Don’t be fooled by the calm rolling hills and the friendly locals, when it comes to sport the Irish have a passion for competition.
Irish golfers have dominated the sport in Europe and abroad. Irish racehorses travel the globe and take out top prizes including the Melbourne Cup. Then, there’s the Irish rugby team which is a sight to be seen on home turf.
Ireland is sports mad with a competitive spirit buried deep within the culture, and loads of ways you can get involved on a trip to the Emerald Isle.
SEE THE GAELIC GAMES
Gaelic football, the mother of AFL, and hurling, a game that dates back 4000 years, are the draw cards to this event. Every September fans pack Dublin’s Croke Park stadium to watch these fast and furious events. Competitors are enthusiastic amateurs but they play like pros.
CATCH A GAME OF RUGBY
No matter which side you support – Ulster, Munster, Connacht or Leinster – you can’t miss witnessing this bone-crunching sport. Teams give it their all offering thrills and spills for the local crowd. Then, there’s the atmosphere, it’s so electric it could run the towering stadium spotlights.
Then watch the whole of Ireland come together for the Irish team when they face off in the Six Nations against England, Wales, Scotland, France and Italy. Get to a game or watch it in a true Irish pub for a great night out.
BACK A WINNER AT THE RACES
How many times has an Irish horse taken out the Melbourne Cup? This small nation punches well above its weight in the horse-racing world. A glitz-and-glamour industry that sees horses from the Irish National Stud win all over the world.
When in Ireland visit the stud and you will see the incredible Asian-inspired gardens by eccentric owner Colonel William Hall Walker.
PLAY A ROUND OF GOLF
Ireland’s stunning countryside produces some of the best golf courses in the world! You can hardly tell where the courses end and the natural beauty begins.
Celebrity-magnet courses like Royal County Down, Rosapenna, The K Club Kildare and Lough Erne draw golfing-mad travellers keen to play on the best of the best.
CHALLENGE YOURSELF
Get off the beaten track on a bike, traverse the peaks and valleys of Ireland on foot or tackle the wild coastline on a surfboard. If you are after an active holiday Ireland has everything you need.
Written by Paul Chai, KarryOn contributor