish lace is another fine product, at its best in Limerick or Carrickmacross in County Monaghan. The Irish produce some high-quality outdoor activities gear as well. Hand-woven shawls and woollen blankets also make lovely souvenirs.

Waterford Crystal makes world-famous crystal with its headquarters in Kilbarry, Waterford, yet products can be found all over Ireland (www.waterfordwedgwood.com). Its main competitor is Cavan Crystal, located on Dublin Road in Cavan (www.cavancrystaldesign.com). Smaller manufacturers of crystal produce fine work at more attractive prices, such as Galway, Tipperary, Cavan, and Tyrone. In the North in Killybrackey, Dungannon, Tyrone Crystal hosts factory tours (www.tyronecrystal.com). If you're specifically looking for Waterford Crystal, don't bother shopping around because it has fixed pricing. In Dublin, the best selections are at Brown Thomas, and at Weirs, both on Grafton Street, Dublin 2, and House of Ireland (Nassau Street, Dublin 2).

Pottery is another special purchase. All over the country there are small potteries turning out unusual and attractive work. The village of Belleek in County Fermanagh produces delicate bone china. The area around Dingle in County Kerry has superb pottery as do Enniscorthy in County Wexford, and Kilkenny and Thomastown in County Kilkenny. Throughout County Cork and Kerry you will find countless small workshops that open in the summer with their stocks of pottery and other craftwork.

Other worthy souvenirs include Irish music, jewellery, especially Claddagh rings, enamel work and baskets woven of willow or rush. Connemara marble is a natural green stone found in western Ireland and often fashioned into Celtic designs.