Visiting the Islands of Ireland

Did you know that Ireland is the third largest island in Europe? While a small country with a population of just over 4.5 million people, it has a breath-taking landscape which is world renowned. What is not as known about its landscape is that off its shores lie about 80 other smaller islands of significant size and approximately 20 of these smaller islands are inhabited. The largest of these islands is Achill Island which is off the west coast of Ireland.

These islands have a rich and unique heritage. These range from; breathtaking scenery, ancient ruins, loop walks, bird, seal and whale spotting, festivals, regattas, cultural weekends and much more. Many of these islands are Irish speaking regions called ‘Gaeltachts’ where the local dialect is spoken as well as English.

The larger island clusters range from the ‘Donegal Islands’ in the northwest, to the trio of ‘Aran Islands’ further down the west coast. They also include the ‘Mayo and Galway Islands’, also on the west coast and moving further south to the ‘Kerry Islands’ (including the world famous Skelligs) and the ‘Cork Islands’. For a detailed look at what each island has to offer for visitors, have a look at this infographic created by Murphy of Ireland.

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