Top Things to do in Western Ireland
What to do and see in Western Ireland, Ireland: The Best Gardens
Discover the best top things to do in Western Ireland, Ireland including Woodville Walled Garden, Away With The Fairies, Kylemore Abbey & Victorian Walled Garden, Brigit's Garden & Cafe, Coole-Garryland Nature Reserve, Mayo Memorial Peace Park, Achill Secret Garden, Circle of Life National Organ Donor Commemorative Garden, Westport House & Gardens, Lough Rynn Gardens.
Restaurants in Western Ireland
1. Woodville Walled Garden
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 50 reviews
Woodville is home to a restored walled garden along with a museum outlining the fascinating connection to Lady Augusta Gregory at Woodville. Come for a visit to this romantic secret garden in the West of Ireland and enjoy the sights, scents and colours contained within the original stone walls.During your time with us you will be able to see what an important role this historical walled garden once played, supplying the house with vegetables, fruit and flowers all year round.
Reviewed By johndW571WQ
despite it being the end of season in terms of seeing it in its true splendor a month earlier before first frost would have been the business as the majority of the colour was frodt damaged dahlias etc roses struggling and all the fruit picked you could still see the range of plants and the level of worked to be done to keep iot up to the level it is at with only one permament gardener and a lot of voluntary help. the new tunnell should help to add to the range of plants on sale and a splash of annual colour and extend the ranger of plants adequate shop and cafe and a nice woodland walk for the more energetic
2. Away With The Fairies
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 4 reviews
Discover our magical fairy garden nestled in the beautiful Slieve Aughty mountains. Wander around and see how many fairies you can spot! You will discover Hobbiton, toadstool town and gnome quarry as well as our magical wishing well. You can also browse the hundreds of beautiful products in our fairy shop.
Reviewed By 722aislingr
Away with the Fairies is a lovely fairy garden based in the heart of the beautiful countryside beside the owner's home and fairy workshop. The owner Rachel was so welcoming and showed us around while also leaving us to explore all of the garden's features at our own pace. I brought a 2 year old girl and she didn't want to leave! They have a small dog named Bob who is very triendly and cat who loves to laze on the fairy house's roof much to the 2 year old's amusement! It is a lovely place to spend an hour with smallies and the shop has a fantastic range of fairy doors, houses and accessories, it was very hard to choose one! A highlight was writing a letter to the fairies and posting it in the post box.
3. Kylemore Abbey & Victorian Walled Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 3,429 reviews
Set in a dramatic landscape, Kylemore is an ideal destination for a day out. From its beginnings as a romantic gift in the 1860s to becoming home to the Benedictine Nuns in 1920, Kylemore is steeped in history and tales of tragedy, romance, engineering initiatives, model farms, royal visits, spirituality, and education. Experience the Victorian atmosphere of the restored rooms of the Abbey and neo-Gothic church. Explore the magical Victorian Walled Garden, nature trails and woodland walks. History talks and Garden tours throughout the summer. Dine-in Mitchells Cafe or the Garden Tea House or treat yourself to crepes and ice cream at our Express Cafe. Explore our magical Fairy Village and say hello to our Connemara Ponies and pet rare breed pigs. Shop for unique handcrafted gifts including chocolate, pottery, and beauty products handmade on site. So much to see, do, and discover!
Reviewed By DERtravels - Upland, United States
We had only two hours to enjoy this vast 15,000 acre property. It was not enough. Please take your time to enjoy all there is to be seen. Once a hunting lodge, Mitchell Henry created an iconic castle for his wife Margaret. The property was so vast it included the home for tenants who provided services for the property. Over 300 people. This estate was home to the Duke and Duchess of Manchester for a time and then a speculator purchased it in 1914. Eventually it became those to a group of Benedictine nuns who fled Europe. In 1923 it became a boarding school until 2010, There is the Abbey (home) to tour, the walled Victorian Garden to stroll, two churches to visit and hiking routes. The Visitor center has a very nice self-service restaurant. We enjoyed a ham sandwich, salmon quiche, beet salad and apple pie. There is also an extremely nice Craft Shop and Pottery studio. Items can be shipped home. The grounds are accessible from the Galway City bus station. Call the Kylemore visitor centre for details.
4. Brigit's Garden & Cafe
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 296 reviews
Update April 2021: Open daily. The award-winning Celtic Gardens are widely regarded as one of the most spectacular in Ireland, set within 11 acres of native woodland & wildflower meadows. In addition to the Celtic Gardens visitors can enjoy the nature trail, an ancient ring fort (fairy fort), thatched roundhouse and crannog, and the calendar sundial, the largest in Ireland. The Garden Cafe specialises in high quality fresh food, using the best local produce with salads and herbs from the Gardens. Try our chef's seasonal dishes and delicious home-baking. Relax in our light-filled dining area overlooking the Gardens or dine al fresco on the patio. There is no fee into the Cafe or Gift Shop.
Reviewed By irelandwestgalway - Galway, Ireland
Great experience enjoyed equally by my 5 and 13 year old. A visit to Mrs Claus is essential get there early. Found this to be a smaller group than the main Santa show and 5 year old loved the interaction. Santa show is great too just a bigger room and bigger crowd. Beautiful themes throughout the experience of storytelling and music. Beautiful gardens to explore even on a cold winters day and the treasure hunt was a great way to encourage exploration. Spiced apple punch on arrival delicious. Cakes and mince pies in the cafe also yummy.
5. Coole-Garryland Nature Reserve
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 262 reviews
Coole-Garryland Nature Reserve is at the centre of a rare and complex wetland system that is considered to be of global importance. The system includes underground rivers, seasonal lakes (turloughs), springs and swallow holes. Situated in the low-lying karstic limestone region west of Gort, Co Galway, the nature reserve covers an area of approximately 400 hectares where wetland and woodland meet. It has many quiet walks to enjoy. Coole Park, in the early 20th century, was the centre of the Irish Literary Revival. William Butler Yeats, George Bernard Shaw, John Millington Synge and Sean O’ Casey all came to experience its magic. They and many others carved their initials on the Autograph Tree, an old Copper beech still standing in the walled garden today. At that time it was home to Lady Gregory, dramatistand folklorist. She is perhaps best known as a co-founder of the Abbey Theatre with Edward Martyn of nearby Tullira Castle and Nobel prize-winning poet William Butler Yeats.
Reviewed By rubylass
Beautiful and well worth a visit. Another free gem in Ireland. Such a peaceful and stunning part of Galway. We wandered around for a few hours and came across a lovely walled garden, a great Autograph Tree with autographs of Ireland’s great poets and authors, woodland paths and a Great Lake that inspired William Butlers The Wild Swans at Coole. There was ample parking and as we had buggies we walked the family woodland trail which was about 1.7km all on tarmac paths so it was really accessible with buggies. There was a lovely coffee shop but we didn’t visit it but it looked lovely. Toilets were clean and it was very easy to abide my social distancing due to the vast size of the place. We will be back
6. Mayo Memorial Peace Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 87 reviews
Reviewed By eamonng12345 - County Cork, Ireland
Well worth a visit to see the ultimate scarifice paid by strong minded and thankless individuals. These names are someones Son, Daughter, Father, Mother, Brother, Sister, Husband & Wife. They are more than a name, they are more than a memory of better times. We should be eternally thankful rom a greatful nation for their service and dedication and ultimate scarifice .
7. Achill Secret Garden
8. Circle of Life National Organ Donor Commemorative Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 205 reviews
A remarkably beautiful stone sculpted national commemorative garden to commemorate and celebrate the lives and generosity of spirit of organ donors. Its inclusive and welcoming design and aura of mysticism and healing provide a very special place to remember and reflect on loved ones. Its richness of imagery, symbolism and sentiment offers an inspirational and memorable visitation experience for all ages. Convenient to parking and hospitality facilities, served by public transport.
Reviewed By Barbarbar63 - Galway, Ireland
wonderful place to walk around and reflect on life or passed friends. Easy access for people with reduced mobility.
9. Westport House & Gardens
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 745 reviews
Known as “Ireland’s Most Beautiful Home”, Westport House has a story that matches its beauty. One of the few still privately-owned historic houses left in Ireland, Westport House was built by the Browne family whose connections to Mayo date back to the 1500s and even relates them to the trail-blazing pirate queen and chieftain, Grace O’Malley. A visit to Westport House will tell the story of the development of the house as well as the family’s contribution to the estate and surrounding area. We hope you’ll enjoy the tales of pirates and slave emancipators as you gain a fascinating insight into the families behind the big house as well as the members of staff who made it all possible. Families can also visit the onsite Pirate Adventure Park. Keep an eye on its vibrant Events Calendar. Or book a stay in onsite Hotel Westport, hire a bell tent or bring your own to the Caravan & Camping Park.
Reviewed By 192marilyns - Hinckley, United Kingdom
A good description by the new owners, the Hughes family, who are doing an excellent job in protecting and restoring this beautiful house and the magnificent landscaped gardens surrounding it. A reasonably priced entrance fee gives you access to 6 permanent historically based exhibitions and allows you to freely explore 30 rooms over three floors with most items original to the house from the 18th century. Don't be afraid to visit the dungeon (incorporating the remains of pirate queen Grace O'Malley's 16th century castle) - it is easy to access and quite spacious and well-lit. Also in the basement is a cafe located in the original kitchen so you get to enjoy some very reasonably priced tasty goodies and a lovely pot of tea whilst gazing at the remarkable Victorian cast iron range and vast array of copper cookware. Toilet facilities are also located on the lower basement floor and are clean, spacious and again part of the old house - so worth a visit!
10. Lough Rynn Gardens
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