For shore: 10 island escapes
Long Island
Instead of counting countries these days, I’m adding Cork’s offshore islands to my geographical conquests. There are about a dozen which are popular tourist destinations — from Ballycotton Island in East Cork to Dursey off the tip of Beara — but this week I visited one of the least trundled by tourists, Long Island. Located off the coast of stunning Schull, Inis Fada is the third largest, but lesser-known, of the Carbery’s Hundred Isles, especially when compared to the likes of Cape Clear, Heir, and Sherkin.Â
A five-minute trip aboard the Long Island Ferry from Colla Pier gets you there and affable skipper, Maurice Coughlan, will be happy to give you all the local highlights. Once on the island, wander east to discover the stunning Copper Point Lighthouse or west to take in the spectacular cliffs and crystal clear rock beaches. Long Island makes a fantastic alternative destination to Cork’s busy mainland beaches; ferry schedules mean you’ll enjoy more than five hours on the island, but water-taxi services can be booked too with prior engagement.Â
For more adventure, Maurice’s wife, Helen, also offers kayaking tours from Colla Pier. The catch, for some, may be that there are no facilities (or toilets) on Long Island — but an enterprising islander is set to open the East Land tearooms this month. On the mainland, Nickie’s Kitchen in Schull serves up excellent picnic fare such as wraps and falafel bowls.
Nature seekers in the capital often hit the Dublin Mountains for their great outdoors fix but the city and county are speckled with several islands to explore, from Ireland’s Eye to Lambay Island.Â
Dalkey Island, which forms part of the Dublin Bay Biosphere, is special however, as you can round its rocky shores in the company of one of the biosphere’s official ambassadors, Kayaking.ie.
Their eco-adventure tours take you from Dalkey Pier towards the island where you may spot members of the resident (and curious) seal colony or a protected Arctic tern. €59 per person
'One island, endless adventures' is the motto of Inis Bofin, flung 10km off the coast of Connemara. The island has developed an identity as an unspoiled but quirky destination over the years: the kind of spot where you can hear the corncrake cry by day and listen to an intimate music festival come evening.Â
This summer sees the return of its eclectic events calendar with happenings including its Craft Expo in July showcasing local artisan wares to its international walking festival in September. With its surprisingly wide selection of hotels and restaurants, Inis Bofin is noticeably well served for a small island — plus it’s reachable by three crossings a day from Cleggan.Â
Waiting at the pier? Stock up on coffee and treats from the charming Sea Hare Café.
inishbofinferry.ie & inishbofin.com
Earlier this month, I travelled to Inis MĂłr on the maiden voyage of Saoirse na Farraige, the new vessel from Aran Island Ferries, which, with the capacity of up to 400 passengers, is now Ireland’s largest passenger ferry. And it’s just the latest tourism development for the largest of the Aran Islands.Â
Alongside its rich cultural traditions, which are as entwined into the landscape as its infinite stone walls, Inis MĂłr is now seeing a fresh tide of businesses for the summer 2021 season. There’s the Aran Off-Road Experience, where you can tour the byroads with native islanders, Aran Glamping which offers contemporary clochán accommodation along the seashore, plus the island’s new Diving Academy, where you can go snorkelling or enjoy some unique scuba action with the local seals.Â
Aran Island Ferries offers a new daytrip from Galway which stitches in four hours discover time on the island (a reasonable stint considering time stands still here), along with a cruise past the Cliffs of Moher returning to Galway. There are also regular ferry services from Rosaveel in Connemara while Doolin2Aran offers a zippy service from the Clare side.Â
aranislandferries.com & doolin2aranferries.com
Wexford is one of Ireland’s true summer playgrounds, but how many of us have visited their stunning offshore Saltee Islands? The larger of the two islands, Great Saltee, is privately owned by the Neale family, but day visitors are very welcome to the island, where they can enjoy a bracing fix of nature, birdlife — and that all important sense of escape. To get there, take the 20-minute boat ride (pre-booking is essential) with Denis Bates from Kilmore Quay.Â
The ferry itself can’t land on the island, so a little out from shore, passengers disembark and board a rib for the final leg. Quite the adventure! Once there, you can explore a wealth of flora and fauna — star attraction being the island’s nesting puffins which should remain on the island until the end of June, before hitting the open seas for the winter. There are no facilities on the Great Saltee: for dream seafood to go, check out Kilmore’s Quayside Deli & Fish Shop.
Looking for the ultimate getaway? You won’t get a staycation further away than Tory, Ireland’s most remote inhabited island which sits a distant 15km from Donegal’s mainland.Â
Due to its far-flung setting, the Gaeltacht island is a bastion of Irish culture with myriad natural attractions too, not least the island's spectacular cliffs which area said to give Tory (toraigh) its name.Â
You can overnight on the island too: Tory Island Harbour View hotel, within handy backpack lugging distance of the pier offers summer rates from €110 per night.
It’s almost official. For the first time in almost two years, the Skellig Islands will (provisionally) reopen to visitors on June 21, according to the OPW. Just one of the country’s two World Heritage Sites (alongside BrĂş na Boinne in Meath) the monastic island’s natural and historical appeal will surely see it become the jewel in Ireland’s staycation crown for 2021.Â
No fewer than 15 boat operators, mostly operating out of Portmagee and Ballinskelligs, offer tours to the islands, but numbers are capped to protect the site and its wildlife — booking well in advance, already, is a wise move. A narrow, at times sheer trail takes you to the island’s summit but the out-of-this-world monastery and Atlantic panoramas are worth the climb. And the fare. Getting to the island has become pricier over the years with a €100 per person price-tag reflecting its premium.Â
Boat operators are currently taking bookings while offering refunds in the event of cancellations.Â
heritageireland.ie & discoverkerry.com
The Antrim Causeway and Coastal Route has become an increasingly popular road-trip route in recent years, but to really get off the beaten highway, make a trip to Rathlin Island reachable via ferry from Ballycastle. Following the 35-minute boat ride, you’ve the option to day-trip, or better still, stay over at the island’s charming Marine Hotel (or the Rathlin Hostel for a more budget option).Â
A nature lover's paradise, the island features fantastic walking routes: take the 98 steps down to Rathlin’s unique Upside Down Lighthouse where you can take in the bracing coastal views and island’s vibrant bird sanctuary. Bike hire makes the island particularly navigable and there’s a great little co-op selling sandwiches and wrap to fuel your adventure.
It’s got competition, but Spike Island in Cork Harbour is consistently ranked as the county’s top-rated tourism attraction on TripAdvisor. The island’s success probably works off a few factors: a scenic ferry ride, excellent guides and a labyrinthine of buildings to explore Spike’s storied evolution from monastic settlement to prison.Â
There’s also a fine nature trail which takes in those ever disorientating Cork harbour views, from Whitegate to Crosshaven. A café on-site offers a pleasant setting for a sos, or order some picnic staples from delicious Sea Salt, just across the road from Cobh’s pier.
Achill Island may beMayo’sblockbuster island attraction but to really escape the masses, take a boat-trip to the unspoiled Inishkea islands, located off the Mullet peninsula. Unpopulated but for a few holiday homes, today the islands make a solemn yet spectacular hideaway: attractions include the island’s ruined village, abandoned during the 1930s, the remains of a short-lived whaling station and the infinite fields of potato ridges, offering a lonesome léargas into the island’s once thriving community. You may even spot a few barnacle geese which give the islands (Inis Gé) their name. The islands can be reached via a private charter from the Geraghty family who can be contacted at bruchlannlir.com
- For more, see discoverireland.ie & discovernorthernireland.comÂ
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