It's arguably the west coast that has the most appeal, where the
demonically daunting peninsulas of the northern reaches are
immediately contrasted a little inland by the mystical lakes of the
Donegal highlands. The midwest coastline is just as strangely
attractive, combining vertiginous cliffs, boulder-strewn wastes, and
violent mountains of granite and quartz. In the south, the
melodramatic peaks of the Ring of Kerry fall to lake-pools and
seductive seascapes. Less talked about, but no less rewarding in
their way, are the gentle sandy coves that Cork and Kerry share.
In
the north of the island, the principal draw is the weird basalt geometry
of the Giant's Causeway, not far from the lush Glens of Antrim. To the
south of Belfast lies the beautiful walking territory of the softly
contoured Mountains of Mourne, divided by Carlingford Lough from the
myth-drenched Cooley Mountains.
The
interior is nowhere as spectacular as the fringes of the island, but the
southern heartlands of pastures and low wooded hills, and the wide peat
bogs of the very centre are the classic landscapes of Ireland. Of the
inland waterways, the most alluring are the island-studded Lough Erne
complex of Fermanagh, and the River Shannon, with its string of huge
lakes.
Some of the country's wildest scenery lies just offshore: the west-coast
Aran Islands are the best known of the islands, but equally compelling
are storm-battered Tory Island, to the far northwest and the savage
Skelligs, off the southwest coast.
For
anyone with strictly limited time, one of the best options must be to
combine a visit to Dublin with the mountains and monastic ruins of
County Wicklow. Dublin is an extraordinary combination of youthfulness
and tradition, a modern European capital on a human scale with elegant
Georgian squares and a vibrant cultural life. Belfast vies with Dublin
in the vitality of its nightlife, while the cities of Cork and Galway
have an energy and bustle that makes them a pleasure to visit.
