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Taking a stroll down the Boyne Valley

The Boyne Valley is home to some of Ireland's most important archeological landscapes. The most famous - Newgrange - predates the Pyramids by hundreds of years. Not to mention the river which runs through the area giving the Boyne Valley its name. Join Andy Spearman on a stroll through this heritage area. FULL STORY >

A rough guide to water sports in Ireland

Being a small island nation, Ireland is watersports mad. Whether it's scuba diving, canoeing or kiteboarding, there are oceans of water sports on offer in Ireland. FULL STORY >

Cruising the Emerald Isle waterways

Ireland's inland waterways, with that magical chemistry of water, nature and fresh air, are a beautiful way to see the country. Unlike sailing on the sea, the scenery is constantly changing and there is so much to see that you might just spend all your vacation on board! FULL STORY >

Ireland's most bizarre festivals

Some of Ireland's oldest festivals are also the most bizarre. Here's a list of three of them. FULL STORY >

OUT AND ABOUT

In Washington, DC, over 650 American and Irish political and corporate leaders gathered at The National Building Museum, on the eve of St Patrick’s Day, for The American Ireland Fund’s 17th National Gala. read more >

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One of the most striking destinations for holidays in Ireland is the Giant’s Causeway, which is an area of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns formed from an ancient volcanic eruption. It is located on the northeast coast of Ireland, about two miles north of the town of Bushmills, home to the famous distillery. Most of the columns are hexagonal, though there are some with four, five, seven or eight sides. The tallest columns are about 36 feet high. The site first became a popular attraction for holidays in Ireland during the nineteenth century after the opening of a tramway made taking Irish holidays at the Causeway a lot easier. Visitors can walk over the basalt columns, which are at the sea’s edge, a half-mile walk from the site’s entrance. After the vistors’ center building burned down in 2000, the Causeway was left without a permanent visitors’ center, which can cause problems for people trying to plan Irish holidays. The Giant’s Causeway has made several appearances in popular culture. Tourists who are fans of Led Zeppelin or the Simpsons can enjoy their Irish holidays that much more with a visit to the Causeway. It appears on the cover of the Led Zeppelin album Houses of the Holy. The cover art was inspired by the ending of Arthur C. Clarke’s novel “Childhood’s End.” The ending of the book involves several hundred million naked children, only slightly and physically resembling humans. The album cover uses a collage of several shots of two children. Because of the cover art, “Houses of the Holy” was not available in several parts of the southern United States for several years. In the 2008 film “Hellboy 2: The Golden Army,” members of the bureau head to The Giant’s Causeway in search of the Golden Army after finding out from the Prince that it is hidden underground. The Causeway itself, though, is not shown. While Hellboy’s team was not out enjoying Irish holidays, the Simpsons are taking holidays in Ireland in the episode “In the Name of the Grandfather,” which was the first Simpsons episode to premiere outside of the U.S. It first aired in Ireland on St. Patrick’s Day of 2009. In the episode, Marge, Bart and Lisa jump on the columns of the Giant’s Causeway in a parody of the video game Q*Bert. Another reason why holidays in Ireland should include the Giant’s Causeway is that it is Northern Ireland’s only World Heritage Site. The Causeway is also a good choice for Irish holidays because it is free and open year round, on top of being able to combine holidays in Ireland with Robert Plant and Bart Simpson.

Taking a stroll down the Boyne Valley

A rough guide to water sports in Ireland

Cruising the Emerald Isle waterways

Ireland's most bizarre festivals

IrishCentral.com Poll

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