Behind every song or poem is a good story, place or character. And wouldn’t you know some of the most interesting have been inspired by Ireland in some big, small or touching way. From Johnny Cash to James Joyce, artists, musicians and poets taken pen to paper and finger to cord in honour of Ireland. [...]

NI2012 does not think small. Exhibit A being the curtain rising on the Titanic Belfast visitor centre, with a city-wide Titanic Festival and extraordinary light show to mark the occasion. Seems they’ve only just begun too. The summer sees another three whopper events being wheeled out in typical overachieving style. From Jude Law, to ocean [...]

A new generation of adventure sports is making mountains look like mole-hills. Our guest blogger Mark Folens sets his sights on the weirdest, craziest, downright zaniest adventure sports around. I remember being an awed seven-year-old, watching rock climbers scale the granite heights of Dublin’s Dalkey Quarry. They seemed so rebellious, so daring… so utterly disregarding of [...]

You expect to smell salt in sea air. You expect sea air to blow your hair back like your hairdryer never could. You might even expect sea air to carry Johnny Depp swinging into port with a rose between his teeth. This summer in Galway, the sea air will be carrying something even more special; [...]

Writer Felicity Hayes-McCoy loves Dingle enough to live, write and be inspired by the area. From the music of native tongues to the legendary Irish heroes, fascinating museums and white sandy beaches, she shares her perfect day on the Dingle Peninsula. was famously described by National Geographic magazine as “the most beautiful place on earth.” [...]

Pinterest’s new competition is asking users to vote for what the most beautiful country in the world is. Naturally, our ears pricked up. You can vote on Twitter or Pinterest for your favorite country [cough Ireland!], and share the reason. Ireland is currently ranking at 13th… so please vote for us! There is a snazzy [...]

We’re going to the zoo, zoo, zoo how about you, you, you? Forgive that little outburst of song. It’s just the mere mention of the word ‘zoo’ drums up golden childhood memories for me of sun-drenched days strolling around Dublin zoo, ice-cream in hand (and granted, slightly all over face) with that musky animal-y smell [...]

First off, let me be clear: I love nature. I have a fabulous enchanted wood image from as my desktop wallpaper, and I’m even wearing butterfly earrings. Some teeny things bug me about nature however… such as bugs. Well, them and the lack of roof and central heating and sturdy flooring, and possibility of sunburn/rain/wind [...]

We’re not a big island. Ireland is roughly 81,000 square kms; about the size of the American State of Indiana, and just bit bigger than Scotland. So how is it that our landscapes are big business, and known for an epic vastness of changing skies, rolling hills and distant peaks? One answer would be Ciaran [...]

Kids. You bring them to a stunning landscape, gaze out at the mystic sunset and all they want to know is why there are no jet planes, lasers or unicorns flying across it. Don’t worry, we’re way ahead of you. Ireland knows exactly how to impress little beady eyes, and how to tire out tiny [...]