| County Offaly |
| Offaly county |
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Offaly county - VIEW OF OFFALY
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Offaly county - ROCK
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Accommodation_Offaly
Offaly’s
landscape is dominated by low-lying bogs and dotted with the ruins of
monastic settlements and other historical sites. For more information
about county Offaly you can visit www.offaly.ie. BIRR, as well as being
of historic interest with its splendid castle and Georgian Streets, has
also excellent restaurants on offer. The castle is still inhabited by
the present earl of Rosse and his wife.
Birr Castle (call 20336 for information or visit |
www.birrcastle.com) is
a pleasure to visit, and you will easily spend a good part of the day
on its grounds, even though the castle itself cannot be visited. The
magnificent gardens surround an artificial lake and cover some 50
hectares. LEAP CASTLE (call 0509-31115 for information or send an
e-mail to seanfryan@oceanfree.net) is another superb piece. History has
it that it is one of the most haunted castles in Europe. A lot of
horrible events happened there and the castle has a reputation for
apparitions. BANAGHER is a quiet riverside town which bears
fortifications. It is not far from Cloghan Castle (call 51650 for
information or visit www.cloghancastleoffaly.com) which has been in use
for almost 800 years. An interesting tour will take you through the
keep and a 19th century house filled with antiques and armaments.
SHANNONBRIDGE has a narrow 16-span 18th century bridge crossing the
river to county Roscommon. There are also fortifications which date
back to the 19th century. The Bord na Mó na Bog Rail Tour (call 967
4450 for information or send an e-mail to bogtrain@bnm.ie) is an
interesting journey through the Blackwater section of the Bog of Allen,
onboard a diesel train moving at only 10km/h. CLONMACNOISE monastic
city (call 967 4195 for information) is enclosed in a walled field and
comprises of various early monuments (churches, high crosses, round
towers, graves…) The first building of the city was built by St Ciarán
in AD 548. A bastion of Irish religion, literature and art,
Clonmacnoise received studying monks from all over Europe. Needless to
say that this wonderful place is the county’s pride and joy.
TULLAMORE lacks charm but is famous for its whiskey (Tullamore Dew),
although production has now moved to Clonmel in county Tipperary.
Sights include Charleville Forest Castle (call 23040 for information),
a stunning building with magnificent interior on huge grounds.
Tullamore Dew Heritage Centre (call 25015 for information or visit
www.tullamore-dew.org) will provide you with a background on the local
whiskey and its contribution to the growth of Tullamore. DURROW ABBEY
is where the Book of Durrow was produced. The book is a Latin gospel
which dates back to the 7th century and is on display at Trinity
College in Dublin. |
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