I generally like to take my vacations in slightly unlikely locations, but for a while Ireland had been calling my name. I have always been drawn to the British Isles (don’t ask me about my Poldark habit or my unwavering dedication to all BBC crime series) – the coziness of a cup of tea or warming whiskey, fireplaces, sheep, Wellington boots, charming accents, dramatic coastal landscapes, THE LIST OF CLICHÉS GOES ON AND ON. And so, probably using a great many of these clichés in my sales pitch, I somehow convinced my parents to spend “Spring Break” not on a beach but on the Emerald Isle.

Dublin is, indeed, a very easy way to spend a long weekend if you’re looking for a cheap-to-get-to European destination. And if you stay in the Grafton Street area, you can have access to all the shamrock T-shirts and leprechaun magnets and bottles of Jameson and other tourist treats your heart desires. Bearing this in mind, when plotting out my 9-day Ireland itinerary I made an effort to make this trip a little less obvious– to see as much of the so-called “real” Ireland as I possibly could. To skip some of the over-touristed sights for those a little more wild. I confidently booked the carefully selected accommodations in the three areas I’d chosen, but in the weeks leading up to the trip I began to get nervous. When I told friends I was heading off to Ireland they told me to make sure I drove the Ring of Kerry and saw the Cliffs of Moher. I started to get embarrassed that these attractions, while I’m sure spectacular, were not on the to-do list.

In retrospect, I’m so pleased that I stuck to my guns and saw Ireland the way I wanted to. It’s a stunningly beautiful and endlessly charming country, but nine days could not do it justice, and I’ll have to go back to see more. For now, I’m grateful that I saw some of the spaces between- the quieter, more remote parts of Ireland where there were fewer tourist buses and more sheep with spray-painted butts. Where the landscape wasn’t green so much as golden and craggy. Where people took a real pride in showing visitors their homes and their food. Where I could secretly pretend to live in a manor house and live out my Downton Abbey fantasies without judgment.

You know Ireland is going to be gorgeous, even if it rains the entire time you’re there. For the record, it only rained ONE DAY on our trip, and it was just a drizzle. But the thing that surprised me the most was the food. While in my research I’d read that Irish food was having a bit of a renaissance, I was not prepared for what was waiting for me every single day of this trip. It was, I think, one of the best, if not THE best food trip I’ve ever done. The food was fresh beyond belief, prepared creatively but with a nod to tradition and this was true from the fanciest, hard-to-get-reservations-at spots to the hole-in-the-wall pubs where we popped in for lunch. Plus- while my father was initially disappointed we weren’t vacationing in a place where we could tour vineyards, the wine lists at these restaurants were thoughtful, unexpected and incredibly well priced, to boot!

I wouldn’t be doing my duty to you if I didn’t address one teeny tiny item you need to think about, which is the driving. The only thing I don’t miss about my trip to Ireland is watching my life flash before my eyes every time we got in the car. The Irish country roads are incredibly narrow (frankly only large enough for 1.5 cars, not 2), full of hairpin turns, littered with carefree, roaming sheep and graced with speed limits far beyond what anyone in their right mind should be traveling at. Add to this potent mixture the fact that if you’re from the US you’ll be driving on the wrong side of the road. Even if you are a good driver, gauging the distance between your new spot on the right side of the car and the left side of the car which is inevitably traveling at high speeds next to a rock wall is incredibly difficult when another car comes barreling towards you on the other side. Probably for this reason, car insurance on your Irish rental is steep, and your American credit card insurance likely will not cover it (American Express, for example, excludes Ireland). But Chase Sapphire Preferred and Reserve do provide primary rental insurance here, which is a good thing because we, along with many other families we saw returning their cars to Avis, got scratches.

With that cautionary tale behind us, I urge you wholeheartedly to check out Ireland. It’s a short flight away and it offers up true relaxation in a way that my other recent destinations just have not- an opportunity to slow down, look around, get to know people and make jokes with literally everyone you meet about the driving conditions. It’s also an opportunity to eat more scones in one sitting than you would ever consider doing in your so-called real life, and piling each one high with legendary Irish butter and homemade jam. Eat seafood that just came off the trawler across the street, stand on a pebbled beach looking out into the vast ocean with the wind whipping your hair, buy more handmade wool products than one person needs in a lifetime, realize that a place you thought was a little clichéd is actually revelatory, haunting and leaving a permanent mark on you.

This was our 9-day itinerary:
Dublin
Kilkenny (day trip)
East Cork
Connemara

Dublin

I’ll be honest, I was a little nervous that Dublin would disappoint. I’d heard others say they’d expected more of a “Little London” and that there wasn’t much to do. Suffice it to say, this was not the experience I had at all. Sure, it’s not Rome, busting at the seams with must-see attractions, but it’s a charming, friendly city that’s just the right size to get to know in a few days. If you’re a committed sight-seer and don’t want to miss anything, I think 2.5 days (if you’re arriving on the morning/mid-afternoon of the first) is perfect. I’ll admit we did very little touristing here and were content instead to merely wander, popping into stores and seeing what was around the next corner. So take this itinerary with that disclaimer, and if the Book of Kells and the Guinness Storehouse are must-sees for you, then definitely get those on your list.

Where We Stayed:
Number 31. I did what felt like endless research on Dublin accommodations. The city’s “top” hotels are clustered near St. Stephen’s Green, bordering right on tourist central, and while the location seemed ideal, they all seemed a little tired looking to me, especially for the price. Instead, I stumbled across Number 31 and became almost immediately obsessed. Number 31 is more of a guesthouse, comprising two connected townhouses and run by amazing hosts Deirdre and her husband Noel. It’s in the Ballsbridge neighborhood, which is a few minutes’ walk from St. Stephen’s Green, but away from the hustle and bustle of Grafton Street and in the gorgeous Georgian section of Dublin (row houses and stone buildings galore). This may not be the best choice for anyone who has trouble navigating stairs (there are many, and no elevator) but if you don’t mind the vertical hike, you’ll fall in love. The decor is thoughtful, homey and classic. The breakfast is legendary and cooked to order in the dining room or on the sun porch. The hosts will help you figure out what you want to see and how to get there. You will feel taken care of in the best way, but not stifled. I highly, highly recommend this spot.

What We Ate:
Forest & Marcy. You must eat here. I came across Forest & Marcy by accident when planning our reservations. I called Forest Avenue, the highly acclaimed, tasting menu-driven restaurant down the street, six weeks in advance for a reservation and they were fully booked. Crushed, I was lamenting while perusing their website and noticed they had a newer sister restaurant, Forest & Marcy, nearby that got excellent reviews. I stalked them (they take reservations exactly one month in advance, mark your calendar!) and got us seats in the very tiny restaurant for Saturday night. Forest & Marcy is technically a wine bar – so expect a great wine menu – but the food is spectacular, and on the weekend they are tasting menu only. It. Is. Outstanding. We are a pretty jaded group of diners, but we ooh’ed and aah’ed over every course, all plays on Irish tradition in an extremely modern but still delicious way. I should also mention that the value is incredible for this level of dining sophistication. Forest & Marcy is teeny tiny and a buzzy place, so don’t expect to be whispering in a corner, but do expect to feel like you’re in on a neighborhood secret, and be prepared to have your taste buds blown.

The Bailey. We found ourselves here on our first afternoon in Dublin, hungry, a bit disoriented and bordering on cranky. Not expecting much from a bar adjacent to Grafton Street, we sat at a corner table and ordered just about every snack on the menu, a cheese plate and beers all around. We were pleasantly surprised! The food was consistently good, the cheese plate was particularly amazing, and we did a little whiskey tasting afterwards (Yellow Spot, Green Spot, Red Breast). I wouldn’t tell you that eating at The Bailey is a Must Do, but it’s a good example of the fact that even the spots in Dublin that don’t look like much are far better than they need to be, and if you find yourself here, order the cheese plate and get down to business.

The Hairy Lemon. Another pub I was expected very little from, another excellent meal. After a long morning of wandering, our hangry trio (are you seeing a pattern here?) found The Hairy Lemon in the late afternoon and sat down to look over the menu of Irish classics. We ordered some great beers with help from the pub’s owner, a very charismatic and friendly gent, and picked out some pies and a seafood chowder. AMAZING. This meal was our gateway into Irish seafood chowder, and we would proceed to keep a running tally comparing every one we ate. They were all outstanding. I’d highly recommend this spot for tasty beers and Irish food.

Fallon & Byrne Wine Cellar. Another question I got all the time in my planning was whether I’d be eating at Fallon & Byrne. The REAL Fallon & Byrne is a white-tablecloth French restaurant that sits above a gourmet food hall in the heart of Dublin. I’d heard great things about the place, but having secured Forest & Marcy reservations, it seemed like overkill to go all out two nights in a row when we had several more showstoppers coming over the next week. (Note: I am a glutton and can eat an all-out meal almost every day if I’m on vacation but my parents are much more reasonable people who force me to think a little bit outside of the box when figuring out how to give us a varied eating schedule that’s still delicious.) As a compromise, I decided we would have Sunday dinner at the wine bar in the basement of Fallon & Byrne. I loved the concept- it’s a wine store, so you can buy the wines to go or have them corked for you there, and there’s a casual food and wine menu for dining in. What a cozy place! This was such an awesome find. It was a chilly evening so we each ordered a different soup (note: the small is actually gigantic). The Mediterranean fish stew was a real winner, as was the excellent cheese board we gorged ourselves on, and the prices could not be beat. If you’re looking for some lower key, quality dining in Dublin, this is your spot.

Hartigan’s. I’m including Hartigan’s here as an example of something that’s worth your time to do. On Palm Sunday, we were strolling back to Ballsbridge after dinner and looking for a little whiskey. Most everything was closed, but about a block and a half from Number 31, we saw that Hartigan’s was open. You can tell from the outside that Hartigan’s is a local spot- a divey pub. We were a little intimidated but decided to give it a shot. I’m so glad we did because it demonstrated everything I came to love about Ireland the Irish. We walked in and there were 3 local guys sitting at the bar who immediately said hello and asked what we were doing there. We had a little chat with them and then struck up a great conversation with the bartender about Irish whiskey. We left Hartigan’s feeling like we’d just had a drink in someone’s home- we didn’t know at the time that this kind of hospitality was something we were about to experience all over the country. If you can, try to get out of Dublin’s Grafton Street tourist circus and duck into a local spot.

What We Did:
St. Stephen’s Green. This is Dublin’s Central Park, and it’s a beauty. Our weekend in Dublin was sunny and warm and the bright green grass of this park was literally draped in Dubliners sunning themselves. The gardens are absolutely gorgeous (the tulips are incredible) and there’s a lovely lake with swimming ducks. So much of Dublin is adjacent to this park, and it’s worth strolling through it as you explore the city.

Kilmainham Gaol. This former prison is across town, past the Guinness Storehouse, but within walking distance if you’re up for a good stroll. Today it’s a fascinating museum which you can visit as a walk-in, but if you want a tour of the prison itself, it’s absolutely essential that you book tickets in advance for your selected day and time. This is a fascinating visit if you’re into history and want some context for Dublin’s gritty past.

National Gallery of Ireland. One of my favorite things about Dublin is that its main museums are free, this one included! I don’t know about you, but I get a serious case of guilt visiting art museums. I really only have the attention span to look at art with interest for about an hour and a half, max. But having paid the entrance fee, I often feel as though I’m obligated to spend three hours there. Which is why I was grateful, even ecstatic, to discover that the National Gallery was free. We popped in, took our time looking through the permanent collection, skipped the special exhibition and went on our merry way.

National Museum of Ireland. This museum (also free) houses the infamous bog people. These bodies, which are thousands of years old, were discovered in Ireland’s many peat bogs and are basically mummified. They’re a little big gross (they look kind of like leather?) but the stories of how they were found and what scientists and historians have been able to put together about how these people got in the bogs in the first place is pretty fascinating.

St. Patrick’s Cathedral. It’s really hard for me to NOT visit a church, temple or mosque if I’m in a new city, so this was an obvious stop on our Dublin strolls. Set on a gorgeous green lawn, St. Patrick’s Cathedral is an imposing church whose spires can be seen peeking over the rest of the city’s buildings. The Gothic interior is beautiful, particularly the mosaic tiled floors that run throughout.

Avoca. The Avoca store gave us our first taste of Irish handicrafts, but certainly not our last. If anything, it sparked an insatiable desire for more and more wool products that none of us could reason with. The Dublin Avoca store is a multi-level paradise of gifts- clothing, housewares, a cafe on the top. Kind of like an Irish Anthropologie, but with more plaid. We stocked up on blankets and scarves here, and I found myself coveting a rustic tea set which I had to talk myself out of buying because 1) it couldn’t fly home with me and 2) I don’t drink tea.

Wandering. Dublin is generally a fabulous city for wandering. You’re going to want to do Grafton Street, the cobblestoned pedestrian area where you’ll find all manner of street musicians and shamrock paraphernalia and overpriced food. Swing into Temple Bar and then across the River Liffey to the north of the city. Wander into Ballsbridge for a taste of Georgian Dublin. Especially in the early evening, there’s live music everywhere you look, there are people pouring out of pubs with pints in their hands and there are so many quaint shops you’ll want to stick your head into. And in just a couple of days you can see quite a bit of this charming city.

Kilkenny

Bright and early on a Monday morning, after a second consecutive breakfast of perfect eggs benedict at Number 31, we said goodbye to our townhouse away from home and hit the road. Our ultimate destination was East Cork, but first we were headed towards the small city of Kilkenny where we’d spend a few hours out of our tiny car and have lunch. Kilkenny is very picturesque, with brightly painted pubs lining the winding roads. In fact, it’s literally filled with pubs. It’s also home to a castle and a couple of important churches, and is certainly a cute spot to spend an afternoon especially if you’re traveling between Dublin and southern Ireland.

What We Ate:
The Playwright. Eating lunch with my family is often the culmination of a slow progression of hunger and indecision that leaves us all with low blood sugar and high tension. Inevitably, we wait too long to eat and then try and find the PERFECT menu, and we’re hangry and frustrated. After visiting Kilkenny Castle, we were looking for a place to have lunch, comparing menus, unable to make a decision, and finally my mom made the executive decision that we’d be eating at The Playwright. We walked in the pub and sat down, expecting very little from this meal. But once again, we were blown away. The chowder was outstanding, the shepherd’s pie sumptuous, the cabbage and bacon spot on. Let’s just say that the food here is MUCH better than it needs to be, and the care that’s put into the food (and the pours, of course) is evident.

What We Did:
Kilkenny Castle. Ireland is packed to the brim with castles in varying degrees of ruin, but this one is picturesque and exactly what your brain comes up with when you think “castle.” It even has a moat, which really sold me. Kilkenny Castle takes about an hour to stroll through, and contains all your standard castle accoutrements- gold everything, vaulted ceilings, period furniture, stodgy portraits and a perfectly manicured lawn. If you’re into castles (and honestly, who isn’t?) this is one to put on your list.

St. Canice’s Cathedral. On the other end of Kilkenny from the castle, but still within walking distance, is the beautiful St. Canice’s, a site of worship for the past 800 years. Next to the church is a round tower, the oldest standing structure in Kilkenny, which you can climb for views of the city. The inside of the church is extremely informative- there’s a map that leads you around to various areas and objects and provides quite a bit of historical context. St. Canice’s also has a surprisingly great gift shop! Make sure you check hours before visiting as they close for lunch.

East Cork

Cork, spanning Ireland’s southernmost tip, is the country’s largest county and pretty much epitomizes what we all think of when “Ireland” comes to mind. It’s agricultural which means it’s incredibly green and lush, and it’s dotted with lots of grazing cows and sheep. It also covers a lot of Ireland’s southern coast, and is home to many charming fishing villages and, as a result, some great seafood. If you’re looking for a quintessential Irish experience relaxing in the countryside, Cork is a fantastic place to base yourself for a few days.

Where We Stayed:
Ballymaloe House. What can I say besides that I still have dreams about Ballymaloe? This legendary hotel, restaurant and cooking school is one of the main reasons I wanted to visit Ireland, and it had a lot riding on it for that reason. It exceeded expectations. Nestled deep in the countryside of eastern County Cork, Ballymaloe is a magical country manor run by the Allen family, whose matriarch Myrtle Allen is the foremother of seasonal, local cooking in Ireland. The cookery school is a few kilometers from the hotel, which is a huge, vine-covered home surrounded by fields and fields of grass, vegetables and fluorescent yellow rapeseed. Inside, Ballymaloe feels like home, if home is beautiful and sophisticated and caters to your every whim. There are no elevators, so be prepared for some stair climbing (the house is so massive you could easily get lost in it). The rooms are all named according to their particular quirks (we stayed in the Flower Room – you guessed it, very floral – and the Top Room, nestled in the eaves at the top of the house). The bedrooms are cozy and well-maintained with tons of very traditional character. Downstairs, there’s a roaring fire in the drawing room and a beautiful conservatory (straight out of the game Clue with black and white tiled floors) that’s perfect for drinking tea and eating cookies (definitely order some, the cookies are legendary) and playing cards. Your stay includes breakfast, which is quite an affair, with a made-to-order menu and carts and carts of scones, compotes, freshly baked bread…I could go on. To top it off, everyone at Ballymaloe is as friendly as can be, from the front desk to the sommelier to the maids. It’s a place that harkens back to a different time, in the best way possible, and it will surely charm your socks right off. I’m already planning to return for a cooking class in the future.

Where We Ate:
Ballymaloe House, where else? I’ll be honest, the original plan was to eat here on our first night and drive to another spot the second night, but no one wanted to drive that car on those roads in the dark of night, and our first meal at Ballymaloe blew our minds, so we decided to do it twice in a row! I will try to do these meals justice with only my words. If you’re staying at Ballymaloe, you have an automatic reservation for dinner if you let them know you’ll be dining there when you check in. The format is a set menu with five courses and it changes every day. All of the food we ate was utterly delicious and prepared with seasonal, local ingredients (fish from the nearby coast, meat and vegetables from neighboring farms, etc.) in a way that is simple and very focused on the high quality ingredients. The fish dishes in particular were outstanding. Dinner begins in the drawing room where you can order drinks and you’ll have your order taken for the evening (there are several choices for each course). Dinner itself takes place in several different beautifully decorated rooms. After dinner there is a cheese trolley and a dessert trolley. It is like living inside a foodie dream that takes place in a BBC series from the 19th century. My dad declared this the best meal he’d ever eaten. Truly the best part is that you can eat and drink until you’re about to explode and all you have to do is get yourself upstairs. On our second night at Ballymaloe, still stuffed from the night before, we planned to just order a la carte for dinner but as soon as we saw that night’s menu we couldn’t help ourselves and decided to do the full five courses all over again. I dare you to have more self-restraint!

What We Did:
Day Trip to Kinsale. The extremely quaint fishing town of Kinsale is about an hour from Ballymaloe, right on the southern coast. It’s a picture-perfect village filled with colorful houses, sailboats and a surprising number of fantastic restaurants for a town of its size. You can spend a good hour or two walking around Kinsale’s little winding streets, poking in shops filled with knit sweaters, and there’s an excellent walk from the town up to Charles Fort, which is a star fort located right on the edge of the water high on a hill over the town. The view is beautiful, and the history really interesting- there’s a small but thorough museum within that gives good context. Keep in mind that the entry fee is cash only! While there are some great spots to eat in town, if you do walk (or drive) to the fort, there’s also a great restaurant about an 8-minute walk down the hill from it- The Bulman Bar & Restaurant. We had a delicious lunch (fish is your obvious order here, be it chowder, fish & chips, etc.) right by the front window overlooking the harbor. Highly recommend.

Walking and Shopping at Ballymaloe. You can easily spend a couple of days just relaxing at Ballymaloe, even if you’re the type of person who likes to keep active. The front desk has maps of the property and can recommend good walking routes (and flag which roads are too busy and narrow for you to travel on foot).  The lawns are just beautiful, there is a bird sanctuary in the back of the main house with a pond, and beyond that are several fields with farm animals (we had a great time hanging with the pigs). There’s also croquet on the front lawn, a swimming pool and a tennis court. And if you get tired, there is always shopping- the Ballymaloe Shoppe, located right next to the main parking lot, is filled with things you’ll want to take home. We bought sweaters, aprons, cookbooks, jams, I could go on and on. I should also mention that there are several beautiful golf courses in the area if that’s up your alley.

Connemara

We left the green fields of Cork mid-week to head north, first making a pit stop in Doneraile, the town from which my great-grandfather emigrated- we were able to visit the graveyard where his father was buried (though not the tombstone, given wear and tear) and a beautiful manor house and garden, which a friendly local pushing golf clubs steered us towards. After getting our share of history, we continued north, through Limerick and Clare, and then passing the city of Galway before veering west and driving towards what feels increasingly like the end of the earth the further you go. The towns get smaller and smaller and fewer and farther between. The roads narrow even more (if that can be believed). The green fields of the south and east turn more golden, the terrain gets rockier and hillier. Mountains start appearing in the distance. Soon there are very few cars on the road and lakes and bogs come into view. Connemara is the wild west of Ireland, a desolate, eerie, beautiful place where there’s a lonely chill in the air. Oscar Wilde called it a “savage beauty.” It’s the land of sheep, who freely roam as far as the eye can see, often choosing to graze roadside just around a sharp turn. It’s also the land of fireplaces and whiskeys, to take that damp, windy edge off. When I close my eyes and think of Connemara, it’s a vision of a single sheep, backside spray painted red to delineate its herd, standing on a high rocky outcropping, staring into the remote nothingness. This is another side of Ireland, a place of adventure, and should not be overlooked.

Where We Stayed:
Ballynahinch Castle Hotel. About twenty minutes from the end of the westward road is Ballynahinch, a gorgeous estate sitting on many acres of woodland and a river filled with salmon. After navigating increasingly smaller roads, dodging increasingly audacious sheep for miles and miles, driving down the manicured driveway of this hotel and seeing its imposing towers rise about the treeline is heart-stopping. Ballynahinch is what I would call “outdoorsy luxury.” The rooms are beautifully made up. The linens, the bathrooms, the decor are all traditional but updated and stylish, and the views are wonderful (ours overlooked the river). There are chocolates on the pillows and branded glass water bottles. You’d be happy to just lounge in the gorgeous room all day if there weren’t other inviting common rooms to check out and a property to explore. And breakfast- BREAKFAST! It takes places in the main dining room (also known as the Owenmore restaurant), and offers a huge spread of breads, muffins and scones, plus local charcuterie and cheeses, PLUS eggs and pancakes to order. The muffins are famously delicious (my mom literally put these in her pockets). It’s such a pampered way to start the day. And to end the day, Ballynahinch has no shortage of cozy nooks and crannies to park yourself in with a good book- cozy armchairs, card tables, a dresser full of board games, a beautiful conservatory (at this point, I consider a home incomplete if it does not have a conservatory), a library and no fewer than three fires going at any given moment. Whiskeys and ports and champagnes will come to you in any of these places while you warm yourself by the fire, toast your good fortune and imagine that this is your real life. This is comfort at its finest.

Where We Ate:
Fisherman’s Pub. Very similar to what happened at Ballymaloe, we got very comfortable at Ballynahinch and it made us want to forget the harrowing driving we’d experienced outside its comfortable walls. So we decided to eat dinner there every night. Which was totally fine because it has two (TWO!) excellent restaurants. Both of which you’ll need a reservation for. We ate at the Fisherman’s Pub, the more rustic one, two nights in a row. There are two fireplaces (of course) and the room is covered in gleaming mahogany and many references to fly fishing, most of which were lost on me. The food is absolutely excellent- lamb burgers (which we ate, though a little sadly after seeing all the lambs on the hillsides), cured pork belly, absolutely incredible Connemara oysters, seafood chowder, local charcuterie and duck breast were just some of the meals we dove into. The service can be a bit “hands off” but this is a cozy place to get comfortable in and enjoy hearty food prepared with high quality local ingredients. Next to a roaring fire, of course.

Owenmore. The Owenmore is Ballynahinch’s fancy-pants restaurant, where we ate on our last night at the hotel. It’s a beautiful setting, very elegant with huge windows overlooking the river. The menu is set up much like Ballymaloe’s, with five courses that you choose at the beginning of the meal (we all got different ones to try each other’s) and a similar focus on using hyper-local ingredients, though in a more inventive and less classic way. The plating is absolutely stunning (I never ever take photos of food I’m eating at a restaurant but I did here, which made our server laugh, and I wasn’t sorry). More importantly, the food was excellent- I’d recommend the seafood dishes in particular. The service and wine list were both fantastic, and we had a great time eating here and toasting to the end of our trip.

O’Dowd’s. If there is one other place you eat nearby, make it O’Dowd’s. We found ourselves in Roundstone, about a 10-15 minute drive towards the water, one afternoon. Originally I’d been planning for us to have dinner here, but we decided to make it a lunch and I’m so glad we were able to. The seafood is probably some of the freshest you will eat in your life. It literally comes off a trawler across the narrow street. O’Dowd’s is a cozy, family-run spot with cheerful service and a menu of classics. We ordered beers all around (pints for some, half-pints for others) and shared a chowder (obviously) and the Fisherman’s Platter which tasted like it had just come out of the ocean, because it had, and had us all groaning over how incredibly good it tasted. If you like seafood, do not miss a chance to eat here.

What We Did:
The Great Outdoors. Ballynahinch has no shortage of outdoor opportunities for every kind of adventurer. There’s fly fishing. There are bicycles you can rent (we were so tempted but see above and all throughout this post re: terrifying roads). There is clay shooting. For those looking for something simpler and requiring less commitment, there is hiking. We did a lot of this. There are maps at the front desk and several different walks you can do, including through forests and along the river. The views are spectacular and you’ll be on your own for the most part. Trails are well marked and all of these walks are short but can be incorporated together into something longer if you’d like.

Kylemore Abbey. About 30 minutes from Ballynahinch is Kylemore Abbey, a gorgeous Benedictine monastery and former manor house set on a beautiful lake. While there aren’t many rooms in the house open to visitors, you’ll get a great sense of the love story that home was built on and the tragedy that followed. There is also a beautiful Victorian walled garden on the grounds which is in the process of being fully restored after falling into ruin, and a Gothic chapel built for the owner’s wife after her death. This is definitely a good spot to spend a couple of hours if you are into history (and scenery, it’s stunning).

Clifden and Roundstone. There are several small towns dotting the coastline around Ballynahinch, and Roundstone (to the south) and Clifden (all the way west) are two worth checking out. Both are typical seaside Irish towns with good views, pebbly, windswept beaches and cute shops and pubs to check out. In Roundstone, be sure to eat at O’Dowd’s for great seafood, and check out Roundstone Ceramics, which is located in a cluster of craft shops (others sell jewelry and musical instruments)- we got some great pieces which we lugged home!

Sky Road. There is no shortage of spectacular drives along Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way but the Sky Road is one of the most dramatic and scenic portions. You can pick the road up from Clifden (there’s a map in town that shows you a few different routes of various lengths depending on how excited you are to drive the narrow roads) and the routes are pretty well marked. Make sure to take it very slow and keep your camera out- there are stunning vistas at every hairpin turn of oceans and cliffs, and you’ll want to catch every moment!

Avoca Store. Yes, another Avoca store. It’s located a few miles past Kylemore Abbey and we used this as an opportunity to buy a bunch more stuff that we didn’t need before heading home to New York. It’s a freestanding store filled with home goods, clothes, tons of wool, many tweed jackets, and some crafts and art. Definitely worth checking out if you are feeling the urge to shop.