town information galway

The undulating plains of the northern part of the county, filled with stone-walled fields, boglands and meandering streams are the subject of this tour. We begin by driving out the tuam road to Claregalway, a village, with a Franciscan Friary, now in ruins, but still standing majestically beside the Clare River. To our right, an old Burke castle ruin is another silent witness to a troubled past.

Our journey northwards is through some fine farmland, rich green fields clothed with fam...

This thriving market town is situated at the south-eastern corner of Co. Galway, beside the north shore of Lough Derg -the last of the great Shannon Lakes. Bordered on the east by the Shannon river, which offers access to the lake, Portumna is an important point of traffic across the Shannon between the West of Ireland, the Midlands and North Tipperary. It is a major cruise base for leisure traffic on the Shannon....

Mountbellew is in the south-east of the County and is renowned for its success in Tidy Towns Competitions....

"The Church of Colga", lies on the N18 to Gort. This village is named after St. Colga, who left Iona is the 6th century to find his own monastery, which now lies under the ruins of the Protestant church beside Kilcolgan Castle overlooking the estuary of the Dunkellin River.

Both the castle and the impressive ruins of Tyrone House nearby (built in 1770), were once residences of the St. George family, whose family burial vaults are at Drumacoo (on the Kinvara road). This is an an...

Galway is a fast growing city and with its population now reaching over 50,000 it is set to become the third city of the Irish Republic. The capital of Connacht, Galway, is a thriving and expanding city with a rich past dating from medieval times. Always a merchant town, modern Galway is also a University City and administrative centre.

It is where the Gaelic countryside of Connemara and bustling commerce meet, and the Irish Language can frequently be heard in shop and street. There are...

Although situated on the busy N6 Dublin/Galway road, Craughwell is a rather peaceful village. It is noted for its neatness and its village green has a statue of Lady Augusta Gregory, (1852-1932) a founding member of the Irish National Theatre and another of Anthony Raftery (c. 1784-1835), last of the great Gaelic bards, both by sculptor, Donal O'Murhcadha.

Other noted people associated with Craughwell include John and Angelica Huston of cinematic fame who lived for a period in the old...

Often described as the - Gateway To Connemara - and located on the upper shores of Lough Corrib, Oughterard is famous as one of Irelands leading angling resorts.

Apart from first-class salmon and trout angling, the Corrib also affords endless opportunities for excursions to its many Islands. Oughterard is also an excellent centre for exploring the beauty spots of the Twelve Bens, Maamturk and Cloosh Mountains....

Established by St. Jarlath at the beginning of the 6th century, it is 32.19km north of Galway City and today is the major town in the north Galway-mid Connaught region. It is a thriving commercial and industrial centre with a well established agricultural hinterland.

The present layout of the town resulted from the Charter of James I of England in 1613 with all roads converging on the town square -which is in fact a diamond shape. This layout disregarded the much earlier Celtic settlemen...

Cornamona village is one of the major centres for trout and salmon angling on the northern shores of Lough Corrib. There are large pike to be caught here also as is evidenced by the large one exhibited in the local pub.

Most of the larger islands on the Corrib, including Inchagoill, lie directly south-east of the Doorus Peninsula on which Cornamona is situated. The village is in part of the Gaeltacht or Irish speaking region of North Connemara....