This picturesque West Cork home with separate basement apartment is on the market for €695,000
This picturesque West Cork home with separate basement apartment is on the market for €695,000

Sarah Finnan

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Annutri co-founder and award-winning businesswoman Anita Donoghue on the power of a positive mindset
Annutri co-founder and award-winning businesswoman Anita Donoghue on the power of a positive mindset

IMAGE

This Clontarf home was reconfigured to streamline the layout and maximise its views
This Clontarf home was reconfigured to streamline the layout and maximise its views

Megan Burns

6 classic movies worth watching over Easter
6 classic movies worth watching over Easter

Jennifer McShane

The friend zone: How to navigate finding friends as an adult
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Supper Club: Fearne Cotton’s haddock burrito, punchy salsa and homemade guacamole
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New life has been breathed into this Victorian Portobello home thanks to a revamp that’s full of personality
New life has been breathed into this Victorian Portobello home thanks to a revamp that’s...

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This rustic four-bedroom home in Westport is on the market for €449,000
This rustic four-bedroom home in Westport is on the market for €449,000

Sarah Finnan

My Career: Archivist at Guinness Eibhlin Colgan
My Career: Archivist at Guinness Eibhlin Colgan

Sarah Finnan

Image / Editorial

The Insider’s Guide to Sligo: 9 Special Spots You Shouldn’t Miss


By Kate Phelan
18th Aug 2015
The Insider’s Guide to Sligo: 9 Special Spots You Shouldn’t Miss

With its untamed coastal beauty, rich cultural heritage and laidback surf spirit, Ireland’s best-kept secret is?well and truly out – here we chat to Sligo’s resident artists and adventurers about why you need to make a beeline for this buzzing, blissed out county…

Something special is happening in Sligo. From its flourishing foodie scene to its thriving creative community and well-earned title of Ireland’s adventure capital, it has evolved into a must-visit destination and the country’s newest design hub – a home away from home for droves of adrenaline junkies, outdoor enthusiasts and art lovers looking to the wave-ravaged periphery of Europe for inspiration.

We took a salt-tinged tour through the not-so-hidden gem of the west with some Sligo creatives and found out the’spots that shouldn’t be missed on a visit…

Surf booties drying at the seafront in Strandhill - image.ie/interiors
Surf booties drying at the seafront in Strandhill.

1. FOR AWE-INSPIRING WAVES.??Mullaghmore is my favourite place in Sligo. It’s a world-class big-wave spot that commands respect. I make a point of always being there when the wave off the headland breaks.? Barry Mottershead, Sligo Kayak Tours

2. FOR DINNER WITH A VIEW.??One of my favourite spots is The Beach Bar thatched cottage at Aughris Head. I go for a pint and a plate of mussels with the view of the ocean.? John Monahan, NOJI Architects

3. FOR A SEAWEED BLISS-OUT.??A climb up Knocknarea is a must – pack a picnic and a wind jacket for the top. A visit to Voya Seaweed baths is another treat I highly recommend; try a massage too, as the therapists are amazing.? Jane Lamberth, Shells Caf? and Little Shop

A canvas satchel by Ashleigh Smith of The Atlantic Equipment Project - image.ie/interiors
A canvas satchel by Ashleigh Smith of The Atlantic Equipment Project.

4. FOR RAVE-WORTHY VIEWS.??Benbulben is a never-ending font of beauty. Every time I hike up there, I find a new angle or see something that drops my jaw. That mountain is special.? Christian McLeod, photographer

5. FOR BEAUTIFUL FLOWERS.??The Alpine Garden at Lissadell House is my favourite spot. I love the colours of the plants and flowers, but also, on a clear day, the sea looks a most beautiful sea-green and you can look back on Knocknarea and Strandhill.? Denise Rushe, Starling Digital Media Direction

6. FOR A MYSTICAL WALK.??My studio is beside the Deerpark Forest and the Giant’s Grave. I love walking there early in the morning when the mist is lying low. Alternatively, I’ll take a drive around the Gleniff Horseshoe, or a picnic out to Beezies Island on Lough Gill. And of course it wouldn’t be a visit to Sligo without taking in the stunning coastline! Walk it, swim it, surf it – it’s amazing! No tips here – go explore!? Rebecca Marsden, fashion designer

A tasty, healthy smoothie from The Sweet Beat caf?, Sligo. Photo by Andrea Flanagan - image.ie/interiors
A tasty, healthy smoothie from the Sweet Beat Caf?, Sligo. Photo by Andrea Flanagan.

7. FOR A POST-SURF WARM-UP.??I love picnicking with friends in the dunes on Strandhill Beach on a sunny day covered in salt from a little surf. A close second would be catching up with the whole village outside Shells on a Sunday morning. It’s the new mass!? Aoife Porter, Swell Sligo

8. FOR SOME ALONE TIME.??I have one or two really favourite spots, but for sure the top one is a little piece of exposed cliff near where I used to surf growing up. It’s on the edge of our bogland just before the Atlantic, and it is where the reason I am here becomes most clear.? Ashleigh Smith, Atlantic Equipment Project

9. FOR A WARM-WEATHER WANDER.??Coney Island, off Rosses Point, near my home, can be accessed by foot or by car at low tide. There’s a lovely beach with waves, a calm harbour for pier-jumping, blackberries for picking, and a pub that, as a child, I remember often going to for mass!? Elizabeth Clyne, Salt of the Earth Studio.

A handplane by local design studio Salt of the Earth - image.ie/interiors
A handplane by local design studio Salt of the Earth.

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