I think it’s officially time for a trip to the magical city of Galway in Ireland!
Bonus points if you start singing Galway Girl by Ed Sheeran while reading this post!
We spent a wonderful few days in the city of Galway in the midst of autumn, an amazing time to go. But truthfully, you’ll have fun visiting this city any time of year.
Though – if you are around in October, celebrating Halloween is a MUST!
15 things to do in Galway, Ireland
Experience Galway Tour
Absolutely book in for a tour with Experience Galway! They were amazing to spend the day with. And they have a bunch of tours to choose from. We got to do a mix of a few, the food and drinks tours are brilliant.
And I’d definitely recommend the The Dark History Tour as well, perfect for the spooky season!
🍻 Music and drinks in the Latin Quarter
There’s no better place to spend an evening than pub hopping around Galway’s Latin Quarter.
There are so many great pubs and places to choose from. And you can almost ALWAYS expect live music anywhere you go!
📖 Storytelling at The Crane Bar with Rab Fulton
Oh my goodness, PLEASE do not miss out on attending a storytelling session when you’re in Ireland!
And Galway is the perfect place.
We got the chance to listen to Rab Fulton sharing stories with us, tall tales and the spoken word is truly magical in Ireland. Don’t miss it!
Buy a Claddagh ring, of course!
Galway is home to the famed Claddagh ring, so if you’re going to buy one… this is the city! Joe and I bought matching ones.
There are so many places you can visit for these. The cutest? Thomas Dillons. But we got ours at Claddagh Jewellers.
Statue of Pádraic Ó Conaire
Galway City Museum
Definitely stop into the Galway City Museum while in the city. Bonus? Admission is free!
It’s a pretty modern museum, but celebrates the culture and history of Galway and the rest of Ireland.
Pedal Power Pub Crawl Bike Tour
Ok, this looks SUPER fun and I wish we’d done this on our adventures. If you’re with a big group of pals, book in for an epic pub crawl around the city with the group pedal bikes.
Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop
Obviously, I love a trip to a bookshop!
I’m sad to have missed this on our recent trip, but I know about it now and am absolutely saving it for next time.
For those visiting at Halloween, the Parade!
The Macnas Parade this year featured Alf, a giant 20 metre long, 5 metre high Newt! The parade centred around Alf’s journey through Galway with a little help from human friends to find his way.
The theme changes each year so stay tuned to see what will be next!
Where to eat and drink:
A cosy dinner at Rúibín
Be sure to make a booking for dinner at Rúibín, it was one of the best meals of our trip! It has such a lovely atmosphere, expect low lighting, candles burning and delicious food.
A latte or two at Coffeewerk + Press
Make sure to get your drink with their brown sugar syrup, so YUM!
Lunch (or drinks!) at The Skeff Bar
The food here was SO nice and they were super decorated for Halloween!
Pints and pizza O’Connell’s Bar
You’ll find this Traditional Irish Bar on the edge of the Galway Square. It’s super cosy and perfect for popping in for a pint.
They also have an award-winning Beer Garden outside where they are serving The Dough Bros Pizza, voted 15th best pizza in the world!
We came here on Halloween night after the parade and sat with pizza and gin and tonics and had the best time!
Go for a classic seafood meal at Kirwans Lane
This is a delicious Galway staple place not to miss.
Where to stay:
And of course, you won’t want to miss a few things quite close to Galway
Kylemore Abbey
Originally Kylemore Castle, the castle is now known as Kylemore Abbey and is currently a Benedictine Monastery, founded for Benedictine nuns who fled Belgium in World War I in 1920.
You can visit Kylemore Abbey, which is about an hour and a half drive north west of Galway.
Tickets are €16.00 and this takes you inside the restored rooms, through the Victorian walled garden, the Neo-gothic church along with the woodlands on the grounds.
Cliffs of Moher
Of course, you can’t miss the Cliffs of Moher when in Galway – you’re only an hour and a half drive away!
There are also so many tours you can get from Galway to take you straight there. Check out some of these options below to make your trip that much more memorable.
The Cliffs of Moher are truly, one of the most magical sights in Ireland. Don’t miss a visit!
Thank you so much for reading and I hope you have the most magical time in Galway!
Kelly xoxo