Galway Tourist Information and Travel Guide

G alway, the largest county        night with a host of live music    in the province of              venues to choose from.             Connacht, lies in the                                              centre of the western seaboard of     For a taste of the “real” Ireland  Ireland. It covers nearly 6,000       Connemara is a must. Gaeilge is    sq. kms, (with over 2000km of         the predominant language of        highly indented coastline) and is     choice here and the people are     divided by Lough Corrib,              warm and friendly with a typical   Ireland’s second largest lake. It     Cead Mile Failte Irish welcome.    has two distinct landscapes - the     The beautiful rugged landscape is  vast mountainy land of Connemara      as yet unspoilt by progress.       to the west of Lough Corrib and                                          the rich farming plains of Galway     Take in the majestic splendour of  East. The population of the           the Twelve Bens mountain range in  County (all the areas outside of      the north as you make your way     Galway City) is estimated at just     further south to the well knows    over 143,000. The County is           seaside resort of Salthill.        predominantly rural with just         Something for everyone here from   over 15% living in towns of more      the landmark Leisureland complex   than 1,500 people.                    with its indoor and outdoor                                              childrens activities to the        Galway City is one of the fastest     quieter restaurants and bars       growing cities in Europe, often       further back from the sandy        referred to as the bi-lingual         seafront and promenade.            capital of Ireland, Galway city                                          is the perfect mix of old and         Galway County Council recently     new. A bustling shopping centre      lead a project to create a Galway  with wonderful little boutique        East Ecclesiastical Trail. The     cafes along the pedestrianised        Trail features over 40 sites of    streets and plenty of craic at        interest to ‘culture and heritage  seekers’. This area also features                                        Portumna Castle on the banks of       The Summer Festival Race Meeting   the Shannon and Coole Park and        at Galway Racecourse is renowned   Thoor Ballylee associated with        worldwide. Veteran race goers,     literary legends W.B. Yeats and       and indeed those who simply love   Lady Gregory founder of Ireland’s     the atmosphere, travel from        National Theatre.                     around the world for this unique                                         experience.                        There are four main inhabited                                            Islands off the coast of Galway       The Festival runs for seven        including the world renowed Irish     consecutive days starting from     speaking Aran Islands and             the last Monday in July each       Inisboffin. In total there are 18     year. There are special race       inhabited islands in County           days, such as, Ladies Day, The     Galway. It is worth a visit           Big Bash and Mad Hatter’s Day      across to the islands to enjoy        which add fun and excitement to    such activities as walking,           the event. A record number of      cycling, swimming, horse-riding,      people, 220,000, attended the      diving, basket-making and             Summer Festival Meeting in 2006.   learning a little of the Irish                                           language and culture. Inis Mor,       In addition to good road access,   the largest of the Aran Islands,      Galway is increasingly well        is home to the world famous Dun       serviced by over 100 direct        Aonghasa monument and the islands     flights a week to Galway Airport,  heritage centre is wonderfully        Shannon and Ireland West Airport   informative of the lives of           (Knock) as well as daily train     previous inhabitants. An              services from Dublin through       overnight stay is highly              Galway East to Galway City         recommended in order to sample        provided by Iarnród Eireann. Bus   the traditional night life.           Eireann services the area with     regular coaches to and from the       rest of the country.               About the Author: Ann-Marie O'Conner Galway Galway Business Directory Ireland Business Directory Read more articles by: Ann-Marie Article Source: www.iSnare.com