County Donegal

Ireland's north-west runs on long roads and Atlantic weather: sea cliffs at Slieve League, Gaeltacht villages in the west and Malin Head at the top. Give it days, not hours.

County Donegal facts

• Province: Ulster
• County town: Lifford
• Setting: Atlantic coast
• Touring region: Wild Atlantic Way
• Best for: coast, hiking, scenic drives, music, history
• Golf: St Patrick's Links at Rosapenna and the north-west links trail. Our golf guide
• Places in the planner: 12

Headlands, strands and offshore islands: the Atlantic cuts deep into Ireland's most northerly county, and the country behind it is rugged. The Wild Atlantic Way begins here, or ends here, running from Malin Head, Ireland's northernmost point, past Fanad Lighthouse to the sea cliffs of Slieve League.

Much of the west of the county is Gaeltacht, where Irish is spoken daily, and the landscape is a patchwork of bog, mountain and small villages. Glenveagh National Park protects a mountain valley and castle in the Derryveagh Mountains, while Donegal town and Letterkenny anchor the south and east. This is a county that needs time. Distances are longer than they look on the map, the roads are part of the pleasure, and basing yourself in two or three places, the Inishowen Peninsula, the west coast and the south, works far better than day-tripping.

Top sights in Donegal

Slieve League

Among Europe's highest sea cliffs, rising dramatically above the Atlantic in the southwest of the county.

Malin Head

Ireland's northernmost point, a wild headland of rock, sea views and wartime lookouts.

Glenveagh National Park

A mountain national park with a lakeside castle, gardens and golden eagle country.

Fanad Lighthouse

A working lighthouse on the Fanad Peninsula, regularly open to visitors.

Errigal

The county's distinctive quartzite peak, the highest of the Derryveagh Mountains.

Towns & cities in Donegal

Donegal Town

The Diamond is where the town gathers, a short walk from the bay. Donegal Town stands at the mouth of the River Eske where it meets Donegal Bay.

Letterkenny

The town runs up the hill to St Eunan's Cathedral, spire and all, and does the county's everyday business below it. Letterkenny is the largest town in County Donegal, on the River Swilly.

Lifford

A small town doing a whole county's paperwork from a Georgian courthouse in the Diamond. Lifford, the county town of County Donegal, stands on the River Foyle, opposite Strabane.

Buncrana

Seaside town on Lough Swilly on the Inishowen Peninsula.

Ardara

Tweed and heritage town in the southwest, known for weaving and music.

Best time to visit

May to September gives the best chance of clear cliff views and boat trips. Winter is wild and quiet, dramatic on the coast, but plan for short days and changeable weather.

Getting there

Donegal has a small regional airport on the west coast. Most visitors drive from Dublin (about three and a half hours) or from Belfast via Derry.

Places for your trip

• Donegal Town: The Diamond is where the town gathers, a short walk from the bay. Donegal Town stands at the mouth of the River Eske where it meets Donegal Bay.
• Letterkenny: The town runs up the hill to St Eunan's Cathedral, spire and all, and does the county's everyday business below it. Letterkenny is the largest town in County Donegal, on the River Swilly.
• Lifford: A small town doing a whole county's paperwork from a Georgian courthouse in the Diamond. Lifford, the county town of County Donegal, stands on the River Foyle, opposite Strabane.
• Slieve League: The cliffs rise nearly 600 metres above the Atlantic on the Donegal coast, and the path along them is the visit. Slieve League is a mountain first and a viewpoint second.
• Glenveagh National Park: Glenveagh is a national park in the Derryveagh Mountains centred on Lough Veagh and Glenveagh Castle.
• Fanad Lighthouse: Fanad Lighthouse stands at the entrance to Lough Swilly on the Fanad Peninsula in County Donegal.
• Malin Head: Malin Head on the Inishowen Peninsula is the most northerly point of mainland Ireland.
• Lough Derg (Station Island): Lough Derg in County Donegal is a pilgrimage site centred on Station Island, associated with Saint Patrick's Purgatory.
• Rosapenna (St Patrick's Links): Tom Doak's St Patrick's Links, opened in 2021 on the Rosguill dunescape, beside the resort's two older courses.
• Narin & Portnoo: Gil Hanse's restored dunes links over Gweebarra Bay. International visitors pay €300; the €70 headline rate is for Golf Ireland members only.
• Portsalon: A founder member of the Golfing Union of Ireland, on the shore of Lough Swilly.
• Donegal (Murvagh): A 7,395-yard par-73 test on the Murvagh peninsula, the “Muirfield of Ireland”.

What's on

No anchor festival is based here, but the Irish year is full: next up nationally is TradFest (20–24 Jan 2027, Temple Bar, Dublin). See the full events calendar

Nearby counties

County Derry

The walled city on the Foyle is the headline, with the Sperrins behind it and a fine coast at Castlerock and Portstewart. Heaney's home ground around Bellaghy draws its own pilgrims.

County Tyrone

The Sperrins give the walking and the dark skies; the story is emigration, told at the Ulster American Folk Park near Omagh. A county of market towns, linen history and people who left.

County Fermanagh

Water is the county: Upper and Lower Lough Erne, more than a hundred islands and an island county town at Enniskillen. Hire a boat and the place makes sense.

Part of Wild Atlantic Way.