Counties Mayo & Sligo

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Landscape with mountains and ocean at Keem beach. Achill, Ireland

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Overview

Despite their natural wonders and languid charm, counties Mayo and Sligo remain a well-kept secret, offering all of Ireland's wild, romantic beauty but without the crowds. Mayo is the more rugged of the two, with scraggy peaks, sheer cliffs, heather-covered moors and beautiful offshore islands where life is dictated by the elements. Sligo is more pastoral and its lush fields, fish-filled lakes and flat-topped mountains inspired William Butler Yeats to compose some of Ireland's most ardent verse.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

Ballintubber Abbey

County Mayo

Imposing Ballintubber Abbey is the only church in Ireland founded by an Irish king that remains in use. It's reputed to have been established in 1216 next…

Dun Briste

County Mayo

An astonishing sea stack that's lashed by foaming sea, Dun Briste is Mayo's top natural sight. Legend attests that St Patrick drove all the vipers from…

Céide Fields

County Mayo

An exposed hillside 8km northwest of Ballycastle is home to one of the world's most extensive Stone Age monuments. So far stone-walled fields, houses and…

Clare Island Abbey

County Mayo

The chancel roof of 13th-century Clare Island Abbey is dotted with faded fragments of murals, dating from around 1500. Look out too for the tomb reputed…

National Museum of Country Life

County Mayo

The extensive and engrossing displays of this riverside museum delve into Ireland's fascinating rural traditions and skills. It's set in a modern,…

St Mary's Well

County Mayo

St Mary's is one of Ireland's most transfixing holy wells. An apparition of the Virgin Mary has drawn pilgrims here for centuries, and today a tumbledown…

Slievemore Deserted Village

County Mayo

The bleak remains of more than 80 houses in this deserted village at the foot of Mt Slievemore are slowly being reduced to rock piles, a poignant reminder…

Keem Bay Beach

County Mayo

Tucked away at the far west of the island, Keem Bay is Achill's most remote Blue Flag beach. The crescent of golden sands sits at the foot of steep cliffs…

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