Walking Holiday Destinations

Ireland’s west coast is raw, dramatic, and endlessly varied.

Walk the Kerry Way through towering mountain passes and quiet sheep farms. Stride the Dingle Peninsula along clifftops with nothing ahead but the Atlantic. Explore the Beara Peninsula — less-visited, more wild, and unforgettable.

Further north, the Burren offers something completely different: a pale limestone plateau scattered with ancient dolmens and rare wildflowers. Connemara brings bogland, glittering loughs, and the Twelve Bens rising sharply from the valley floor. Donegal closes the chapter with sea stacks, empty beaches, and the highest sea cliffs in Ireland.

This is Ireland at its most elemental.

History runs deep here — and so do the trails.

The Barrow Way follows one of Ireland’s oldest rivers through lush farmland, medieval villages, and canal-side towpaths. It’s gentle, green, and deeply restorative.

The Wicklow Way climbs into the Wicklow Mountains — Ireland’s largest upland area — and passes through wild moorland, ancient monastic ruins at Glendalough, and sweeping valley views. It’s the country’s oldest long-distance trail, and it earns that reputation.

To the north, the Cooley and Mourne Mountains bring legends to life. Walk ridge trails above Carlingford Lough where Celtic mythology and granite peaks meet in equal measure.

Northern Ireland surprises almost everyone who walks it.

The Antrim Glens roll down to the sea in broad green folds, each one quieter and more beautiful than the last. At the coast, the Giant’s Causeway stops you in your tracks — 40,000 hexagonal basalt columns stepping into the sea like something from a geological fever dream.

The Causeway Coast Way strings it all together: clifftop paths, rope bridges, and sweeping ocean views across to Scotland on a clear day.

Inland, the Sperrin Mountains offer wide open moorland, ancient standing stones, and almost total solitude. This is Northern Ireland for walkers who want to get properly off the beaten track.