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The Wild Atlantic Way

Ireland’s Ancient East

Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands

Northern Ireland

The Wild Atlantic Way also has food. Fabulous fresh food. All courtesy of passionate, knowledgeable artisan producers. Take colourful Kinsale. This busy fishing port is now a thriving gourmet hotspot too, with the likes of Michelin-starred Bastion serving acclaimed seafood. On Kinsale Food Tours, Suzanne Burns fuses history with stops to sample everything from cheese and chowder to oysters at Blue Haven and Jesk ice creams. Fancy meeting a legendary Cork producer? Head west of Kinsale to the Woodcock Smokery, where Sally Ferns-Barnes, a former fisherwoman, has spent 44 years alchemising sustainable wild Atlantic salmon into delicacies sought by restaurants including Shanagarry’s Ballymaloe House. Her convivial masterclasses cover filleting, salting and smoking, as well as foraging and fish tasting. Up the coast and further west, you’ll reach the Dingle peninsula and the port town itself. Here the Dingle Cookery School runs a Catch and Cook Experience, sailing out to sea for mackerel and pollock before returning for tuition on preparing a fish banquet.

It’s hard not to be drawn to the sea. Whiskey lovers can make the short crossing to Clare Island off Co Mayo where The Dolphin, a former passenger vessel, stores and ages liquor, with the barrels rocked by the harbour’s perpetual but gentle currents. Clare Island Whiskey’s bespoke experiences include an interpretive walk across the island with its 12th-century abbey, whiskey tasting in its spectacular lighthouse and a serious seafood supper. The Wild Atlantic Way really is the perfect place to escape. To the far north, in County Donegal, you can charter the luxurious yacht Amazing Grace and cruise out to Malin Head in search of frolicking dolphins or sail to Inishtrahull. Watch for basking sharks en route, before exploring the island’s abandoned school, graveyard and cottages.

Take in myths and legends, helicopter rides, dolphin spotting, the finest scenery in Europe… and all at your own luxurious pace

beach, relaxed days spent sailing from one marina to another, discovering the skills of an artisan perfumery, an alfresco feast as your host spins myths and legends under the stars… Few destinations on earth reward slow, unhurried travel as much as the island of Ireland. Just a short journey by air or sea transports you to a break in Ireland. Small journey, big rewards. Perfect, even if you have just a weekend to replenish body and soul – take time to immerse yourself in its exquisite scenery and ancient history. Add to this savouring its acclaimed artisan food and getting to know the welcoming locals. Even better, the island’s compact size and excellent transport links are wonderful when you have more time to explore. Base yourself in one place for a deep dive into a region, or move easily between them all, relishing the individual beauty, heritage and

Stretching, twisting, rising and falling for 1,600 miles, the Wild Atlantic Way is both glorious coastal road and multisensory tonic for the soul. Linking Co Donegal’s Inishowen Peninsula in the north with Kinsale in Co Cork to the south, Europe’s western edge is indented by the relentless Atlantic. Its vertiginous cliffs, dreamy bays and mystical islands are dotted with ancient ruins, castles and monasteries. Even the drive from any A to B will feel like a holiday in itself.

Keeping things aromatic, a short journey from here brings you to the Burren Smokehouse in Lisdoonvarna, a champion of Ireland’s finest flavours since 1989. Run by Birgitta and Peter Curtin, this award-winning operation also offers a food trail including smoked salmon tastings and a visit to the Roadside Tavern next door, to sample Burren Brewery’s craft beers. If all that leaves you needing to recuperate, head to Co Sligo and Strandhill’s Voya Seaweed Baths. It’s here that former professional triathlete Neil Walton and his father Mick have revived the Irish tradition of seaweed therapy with immersion in warm water and organic seaweed that moisturises the skin and is said to boost circulation. The family business also produces the award-winning Voya range of seaweed-based therapies and cosmetics.

Caption kicker This is a caption, this is a caption, The film is Dune (1984)

Home to Kildare, Kilkenny and Waterford – and framed by the Irish Sea – the viridian hills, charming towns and serene waters of Ireland’s Ancient East are the bucolic face of 5,000 years of stirring history and poetic myths. Drink in old tales around its Neolithic monuments, mighty castles and ancient landmarks including Co Meath’s mystical Hill of Tara. Around these parts, the distant past feels very close.

Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands offer an authentic and tranquil step off the beaten track. Threaded with scenic waterways and walking trails, their verdant forests mix with imposing peaks, wide valleys and picturesque towns. Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands should be savoured, never rushed. You’ll soon see why they proclaim themselves “Ireland’s Best Kept Secret”.

Get your thrills high above the Atlantic, with helicopter flights over the magnificent shoreline

Indeed, this coastline is rich with choice, and likely to occasionally quicken the pulse. Around Co Sligo, surfing, sailing and climbing are all options. But perhaps the most magical pursuit comes after dark, kayaking around secluded Castlehaven Bay just south of Cork. Once beloved of pirates, it is particularly beautiful from April to October, when the water’s bioluminescence is dazzling. You can also get your thrills high above the Atlantic. Executive Helicopters, based up the coast in Galway (with its lanes, stone-clad cafés and art galleries), offer flights over the magnificent shoreline from the towering Cliffs of Moher to Inishbofin Island’s white beaches and the Burren’s lunar glaciated limestone. Unsurprisingly, the otherworldly karst landscape has also provided inspiration to local creatives. Co Clare’s family-run Burren Perfumery produces small batches of handmade organic soaps, creams and candles, alongside balm from beeswax and oils. The Burren’s unadorned beauty is reflected in the perfumery’s unscented range, while the zingy ocean breeze is captured in a citrus cologne.

Coastal spirit Clare Island Whiskey, left, is a lovely stop on the Wild Atlantic Way; above, spot dolphins off the coast; below, Amazing Grace

orseback rides along the

Another famous and historical part of local culture is horse racing. The Irish National Stud & Gardens, an extraordinary destination in Co Kildare, 45 minutes from Dublin, is the birthplace of champions. As well as seeing its elite stallions and retired legends including Hardy Eustace and Faugheen, visitors learn about the island of Ireland’s horse-racing heritage and can try a ground-breaking interactive experience, enabling them to buy, train and then ride a racehorse in pulsating real time. Finally, the region also has a stunning coastline, including Co Wexford’s Curracloe Beach, immortalised in Saving Private Ryan. To the south, Co Waterford’s Copper Coast, a Unesco Geopark, stretches 15 miles from Kilfarrasy to Stadbally: a landscape shaped by undersea volcanoes, ice sheets and deserts. Feel the wind in your hair on the self-guided trail past scalloped beaches and rocky headlands, drizzled with remnants of once prosperous copper mines. More echoes of Ireland’s Ancient East’s intoxicating past.

I love seeing the delight on visitors’ faces, especially during the foaling season when over 300 foals are born. One of my own favourite days out is Rathmullan beach in Co Donegal – miles of sand and sea – finished off with yummy food and a creamy pint in the basement bar of Rathmullan House

Ireland’s Ancient East is a joy for foodie explorers. In rural Co Kildare, two Michelin-starred Aimsir celebrates the island’s bountiful produce, with many ingredients grown on site. The restaurant’s name is Irish for weather, the unseen influence behind the all-Irish tasting menu: fermented black garlic, smoked eel, oysters and kelp. Far to the south, under Kilkenny’s old railway arches, one Michelin-starred Campagne gives an inventive French twist to seasonal produce. Inspired to try your hand at Irish cooking? Visit lovely Ballyknocken Cookery School, in an old milking parlour next to herb and vegetable gardens on a Co Wicklow farm, 30 miles south of Dublin. After picking and foraging ingredients, renowned TV chef Catherine Fulvio leads you through classic recipes passed down through generations of her family.

Crystal tips Waterford’s glassware is renowned across the world

Impeccable taste Co Kildare’s Aimsir, where Irish cuisine is at the menu’s heart

In Co Leitrim to the north, pull on your walking boots to discover the Dartry mountains or take a trip to see the glorious Glencar waterfall – a highlight that was immortalised in the poetry of WB Yeats. Stop off in friendly Carrick-on-Shannon and bustling Longford – an ideal launchpad for visiting the area’s beautifully preserved megalithic tombs. Then meander south through the Hidden Heartlands to Co Tipperary, with its sublime Lough Derg.

Secret Ireland Escapes tours enable you to explore little known locations in Ireland’s Lakelands. Explore the region, driven by a guide in a sedan, vintage car or convertible. Alternatively you can take the wheel of a self-drive Porsche Carrera or Jaguar XJS. Your selected escape – Medieval, Palladian, Georgian, Classical or Modern Ireland – will dictate the architecture, art, heritage and food you’ll savour on the experience, from mansion to cottage locations, harp playing to step dancing, home bakes to gourmet fare. You can swap tarmac for water, making your secret Lakelands escape in the elegant Azul 11 motor yacht with floor-to-ceiling windows and retractable glass roof, or solar-powered Azul Zero, perfect for wild rivers. Feeling flush? Try the wow factor triple escape: vintage car, Azul 11 and helicopter. The sky is the limit. While the Hidden Heartlands ooze with serenity, a little extra balm is always welcome. At 18th-century Kilronan Castle Estate and Spa, set in 50 lush acres next to Roscommon’s beautiful Lough Meelagh, the wellness centre has thermal suites, vitality pools and expert therapists using Elemis skincare products.

If you want to meet local characters, Wild Food Mary is a great start. From her home beneath Co Offaly’s Slieve Bloom mountains, the forager, chef and author will lead you through her garden and adjoining woodlands, collecting plants, berries, fruit and fungi. Back at Mary’s kitchen, you’ll prepare a feast, combining the day’s finds with her homegrown produce. Or you could head to Cloughan Farm & Cookery School in Co Longford to meet Fiona Egan. In her farmhouse kitchen, Fiona unlocks the secrets of Irish favourites from soda bread and smoked salmon pâté to hearty stews and soups, creating dishes from her hand-reared meat and poultry, and garden vegetables. Whether collecting eggs for a sponge or picking redcurrants to decorate a roulade, your efforts are rewarded when you sit down to devour the fruits of your labour. Local artisan produce also features, along with divine landscapes and impressive architecture, when you book an adventure with Secret Ireland Escapes. (Easy to do, via your travel agent.)

Forage fare Go wild at Cloughan Farm & Cookery School, Co Longford, run by Fiona Egan and husband Michael

Afternoon tea in the Glasshouse at Wineport Lodge is a highlight of a trip to Athlone, Co Westmeath

Want to take it slow? Mussenden Sea Salt in Co Londonderry, Northern Ireland’s only sea salt producer, has created a unique wellness adventure. Mussenden Unwind starts by Downhill Beach for stress-busting forest bathing and foraging in ancient woods. Next you’ll go for an invigorating wild swim, then tuck into a wild-cooked alfresco feast beneath cliffs crowned by the 18th-century Mussenden Temple. Senses heightened, skin tingling, your guide will spin stories, myths and legends. For a fresh perspective on the same beach, join Crindle Stables’ Saddle Up by the Sea excursion. The professional show jumping and riding school offers tuition in grooming, fitting saddles and basic skills. Having learnt to steer, trot and – hopefully – stop, you’ll head down quaint lanes before a memorable ride, perhaps at sunset, on Downhill’s famous sands.

On the hoof Give Saddle Up by the Sea a go on Downhill Beach

For me, the best part of the job is creating whiskeys that will bring new consumers into the wonderful world of Irish single malts. We have the Giant’s Causeway, our castles and the history - the coastline is unbelievably picturesque. A walk on the beach is a great way to start the day.

At Castlerock, north of Coleraine on Co Londonderry’s rugged coast, the Chocolate Manor – one of several passionate artisans in the Taste Causeway collective – creates indulgent treats while providing unique hands-on workshops. Their chocolate experience invites you to handcraft chocolate truffles and ganache, using fine local products including Dundarave Estate jam, Broighter Gold chilli oil and Giants Basalt Rock Gin. In neighbouring Co Antrim, you’ll encounter an older artisan producer. For more than 400 years, Bushmills – the world’s oldest licensed whiskey producer – has used water from the River Bush to triple distil malted barley. On a Premium Tour & Tasting, a whiskey educator will walk you through the grain-to-glass process in the historic stone building with its heady aroma, before a tutored tasting.

Venture southwest for proof that a county with no coastline can still be a watery wonderland. Co Fermanagh overflows with shimmering lakes, gentle rivers and snaking waterways: an aquatic tapestry embroidered with 154 islands bearing enigmatic carvings and sculptures. Lough Erne is particularly generous. Hire a boat from Erne Adventures to visit White Island, whose curious stone figures are two millennia old, or cross to Boa Island, where ancient Celts depicted Janus with male and female faces. High above its lakes, Co Fermanagh is blessed with unpolluted, star-drenched skies. Stay in Finn Lough’s clear-walled bubble domes for glorious, close-to-nature views of the forest and inky black heavens. Premium double bubbles contain four-posters, Nespresso machines and freestanding stone baths. The wilderness has rarely been so luxurious.

Rock star The Giant’s Causeway, Co Antrim, is landscape at its magical best; above, Chocolate Manor workshop; below, Bushmills barrels

Alex Thomas, Master Blender, Bushmills® Irish Whiskey, Co Antrim

Clockwise from right: Burren Smokehouse; seaweed bath at Voya; Burren Perfumery

Morning sun Early risers can expect a warm welcome on Curracloe Beach

Waterford, a Viking city built in AD914, is charming, with its narrow medieval lanes. It is also home to the renowned House of Waterford Crystal, whose exquisite creations have been blown, cut and engraved locally since 1783. A factory tour reveals the artisans at work, while the world’s largest display of Waterford Crystal includes Mastercraft, a collection inspired by Ireland’s wild landscape. Further north, artisan skills and history collide once more. This time it’s Graiguenamanagh’s Cushendale Woollen Mills, close to medieval Kilkenny. Wool has been spun on this very spot, next to the Duiske river, for eight centuries.

Sumptuous spas, refreshing seaweed baths, ocean spray and artisan crafts invite you to explore the destination through your senses

Feel

Take time to get a flavour of Ireland at its Michelin-starred restaurants, sipping the finest whiskeys and sampling local provender

Taste

Glide down a river on a luxury yacht, tour the mountains in a classic car and discover hidden caves and remote islands by sea

Explore

The island’s dramatic coastline, its stunning lakes and magical castles offer the perfect space for you to lose yourself in timeless views

See

Northern Ireland

IrelAND’S Hidden Heartlands

Ireland’s Ancient East

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Place to be Seafood is the main draw at Kinsale Harbour

Bird’s eye views See the dramatic Cliffs of Moher, Co Clare, from the air

Give us a wave Catch the surf around Co Sligo

Misty mornings Explore the landscape surrounding Glencar Lake, Co Leitrim

Poetry in motion A woodland walk to Glencar waterfall reaps rewards

Pic of Wineport Lodge to come This is a caption, this is a caption.

Lakeland luxe Tour in style with a vintage ride

Join our club Tee off at Royal County Down, flanked by the Mourne Mountains

Glimmers and shimmers The best way to see Lough Erne is from the water

Northern Ireland doesn’t skimp on space and scenery. From the Mourne Mountains and Fermanagh Lakelands to the Glens of Antrim, the great outdoors has rarely looked so inviting. You can walk the 17th-century walls of Derry-Londonderry, take in Lough Erne’s historic islands or play world-class golf at Royal County Down. The Sperrin Mountains and Giant’s Causeway offer a timeless beauty, while the destination’s innovative restaurants, rich creative arts and dynamic producers make it an exciting prospect for lovers of contemporary culture. Find your space and take as long as you want to savour it.

David Wardell, The Irish National Stud & GARDENS, Co Kildare

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