Éire · Ireland outdoors

Ireland's wild places,
and the best day to go.

Trails, beaches, forests and heritage in all 26 counties — gathered from Ireland's open data, joined up, and read against this week's Met Éireann forecast.

Kindest weather this week: County Carlow on Wed, 11 Nov — dry by day, light winds, up to 10°C

Choose a county This week's outdoor forecast

Trails & walks: 1,194
Beaches & bathing waters: 243
Forests & woodlands: 155
Heritage sites: 104
Parks, gardens & islands: 229

Choose a county

Where to go, and when

Each county is shaded by its best day outdoors this week. Pick one for its forecast and the trails, beaches, woods and heritage we'd try first.

Great
Good
Mixed
Wet or wild
Warning

Contae Cheatharlach

County Carlow

Best day outdoors: Wed, 11 Nov — dry by day, light winds, up to 10°C

Tue, 10 Nov7°Heavy rain
Wed, 11 Nov10°Scattered clouds
Thu, 12 Nov7°Scattered clouds
Fri, 13 Nov6°Clear weather sun

Trails 17

Forests 2

Heritage 2

Parks, gardens & islands 7

Everything outdoors in County Carlow →

Outdoor forecast

Where the weather is kindest this week

All 26 counties, day by day →

Trails & walks

Every waymarked route on Sport Ireland's register — loops, greenways, long-distance ways — with length, climb, time and dogs.

Trail · Co. Clare12 O'Clock Hills Looped Walks - Purple Route11.7 km3 hrChallengingLoopThis trail follows minor road, forest track, hard-cored pathway and boardwalk, with some muddy spots on forest sections, climbing steadily to the 12 O'Clock Hills peaks before continuing by Loughavarra Hill and along a…

Trail · Co. GalwayAghrane Castlekelly Loop4.1 km1 hr 45 minEasyLoopThis trail follows forest road and forest track through mixed commercial forest and beautiful parkland trees planted by the old estate with a wide diversity of species throughout the forest. You pass by the old estate…

Trail · Co. GalwayÁrann – Lúb Dún Eochla10 km3 hr 30 minModerateLoopThis walk follows roads and grass tracks from Kilronan pier to Eochaill and crosses the island, close to the highest point, returning by the 'coast' road on the other side and passing sites like Teampall Chiarain…

Trail · Co. DonegalArds Forest Park - Yellow trail2.5 km1 hr 30 minEasyLoopThis trail takes the walker on forest road through mixed age coniferous plantations past Rinnalack Hill and on to the shores of Lough Lilly. A small fen has developed here allowing white and yellow water lilies to…

All 1,194 trails & walks →

Beaches & bathing waters

Every bathing water the EPA monitors, with its water-quality record, warnings and the facilities that matter.

Beach · Co. KerryBaile an Sceilg (Ballinskelligs)Water quality: Excellent (2025)Blue FlagLifeguards in seasonToiletsBaile an Sceilg is a sandy beach backing onto Baile an Sceilg village. The beach is sheltered from Atlantic wave action by Horse island. It is exposed to southerly winds. The lands behind the beach are primarily a…

Beach · Co. CorkBá na hEornanBarley CoveWater quality: Excellent (2025)Blue FlagLifeguards in seasonToiletsBarley Cove Beach is a south facing sandy beach backing onto extensive sand dunes. It is located in Barley Cove Bay which provides some shelter to the beach and there is an extensive sand dune to the rear of the beach…

Beach · Co. ClareCappagh Pier, KilrushWater quality: Excellent (2025)Blue FlagLifeguards in seasonToiletsCappagh is a rocky beach with stones of up to 30cm and is located on the northern side of the small pier. Due to the stony nature of the beach, the number of plants and animals, which are found on the shoreline, is low…

Beach · Co. DonegalCúil DabhchaCuldaffWater quality: Excellent (2025)Blue FlagLifeguards in seasonToiletsCuldaff beach consists of a sandy beach with two rock outcrops at the south-east of the beach. The beach is contained to the west by sand dunes and to the north-west by the Culdaff River which has an extensive area of…

All 243 beaches & bathing waters →

Forests & woodlands

Coillte's forest parks and recreation woods: the trails inside them, where to park, and where to ride.

Forest · Co. LimerickBallyhouraForest park · 4169 ha22 trailsMountain bikingParking

Forest · Co. CorkGougane Barra Forest ParkForest park · 137 ha7 trailsParking

Forest · Co. CorkFarran Forest ParkForest park · 45 ha3 trailsParking

Forest · Co. DublinBarnaslingan Wood5 trailsParking

All 155 forests & woodlands →

Parks, gardens & islands

Island crossings, walled gardens, town parks and quieter beaches — Fáilte Ireland's nature places, without the tour operators.

Nature spot · Co. KerryAn Blascaod Mór - the Blasket IslandsIslandSail across the Blasket Sound and explore the now deserted villages on the stunning Blasket Islands off the coast of County Kerry.

Nature spot · Co. CorkBantry HarbourIslandTake in the beautiful landmarks that lie on the Beara Peninsula from Bantry Harbour in County Cork.

Nature spot · Co. WexfordCahore Point BeachBeachCahoreCahore Point Beach is located just beside the rural village of Cahore, County Wexford and is a which has a pier at one end. It is popular for water sports and is ideal for families.

Nature spot · Co. DonegalCionn Mhucrois (Muckros Head)BeachHead for a bracing cliff walk, go rock climbing or stop to take in the view of the wild Atlantic from the rugged peninsula of Muckros Head.

All 229 parks, gardens & islands →

Heritage in the landscape

UNESCO sites and the National Monuments Service's monuments to visit — abbeys, dolmens, ring forts, round towers.

Heritage site · Co. ClareBurren and Cliffs of Moher GeoparkUNESCO Global GeoparkDoolinJust to the north of the Cliffs of Moher you will find the Burren, a strange and beautiful karst landscape with its own extraordinary geological, natural and cultural distinctiveness. Together these two complimentary…

Heritage site · Co. LimerickAskeaton FriaryReligious houseMoig SouthAskeaton Friary is situated on the banks of the River Deel and was probably founded by the fourth Earl of Desmond, who was known as Gerald ‘the poet’, sometime around 1400. The friary was originally founded for the…

Heritage site · Co. MeathMainistir BheigthíBective AbbeyReligious houseBectiveBective Abbey overlooking the legendary River Boyne is the oldest Cistercian foundation in Meath and the second oldest in Ireland. It was founded in 1147 with an endowment from Murchad Ua Máel Sechnaill, who ruled over…

Heritage site · Co. SligoCarrowmore Megalithic CemeteryMegalithic tombCarrowmore (Carbury By.)This is the largest cemetery of megalithic tombs in Ireland and is also among the country's oldest, with monuments ranging from five and a half thousand to six and a half thousand years old. Archaeologists have recorded…

All 104 heritage sites →

From the journal

Stories from the field

Racing the Tide at Omey: Connemara's Beach Horse RacesOnce a year the Atlantic pulls back at Claddaghduff and a racecourse appears on the seabed. A field report from the 2026 Omey Races, the 1,500 years of history under the sand, and what it takes to run a meeting on a beach.

Read the journal →

Turn it into a weekend

Tell Winsome AI where and when, and it drafts a slow, nature-first itinerary you can refine — built around the places on this site.

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Ireland's wild places,and the best day to go.