On a plateau west of Sligo is one of Ireland’s four most significant Neolithic sites. The Best Of The Irish On The Graham Norton Show! Sligo (Dáil constituency) - Sligo was a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas from 1937 to 1948. Benbulben is in the Dartry Range and sits only 15 minutes from Sligo.And although photos make the peak seem unconquerable, the trail up the gentle south slope can be tackled by most walkers.Only the vertiginous north face is dangerous as it is battered by the winds.Another wonderful thing about Benbulben is that it’s the only place in Ireland where you can find the tea-leaved willow, an Arctic plant more commonly found in Iceland, and deposited on these slopes in the last Ice Age.Another mysterious natural landmark, Knocknarea is a distinctive, monolithic hill visible for miles around on the Cúil Irra peninsula, just west of Carrowmore.Unlike Benbulben, Knocknarea has a signposted walking path to its summit.This will take around 40 minutes from the car park, and at the top you’ll be greeted by a Neolithic cairn named for Queen Maeve of Connacht, a character from the Ulster Cycle of Irish Mythology.The cairn is ten metres tall and has never been excavated.Although this is easily the largest megalithic monument on Knocknarea, it’s by no means the only example, as the east side of the peak is the site of a Stone Age village and there are more, smaller cairns on the slopes.The River Garavogue, which flows through Sligo, originates at this freshwater lake a couple of kilometres east of the town.Lough Gill is eight kilometres long and two kilometres wide, and its surface is flecked with densely wooded islands.By road you can take the 35-kilometre Lough Gill Tour (Blue Route), and there’s a great deal to see.Parke’s Caste and the Tobernalt Holy Well are both on the list below, while in summer you can step aboard the Rose of Innisfree for a boat tour with a Yeats theme.On the south shore you can get out of the car for a wander through Slish Wood, which has patches of old-growth oak forest dating back 250 years.The wood appears in Yeats’ poem “The Stolen Child”, while Dooney Rock, an abrupt limestone hill on the southwest shore inspired another poem, “The Fiddler of Dooney”.Dating from 1253, this Gothic monastery appears in two of Yeats’ short stories.One, “The Curse of the Fires and the Shadows”, recounts Sligo Abbey’s partial destruction during the Irish Rebellion of 1641. 'Can you do a Sligo Accent?' Book your tickets online for the top things to do in Sligo, Ireland on Tripadvisor: See 8,077 traveller reviews and photos of Sligo tourist attractions.
3:45. Carrowmore. Since then the monument has been extended twice, most recently by Sheridan Woods in 2010 to create a state-of-the-art visitor centre.Now there’s a gallery, bookshop, cafe, performing arts space and artist studios on the upper floor with vistas of the town.In recent times there have been exhibitions at the Model for the likes of Andy Warhol, Paul Chan, Patti Smith and Gerard Byrne.But regardless of what’s on the programme, you can visit for the Niland Collection, which is Sligo’s municipal art reserve.This was begun by the librarian Nora Niland and has pieces by Jack Butler Yeats, George Russell and Paul Henry.Right by the water on the east shore of Lough Gill, Parke’s Castle is a fortified manor house going back to the Plantation Era at the beginning of the 17th century.The settler Robert Parke, partly demolished the 15th-century O’Rourke Castle that was here before, using stone from that stronghold to build his new home.The Irish rebel Sir Brian O’Rourke had been executed in 1591 at the Tyburn Tree gallows at the junction of the modern Edgware Road and Oxford Street in London.In summer there are hour-long guided tours of the castle, which was restored in the 20th century, employing building techniques and materials from 400 years ago.This Neoclassical country house was raised in the early-1830s for Sir Robert Gore-Booth, 4th Baronet, and has a prime location by the ocean on the north side of Sligo Bay.You have to come to appreciate the drama of the setting, facing the Atlantic and islands in the bay, and with the strange outline of the Dartry Mountains in the background.W. He has an appropriate plot, as between the trees to the north rises the unmistakeable profile of Benbulben.Also in the graveyard is a richly carved Irish High Cross from the 800s, and a few steps from the church is the site of a Columbian monastery founded in the 6th century.Another historic monument here is a Celtic round tower from the 900s or 1000s, and if you inspect the walls of the church you’ll see ancient cross-slabs embedded in the stonework.For a feast of culture look no further than this cultural centre in one of Sligo’s most eye-catching buildings.This is the former Model School, by architect James Owen and built in 1862.