Nestled on the west coast of Europe, Ireland offers something completely different from other European destinations like Spain and Italy. In this article, we’re going to look at one of the most popular routes that tourists take along the country’s west coast: the Wild Atlantic Way.
Galway
Ireland’s popularity as a place to visit and a culture to experience has been on the rise gradually since the 1990s. It can be seen not only in the number of tourists that flood the country every year but also in the entertainment industry, too. Countless television shows, such as Family Guy and The Office, regularly riff on Irish culture, while the movie P.S. I Love You was produced by Hollywood but set in Ireland. Moreover, in the iGaming sector, online bingo offers games like Clover Rollover Room, which give gamers the chance to play in an Irish-themed game and which hint at Ireland’s enduring popularity.
On the back of this popularity, Galway has developed into one of the best cities in the country. Galway City is a maze of pedestrianized streets, local music, and bars and restaurants, each one more traditional than the last. During the summer months, it’s thronged with visitors from all over the globe with an expected increase in 2024. While outside the city on the coast are the famous Cliffs of Moher, which sit hauntingly overlooking the rough Atlantic below.
Clare
A lot of the counties along the route are sparsely populated, and you could go a long time in Clare without seeing people or even houses, but some of the towns here are definitely worth visiting, especially if you go at the right time of the year.
Clare offers one of the most unique natural formations in Europe, in the Burren. Ailwee Caves are especially interesting and give visitors the chance to see stalactites, stalagmites, and waterfall formations that have been formed over thousands of years. Outside the caves, there are also limestone formations and prehistoric portal tombs to wow visitors.
Donegal
There is no doubt that Donegal, one of the biggest counties in the country, nestled in the northern part of the state, is one of the gems of the drive. The coast is spectacular and runs for hundreds of kilometers, because of the unique coastline. It has some of the best towns to enjoy food and nightlife with Buncrana, Bundoran, and Portsalon being some of the highlights.
Although we have already mentioned the Cliffs of Moher, Slieve League Cliffs are worth visiting in Donegal too. They stand at over 600 meters and are some of the tallest cliffs in Europe. The northernmost point of the country is somewhere that attracts visitors all year around – called Malin Head, it offers more spectacular views of the ocean.
Ireland may not have weather that is to everyone’s liking, nor the prices to make it an easy place to get by on a shoestring budget, but one thing it guarantees is beautiful scenery and some interesting history. So for your next trip, you could go further wrong than booking a trip to the Emerald Isle.
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