Ireland (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Fionn Davenport [405]
Behind century-old stone walls, the contemporary garden design of Salthill Gardens ( 074-973 5387; www.donegalgardens.com; admission €5; 2-6pm Mon-Thu & Sun May-late Sep, Sat May-early Jul) bursts with perennials, vegetables and shrubs. It’s 2km southwest of the village.
Dunkineely
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From dozy little Dunkineely (Dún Cionnfhaolaidh or Dún Cionnaola), a minor road runs down the improbably thin finger of land poking into the sea at St John’s Point. There’s a beach with a little bit of sand and sweeping coastal views, and the waters around the point are great for diving.
Overlooking the ruins of the 15th-century McSwyne’s Castle, Castle Murray ( 074-973 7022; www.castlemurray.com; St John’s Point; s/d €90/150; ) is no castle itself, but a boutique hotel in a rambling old beach house. Each of its 10 individually decorated guestrooms is named for the townlands contested by 15th-century Scottish clans. It’s little wonder breakfast is superb, as it’s best known for its French restaurant (four-course lunch/dinner €31/51). You might start with its signature prawns and monkfish in garlic butter, move on to mains like seared Donegal scallops with coconut curry, and finish off with a lime soufflé with gin sorbet. Drop in for lunch on Sunday or dinner any night of the week.
Bruckless
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Bruckless (An Bhroclais) scatters about 2km west of Dunkineely. You can saddle up at Deane’s Equestrian Centre ( 074-973 7160; www.deanesequestrian.ie; Darney, Bruckless; 10am-4pm), which offers five-minute pony rides for children (€5), lessons (from €19/16 per adult/child for 30 minutes) and treks (from €35/30 per adult/child for one hour). You’ll need to book ahead.
The luxury, ivy-clad, Georgian B&B Bruckless House ( 074-973 7071; www.bruckless.com; d €130; Apr-Sep; ) sprawls over 18 acres of gardens sloping down to the shore. Fronted by a traditional cobbled farmyard, it’s home to a stud farm for Connemara ponies. The interior is furnished with antique oriental influences. It’s signposted off the main road approximately 3km after Dunkineely.
Getting There & Away
Bus Éireann ( 074-913 1008) bus 490 from Donegal to Killybegs (€7.60) stops near the Village Tavern in Mountcharles, the Inver post office in Bruckless and the Dunkineely Furniture Centre in Dunkineely.
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KILLYBEGS
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The salty scent of fish hauled from the ocean and the sound of cawing seagulls welcome you to Ireland’s largest fishing port, Killybegs (Ceala Beaga). A charming working town, Killybegs’ oddly angled streets collide at its diamond, a block from the pier. The community-run tourist office ( 074-973 2346; Quay St; hr vary seasonally) is in a cabin near the harbour. The Bank of Ireland (Main St) has an ATM and bureau de change.
Sights & Activities
For a good overview of the town’s history, visit the not-for-profit Maritime & Heritage Centre ( 074-974 1944; www.visitkillybegs.com; Fintra Rd; adult/child €4/2; 10am-6pm Mon-Fri, plus 1-5pm Sat & Sun Easter-Sep). It’s housed in the factory of Donegal Carpets, whose carpets adorn the White House and Buckingham Palace. You can sometimes see its hand-knotting loom (the world’s longest of its kind) at work. The fun wheelhouse simulator lets you ‘steer’ a fishing trawler into the harbour. There’s a good cafe/craft shop on site.
Heading up a steep hill in the town centre brings you to St Mary’s Church, outside which stands the extraordinary tombstone of Niall Mór MacSweeney (spelt McSweeney in some documentation) head of the MacSweeney clan, one of Donegal’s ruling families before 1607. It clearly depicts a chain-mailed warrior with a plumed helmet, his battleaxe