Wild Atlantic Way golf

Ireland's west coast doesn't do subtle. The Wild Atlantic Way stretches from Donegal to Cork — 2,500km of cliffs, headlands and Atlantic-facing links. For golf, the stretches that matter most run from Clare up through Sligo to the tip of Donegal. Fewer crowds, and some of the most honest links golf you'll find anywhere.

You earn it here. The roads are longer, the winds are real, and the courses are better for both.

Lahinch in Clare is where most people start. The Old Course is a proper test — blind shots, dunes, and a herd of goats used as a traditional weather barometer. It's quirky and it's brilliant. Doonbeg, forty minutes south, is the contrast — a modern links built into extraordinary dune land, expensive and immaculate. Contact both clubs directly to book; tee times go fast in summer.

Further north, Enniscrone in Sligo is criminally underrated — an old-fashioned links on Killala Bay that serious golfers keep returning to. County Sligo Golf Club at Rosses Point has hosted the West of Ireland Championship for over a century and looks out to Benbulben mountain. Both are book direct with the club. Strandhill Golf Club on the Atlantic coast is a solid and affordable option.

Carne in Belmullet, Mayo, is remote — ninety minutes from anywhere — and one of the most remarkable pieces of links land in Ireland. The drive alone is worth it. At the tip of the island, Ballyliffin on the Inishowen Peninsula sits on the most northerly links in Ireland — two courses, both worth the journey, both direct with the club. Bundoran Golf Club in south Donegal is a good warm-up if you're working your way up the coast.

Lahinch for Clare golf — small, lively, everything on the doorstep. Sligo town for Rosses Point and Enniscrone. For Carne you stay in Belmullet — it's remote and that's the point. Ballyliffin has its own accommodation; Letterkenny or Donegal Town works as a base for the wider county.

Lahinch / Clare

The Shamrock Inn is right in the village — simple, well-priced, five minutes from the first tee. Falls Hotel & Spa in Ennistymon is a step up in comfort. If budget isn't a concern, Trump International Doonbeg is exceptional — a resort built around the course, on the Atlantic.

Sligo

Markree Castle is our pick — a working castle hotel twenty minutes from Rosses Point, genuinely atmospheric. Strandhill Lodge & Suites if you want something smaller and more laid-back on the coast.

Mayo / Belmullet

Broadhaven Bay Hotel is the best option near Carne — small town hotel, comfortable, and the locals will tell you where to eat. Mulranny Park Hotel is beautifully positioned on Clew Bay if you want something more special.

Donegal

Solis Lough Eske Castle near Donegal Town is the benchmark — a proper castle hotel on a lake, excellent in every way. Ballyliffin Lodge if you're up at the top of the Inishowen Peninsula.

Lahinch

O'Looney's on the beachfront is the pub everyone goes to — surf boards on the walls, pints looking at the ocean. The Nineteenth is the golfers' bar, reliably good.

Sligo

Hargadon's on O'Connell Street has been there since 1868 and looks like it. Dark wood, snugs, proper atmosphere. Good craic on a weeknight.

Westport (Mayo)

You have to go to Matt Molloy's. Molloy is the flautist from The Chieftains and this is his pub. Trad session most nights. It's the real thing, not a performance.

Donegal Town

The Olde Castle Bar is reliable for food and a pint. For something more considered, the restaurant at Harvey's Point is worth the short drive out of town.

The Cliffs of Moher are fifteen minutes from Lahinch — go on a clear day and approach from the southern end, it's less crowded. From Doolin, just north of the cliffs, you can take a ferry to the Aran Islands — Inis Mór is the biggest and most interesting, and the ferry is an hour.

Croagh Patrick in Mayo is Ireland's holy mountain. A walk up in good weather rewards you with extraordinary views of Clew Bay. Achill Island is connected to the mainland by a bridge and is one of the most beautiful places in Ireland — drive the Atlantic Drive around the perimeter and stop at Keem Bay.

In Sligo, Drumcliffe is where WB Yeats is buried, under Ben Bulben, as he requested — five minutes from the road and quietly moving. Malin Head in Donegal is the most northerly point of Ireland — bleak, dramatic, and worth the drive if you're up at Ballyliffin.