Things to do in County Mayo

Castleburke is a townland located in County Mayo, in the west of Ireland, situated in the barony of Carra. Like many Irish townlands, it is a small, ancient administrative unit of land whose name carries within it centuries of Gaelic and Anglo-Norman history. The name "Castleburke" derives from the presence or historical association of a castle connected to the powerful Burke family — one of the most dominant Anglo-Norman dynasties in Connacht — whose influence across Mayo and Galway shaped the political and cultural landscape of the west of Ireland for centuries following the Norman invasion of the twelfth century. While the townland itself may not draw large numbers of tourists in the way that nearby Croagh Patrick or Lough Mask does, it holds genuine historical resonance for those interested in the layered story of Irish settlement, lordship and conquest. The Burke family, originally de Burgh, arrived in Ireland in the wake of the Anglo-Norman conquest and over time became so thoroughly absorbed into Gaelic Irish culture that they were described as being "more Irish than the Irish themselves." Their castles and tower houses were scattered across the limestone and drumlin landscape of east Mayo, and Castleburke as a place-name is a direct echo of that legacy. The exact castle structure associated with this particular townland may be ruined or entirely vanished — as is the fate of many such structures that were made of less durable materials or stripped for building stone over the centuries — but the name preserves the memory of a fortified presence that once asserted territorial control over this corner of Connacht. The physical landscape around the coordinates places this area firmly in the drumlin belt of east Mayo, a terrain characterised by small, rounded glacially deposited hills separated by boggy hollows, small lakes and sluggish streams. This is a quiet, intimate landscape rather than a dramatic one — the sky tends to feel large here, and the land rolls gently in every direction. Fields are typically small and bounded by old stone walls or overgrown hedges of hawthorn and blackthorn. The light in this part of Ireland is famously changeable; a morning of heavy grey cloud can give way by afternoon to extraordinarily luminous golden light that makes the wet fields shimmer. The sounds one encounters are typically those of rural Ireland: birdsong, the distant lowing of cattle, wind moving across open ground, and the occasional passing of a tractor on a narrow road. The surrounding area is rich in both natural and historical interest. Lough Mask lies not far to the south, one of the great limestone loughs of Connacht, famous for its trout and pike fishing and its dramatic scenery. Lough Carra, a smaller and botanically exceptional marl lake, is also nearby and is considered one of the most important freshwater habitats in Ireland, with its pale, almost turquoise waters and extraordinary biodiversity. The town of Ballinrobe lies within reasonable distance and serves as a local centre with shops, services and accommodation. Partry and the Partry Mountains provide a more dramatic upland backdrop to the west. The entire region sits within a landscape that was profoundly affected by the Great Famine of the 1840s, and the ruins of pre-Famine settlements are not uncommon across these townlands. For the visitor, Castleburke is best approached as part of a broader exploration of the Carra and Mask lake district rather than as a standalone destination. The area is accessible by car via minor roads branching off the regional road network in east Mayo, though signage for individual townlands is often absent or minimal. The lanes here tend to be narrow, and passing places are frequent necessities. Visiting in late spring or early summer offers the best combination of reasonable weather, long daylight hours, and the green landscape at its most vivid. Autumn can be equally beautiful, with the boggy ground taking on rich amber and russet tones. Those with an interest in genealogy may find the area particularly meaningful, as the townlands of east Mayo were heavily populated before the Famine and many families of Irish diaspora trace roots to precisely this kind of quiet, named place. One of the quietly compelling aspects of visiting a townland like Castleburke is the act of paying attention to a place that conventional tourism entirely overlooks. Ireland has over sixty thousand townlands, each with a name, a history and a community of people who once lived, worked and died within its boundaries. The townland system itself is one of Ireland's most ancient and enduring geographical structures, predating the Norman conquest and in many cases preserving Gaelic language and memory in fossilised form. To stand in Castleburke is to stand in a place whose name is itself a document — recording the encounter between two worlds, the Gaelic and the Norman, and the slow fusion that produced the culture of Connacht. That is, for the right kind of traveller, more than enough reason to visit.

Westport is the most attractive and most complete planned Georgian town in Ireland, a market town in County Mayo on the shores of Clew Bay whose combination of the octagonal market square, the tree-lined Mall following the canalised Carrowbeg River and the surrounding streets of Georgian town houses creates one of the finest examples of eighteenth-century Irish urban planning. The town was designed by James Wyatt in the 1780s for the Browne family, later Marquesses of Sligo, whose Westport House provides the great Georgian mansion at the heart of the estate. The town's position at the foot of Croagh Patrick, the sacred mountain of Ireland's patron saint from whose summit the views encompass the entirety of Clew Bay and the islands that fill it, gives Westport a pilgrim dimension alongside its secular charms. The annual Reek Sunday pilgrimage to the summit of Croagh Patrick on the last Sunday of July attracts tens of thousands of pilgrims who ascend the quartzite cone in the tradition that has been maintained since St Patrick fasted on the summit in 441 AD. The Great Western Greenway, a 42-kilometre off-road cycling and walking trail from Westport to Achill Island following the former Midland Great Western Railway line through the Connaught landscape, provides one of the finest greenway experiences in Ireland. The combination of the town's Georgian quality, the pilgrimage mountain, the greenway and the extraordinary bay landscape makes Westport one of the most rewarding towns in the west of Ireland.

Clare Island stands at the mouth of Clew Bay off the coast of County Mayo, a substantial island of approximately 16 square kilometres accessible by ferry from Roonagh Quay that combines dramatic Atlantic coastal scenery, an important medieval tower house associated with the pirate queen Grace O'Malley, a Cistercian abbey with remarkable medieval painted ceiling and the finest sea cliffs in County Mayo in one of the most scenically and historically rewarding island visits available on the west coast of Ireland. The tower house at the harbour is associated with Gráinne Mhaol, Grace O'Malley, the sixteenth-century pirate chieftain and sea queen whose control of the maritime routes of Clew Bay and her defiance of English authority made her one of the most celebrated figures in Irish history. Grace O'Malley's career as a pirate, merchant and political leader, culminating in her famous meeting with Queen Elizabeth I in 1593, has made her the subject of numerous books, plays and cultural celebrations, and Clare Island as the seat of her power is a place of considerable cultural pilgrimage. The Cistercian abbey on the island contains medieval wall paintings of remarkable quality, depicting figures, animals and decorative motifs in a freshness of colour that survives from the medieval period in unusually good condition. The abbey was the burial place of Grace O'Malley and the combination of the painted interior and the O'Malley connection makes it one of the most historically resonant small religious buildings in Connacht.

Croagh Patrick, known as the Reek by the people of Mayo, is Ireland's holiest mountain, a quartzite cone rising to 764 metres above Clew Bay in County Mayo whose annual pilgrimage on the last Sunday of July attracts tens of thousands of pilgrims in a tradition of Christian devotion that has been maintained for over 1,500 years. St Patrick is believed to have fasted on the summit for forty days in 441 AD, and the tradition of barefoot ascent that many pilgrims maintain connects the modern observance with the penitential practices of the earliest Irish Christianity. The view from the summit of Croagh Patrick across Clew Bay, with its extraordinary collection of approximately 365 drumlin islands created by the last Ice Age glacier, and across the full extent of Connacht visible on clear days from the Mayo mountains to the Galway coast, is one of the finest in Ireland. The ascent, a serious mountain walk of approximately two to three hours, involves considerable height gain on a rocky path that becomes a pilgrimage route of intense focus on Reek Sunday when the summit is crowded with walkers of all ages and degrees of fitness. The modern visitor centre at the foot of the mountain provides interpretation and the small chapel near the summit provides the spiritual focus for the pilgrimage. The view of Croagh Patrick from the south shore of Clew Bay at sunset, the perfect cone reflected in the still water of the bay, is one of the most frequently reproduced images of the Mayo landscape.

Cong is a picturesque village in County Mayo at the narrow isthmus between Lough Corrib and Lough Mask, a settlement of considerable charm whose combination of the ruined Augustinian abbey, the dry canal that was never completed, the extensive cave and swallow hole system and the extraordinary setting beside the grounds of Ashford Castle creates one of the most atmospherically rewarding small villages in Connacht. The village achieved worldwide cultural visibility as the principal filming location for John Ford's 1952 film The Quiet Man and the filming associations have become the dominant tourism narrative. Ashford Castle, the luxury hotel on the edge of the village, is one of the grandest and most celebrated castle hotels in Ireland, a Victorian Gothic castle set in extensive grounds on the shores of Lough Corrib that was developed from the original castle of the de Burgo family and subsequently expanded by the Guinness family in the late nineteenth century into the palatial hotel complex it remains today. The castle grounds and the lough shore are accessible to visitors who wish to see the exterior setting without the hotel tariff. The Augustinian Abbey of Cong, founded in the twelfth century and among the finest Romanesque monastic ruins in Connacht, provides the historical dimension to a village whose character is equally shaped by the natural landscape of the isthmus between the two great Connaught loughs. The system of underground rivers connecting the two lakes and emerging at various swallow holes and caves around the village adds a geological interest to the Abbey ruins.

Located to the west of Shannon, Westport House overlooks Ireland's holy Croagh Patrick mountain, Clare Island and out over Clew Bay to the Atlantic Ocean beyond. The limestone house is built over three floors on an estate with formal gardens, terraces a lake and parkland, the estate also has the remains of an old boathouse open to the sea. The interior is particularly fine with intricate ceilings and Jamaican mahogany doors. Facilities Westport House is considered one of the most beautiful historic houses in Ireland and is open to the public between May and October, 10am and 5.30pm daily (Sundays and Bank Holidays only in May) The house and estate offers something for every visitor, from the beautiful rooms on show within the house to a family playground and even a campsite in the woodland. Inside the house some of the rooms display a selection of their original contents including portraits and landscapes, a collection of silver, Waterford glass and historic Irish books in the library. Visitors also have the opportunity to visit part of the original castle belonging to Grace O'Malley which is now in the basement or the dungeons as they are known. In the grounds families can enjoy the Pirate's Den an adventure playground with log flume, pirate ship, mini railway and an indoor soft play area. The house also has its own bar and cafe in the old farmyard named after the pirate queen it is the venue for live music most weekends. Westport House also hosts wedding receptions. Champagne receptions start in the entrance hall with its sweeping staircase and the drawing room or the long gallery; seating up to 90 guests, being used for dining. For those with a larger amount of guests a grand marquee is set up on the lawns. The house was built on the site of an original castle belonging to Grace O'Malley, the 'Pirate Queen'. The original eastern façade was designed by Richard Cassels a famous German architect in 1730 for Colonel John Browne, the husband of Maude Burke, the great great granddaughter of Grace O'Malley. During the Williamite wars much of the estate was confiscated and when Colonel Browne died his grandson; also called John and later becoming 1st Earl of Altamont, inherited an estate of just a few hundred acres. The estate was improved by succeeding generations who now also had the title of Marquees of Sligo, creating a lake and planting trees as well as employing James Wyatt to build a further three facades and two wings and decorate the gallery and dining room. In 1845 during the famine the estate closed and the 3rd Marquess was forced to borrow and use his saving to help his tenants for which he was awarded the Order of St Patrick. In 1960 the 10th Marquess and his family opened the house and grounds to the public for the first time and since then it has been developed as a major tourist attraction with current occupant being Jeremy Browne, 11th Marquess of Sligo and his family. The Arts Outdoor family theatre productions are held in the grounds during the summer.

Rockfleet Castle; or Carraigahowley Castle as it was sometimes known, is situated at the mouth of a small inlet on the northern shores of Clew Bay, 5 miles from Newport on the north west coast of Ireland. The castle is a small square defensive tower house, built over 4 floors and over 60 feet in height. The site consists of a tower house with a rectangular corner parapet set in open ground. The top floor is reached by a spiral staircase made of stone and is the only room with a fireplace. The castle was built in a medieval style and is one of five along the shores of Clew Bay. Facilities Rockfleet Castle is open to the public during the summer, it also possible to take a trip into the bay by fishing boat from the nearby pier. From the sea you can see how well the castle was placed to keep watch over the bay The castle was built in the mid 16th Century and home to Grace O'Malley the 'Pirate Queen' and her husband Richard Burke 'Richard of Iron' from 1566. Grace was the leader of the O'Malley clan and controlled much of the west coast in the late 1500's. She had a fleet of 20 ships moored at Rockfleet which she used to raid cargo ships along the channel and was also responsible for capturing some of the dispersed ships from the Spanish Armada. She remained at RockfleetCastle after the death of her husband in 1583 but it was not long afterwards that the English successfully captured some of the O'Malley fleet along with Grace's brother. Grace appealed directly to Queen Elizabeth for his release and negotiated that she would forfeit her ships in return for her brother. The Queen granted Grace what she had asked for and allowed her to keep her vessels on the condition that she fought with, rather than against the English, which she did until her death in 1603 when she was buried on Clare Island nearby. Following the Civil War Sir Owen O'Malley a diplomat and descendent of Grace restored the castle and lived nearby in a Georgian house. The latest owner is the former American ambassador to Ireland.

Achill Island off the northwest Mayo coast is the largest island off the Irish coast, connected to the mainland by a bridge and offering some of the most dramatic and most unspoiled Atlantic landscape in Ireland. The combination of the great sea cliffs of Croaghaun, the magnificent beaches of Keem Bay, Dugort and Keel, the bogland and mountain walking and the character of the Irish-speaking Gaeltacht communities that have traditionally inhabited the island creates a destination of exceptional variety and emotional power. The Croaghaun cliffs on the west coast of the island are among the highest sea cliffs in Europe, rising approximately 688 metres from the Atlantic in a near-vertical face that rivals the more famous Cliffs of Moher while being far less visited and far more dramatically exposed. The approach on foot across the open bog of the island's western section adds to the sense of arriving at an edge of the world, and the views from the cliff top along the Atlantic coast in both directions are among the finest in Ireland. Keem Bay at the western tip of the island, enclosed beneath the great cliffs and accessed by a spectacular clifftop road, provides one of the most beautiful and most sheltered beaches in Connacht, its clear turquoise water and fine sand creating an Atlantic beach experience of exceptional quality in a setting quite unlike the more accessible beaches of the east coast.

Keem Bay at the western tip of Achill Island in County Mayo is widely regarded as the most beautiful beach in Ireland, a small arc of brilliant white sand enclosed beneath the dramatic shark's fin profile of Croaghaun mountain and accessible only by the spectacular clifftop road that provides the most dramatic beach approach drive available in Ireland. The combination of the beach quality, the extraordinary mountain setting, the clear turquoise water and the complete absence of commercial development creates a beach experience of exceptional beauty and wildness in one of the most remote accessible corners of the Wild Atlantic Way. The beach faces northwest into the Atlantic Ocean and the clarity of the water, combined with the white sand beneath, creates the turquoise colour characteristic of the finest Atlantic beaches in conditions that belong more to the Caribbean in popular imagination than to the west coast of Ireland. The water is cold throughout the year but the beach provides excellent swimming in calm conditions during the summer months when the Atlantic is at its warmest. The road to Keem Bay from the Achill Sound end of the island traverses the full dramatic length of Achill, the clifftop sections above the Atlantic providing a driving experience of remarkable scenic intensity. The combination of the road journey and the beach destination creates one of the most complete and most rewarding coastal experiences available on the Wild Atlantic Way.