Aran Islands

The three Aran Islands lie across the mouth of Galway Bay, windswept limestone islands laced with a maze of dry-stone walls, where Irish is still the everyday language and traditional life lingers. The largest, Inishmore, holds Dun Aonghasa, a prehistoric stone fort perched on the edge of a hundred-metre cliff, one of the most spectacular ancient sites in Europe.

Background

The islands rest on limestone laid down approximately 350 million years ago as sediment on the floor of a tropical sea, in horizontal beds holding fossil corals, crinoids, sea urchins and ammonites, while the karst surface dates from around 11,000 years ago. Seven prehistoric stone forts stand on the islands, and Dún Aonghasa goes back to 1100 BC. The Killeany monastery on Inishmore was founded by Enda of Aran in AD 490. John Millington Synge began spending his summers here in 1898, and Inishmaan is the setting of his 1904 play Riders to the Sea. The stone walls run to 1600 kilometres in all. In 2022 the islands had 1,347 residents, against approximately 3,500 in 1841.

Source: Wikipedia, "Aran Islands"

Highlights

• Dun Aonghasa - the prehistoric fort on the edge of a sheer sea cliff.
• The stone-wall maze - the endless dry-stone walls dividing tiny fields.
• The Irish-speaking culture - the living Gaeltacht language and traditions.
• The three islands - Inishmore, Inishmaan and quiet Inisheer.

When to go

Late spring to early autumn for the mildest weather and full ferry services; the islands are wild and quiet in winter with fewer boats. Bikes are the classic way to explore Inishmore.

Practical notes

The ferry crossing can be rough, and services thin outside summer. Dun Aonghasa's cliff edge is unfenced and genuinely dangerous, so keep well back. It is a place of quiet, wild beauty rather than busy sights.

Nearby

Galway city and the Connemara coast are on the mainland; the Cliffs of Moher lie across the bay.

Key facts