Rainbow stretching over still rural lake

Getty Images/Cultura RF

Connemara

The name Connemara (Conamara) translates as 'Inlets of the Sea' and the roads along the peninsula's filigreed shoreline bear this out as they wind around the coves of this breathtaking stretch of Ireland's jagged west coast.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Aughnanure Castle, Galway, Ireland

    Aughnanure Castle

    Connemara

    The 'Fighting O'Flahertys' were based at this superbly preserved 16th-century fortress 4km east of Oughterard. The clan controlled the region for hundreds…

  • Connemara National Park sunset

    Connemara National Park

    Connemara

    Immediately southeast of Letterfrack, Connemara National Park spans 2000 dramatic hectares of bog, mountains, heath and woodlands.

  • Kylemore Abbey

    Kylemore Abbey

    Connemara

    Photogenically perched on the shores of Pollacapall Lough, 4km east of Letterfrack, Kylemore is a crenellated 19th-century neo-Gothic fantasy. It was…

  • Patrick Pearse's Cottage

    Patrick Pearse's Cottage

    Connemara

    Pádraig Pearse (Patrick Pearse; 1879–1916) wrote some of his short stories and plays on the shore of a remote lake in this small thatched cottage, which…

  • Inchagoill

    Inchagoill

    Connemara

    The largest island on Lough Corrib, Inchagoill lies about 5km offshore from the lake's edge, some 8km north of Oughterard. The island is a lonely place…

  • Brigit's Garden

    Brigit's Garden

    Connemara

    Covering 4.5 hectares of woodland and meadowland, and with traditional architecture including a reed-thatched crannóg roundhouse, tranquil Brigit's Garden…

  • Glengowla Mines

    Glengowla Mines

    Connemara

    These 19th-century mines 3km west of Oughterard yielded silver, lead and glistening quartz. As well as marvelling at some of the treasures unearthed,…

  • Quiet Man Bridge

    Quiet Man Bridge

    Connemara

    One of the most photogenic locations from the iconic 1952 John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara film, the eponymous Quiet Man bridge is some 7km west of…

View more attractions
  • placement: fullWidth
  • path: destinations/top
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [300, 250], [320, 50], [1, 1],
  • targeting: 
    {
  "destination": "Connemara",
  "region": "Western-Europe",
  "continent": "Europe",
  "country": "Ireland"
}

Plan with a local

  • placement: fullWidth
  • path: destinations/bottom
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [300, 250], [320, 50], [1, 1],
  • targeting: 
    {
  "destination": "Connemara",
  "region": "Western-Europe",
  "continent": "Europe",
  "country": "Ireland"
}