150 Cool and Unusual Things to Do in Ireland - Atlas Obscura

Unusual
Attractions
in Ireland

Dublin, Ireland

The Long Room Library at Trinity College

The gorgeous library at Trinity College is home to remarkable treasures of Irish identity.

Skellig Michael

Perfectly preserved ancient monastery in an impossibly dramatic location on a rocky island in the Atlantic.

The Glen

A tiny microvalley etched into the side of Knocknarea Mountain hides another world.

Dublin, Ireland

St. Michan's Mummies

An Irish church where you can shake hands with an 800 year old mummy.

Kilkenny, Ireland

Dunmore Cave

This Irish show cave is said to have been the site of a Viking massacre that claimed 1,000 lives.

Newgrange

The ancient tomb acts as a calendar that keeps perfect time.

Skibbereen, Ireland

Irish Sky Garden

This floating garden in the sky is straight out of a fairy tale, but the real thing is nothing short of magical.

Galway, Ireland

Brigit's Celtic Garden

The world of the ancient Celtic civilization explained through a bewitching 11 acre garden.

See All 150 Things to Do in Ireland See All 150 Places

Unique
Food & Drink
in Ireland

Stinging Nettles

Boil away this plant's poisonous hairs, and you're left with a tasty, spinach-like leaf.

Blaa Bread

This adaption of French refugee bread is now a protected Irish specialty.

Bog Butter

Unearthed after centuries in peat bogs, these blocks of aged dairy have an incredibly funky flavor.

Colcannon

A hearty Irish staple that can tell your fortune.

See all 9 things to eat in Ireland See all 9 things to eat in Ireland

Community Forums / U.K. & Ireland / Republic of Ireland

Top Discussions in the Republic of Ireland Travel Forum

Post	Replies	Views	Activity
Kilbrittain Whale	2 June 28, 2019	792	June 28, 2019
Rathcroghan	1 July 9, 2019	868	July 9, 2019
Ringfinnan Garden of Remembrance	1 June 25, 2019	559	June 25, 2019
Gap of Dunloe	1 June 28, 2019	880	June 28, 2019
The Glen	2 August 10, 2019	1254	August 10, 2019

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Stories
About Ireland

Jasper McCarthy outside of the pub established by his great-great-grandfather, Michael, in 1840.

Why Ireland's Pub Owners Have Long Moonlighted as Undertakers

It helps to have cold storage and room to hold a wake.

by Jessica Gingrich

October 29, 2019

Scottish Singles Used to Spend Halloween Picking Kale

The leafy green once foretold the future.

October 23, 2019

A 15th-century medical manuscript in Gaelic. No spaces here!

The Merriam-Webster of Medieval Irish Just Got a Major Update

A tiny group of scholars added 500 words and made 5,000 revisions to the Dictionary of the Irish Language.

by Sabrina Imbler

September 19, 2019

Fruitcake—something everyone gives, and no one wants.

The Fruitcake Prison Break That Reshaped Irish History

You'll never guess this dessert's key ingredient.

The view of one sculpture, “Cycles,” while inside of another, “Boora Convergence.”

How an Irish Bog Got a Second Life as a Sculpture Garden

At Lough Boora Discovery Park, visitors can meditate on the important role of these wetlands in Ireland.

The manuscript bound into the printed text.

Found: A Medical Manual Linking Medieval Ireland to the Islamic World

Knowledge transcends borders.

by Noor Al-Samarrai

The letters had been hidden beneath the gorse.

Ireland's Coast Has Giant, Hidden Signs Telling Pilots Where They Are

A wildfire has just uncovered one of these "Éire" signs from World War II.

by Sarah Laskow

The rings may have served as a kind of ancient currency.

Found: Mysterious Gold Ornaments, Buried in an Irish Country Field

The function of these ancient rings is not yet known.

by Natasha Frost

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