Connemara & Roundstone Travel Guide

The harbour and the village

The village and its harbour were laid out by the engineer Alexander Nimmo in the 1820s, and boats still land lobster, crab and mackerel here today. The light and the bay have drawn painters for generations, Paul Henry and Jack B. Yeats among them. Wander the quay, watch the boats come in and look out for seals in the bay.

Climb Errisbeg

Errisbeg (Iorras Beag) rises about 300 m right behind the village. It is a short but steep walk, and on a clear day the top looks out over Roundstone Bog, the Atlantic, the Aran Islands and the Twelve Bens. One of the best views in Connemara for very little effort.

Music, crafts and the regatta

Roundstone Music & Crafts, in the old Franciscan monastery, is where Malachy Kearns makes his famous bodhrán drums (including the ones played in Riverdance), with a craft shop and café. In late July the Roundstone Regatta (Féile Cloch na Rón) fills the bay with traditional currachs and Galway hooker sailing boats.

Tim Robinson’s Roundstone

The writer and map-maker Tim Robinson lived by the harbour in Roundstone, where he and his wife Máiréad ran Folding Landscapes. He walked every road and shoreline to create his remarkable hand-drawn maps of the Aran Islands, the Burren and Connemara, and wrote Stones of Aran and the Connemara trilogy (Listening to the Wind, The Last Pool of Darkness and A Little Gaelic Kingdom). His books are the perfect companion to a stay here.

Gurteen Beach

The larger of the two bays, on the Clifden side of the dunes. Gurteen is a protected bay, sheltered from the open Atlantic, which makes it a safe and beautiful place to learn to windsurf and to paddle. It is where our windsurfing lessons take place, lifeguards watch over the middle beach during the main summer season, and there is a caravan and camping park right beside the beach.

Dog’s Bay

A perfect horseshoe of white sand with calm, sheltered water. The sand is made almost entirely of tiny fragments of seashells, which is why it glows so white and squeaks when you walk on it. The dunes and machair grassland behind the beach are protected, so please keep to the paths.

The story of Inishlacken

Today Inishlacken is home only to dry-stone walls, ruined cottages and white sandbar beaches, but in 1901 the census counted 132 people living here. In 1951 the painters Gerard Dillon, George Campbell and James MacIntyre spent a summer on the island, and artists still gather here every June for the Inishlacken Project.

Landing depends on the tide and the weather, which is part of the adventure.

Paddle there with us

On our 2.5-hour Island & Coastal Tour we paddle across Roundstone Bay and, weather permitting, land on Inishlacken to explore. New to kayaking? Our 1.5-hour Coastal Intro is a relaxed first paddle along the sheltered shore.

Boat tours from Roundstone Harbour

Prefer to let someone else do the paddling? Roundstone Bay & Island Boat and Food Tours run small-group trips from the harbour on their boat Benbaun: eco tours of the bay, drop-offs and landings on Inishlacken, and a “Catch & Cook” trip hauling crab and lobster pots.

Eat & drink

• O’Dowd’s Seafood Bar & Restaurant: a family pub since 1840, for fresh local seafood by the harbour
• Vaughan’s Bar & Restaurant at Roundstone House Hotel, on the main street
• Kings Bar for a pint and a chat with the locals
• Coffee Cottage for coffee and cake after a morning on the water
• Tati’s Bake Away for fresh bakes to take to the beach
• Roundstone Music & Crafts café, with bodhrán-making demonstrations next door

Where to stay

• Eldons B&B: our top pick. Family-run by Jemma and Joe Conneely in the heart of the village, with harbour views, a sunroom and breakfast included
• Roundstone House Hotel: family-run, in the heart of the village
• Errisbeg Lodge: a B&B at the foot of Errisbeg, with the mountain walk on the doorstep
• Gurteen Bay Caravan & Camping: right by Gurteen Beach, open March to December
• Holiday cottages around the village, ideal for families and groups

Need help finding somewhere to stay? Let us know and we’ll happily point you in the right direction.

For your trip

• A waterproof jacket, even in July
• Warm layers for breezy evenings
• Walking shoes for Errisbeg and the bog roads
• Swimwear and a towel for Dog’s Bay
• Sun cream and sunglasses: the light off the sea is bright
• Insect repellent for calm, damp evenings when the midges come out

For kayaking and windsurfing

• We provide the kayak or board, paddles or sail, and a buoyancy aid
• On kayak tours a spray jacket or wetsuit is included, depending on the weather
• For windsurfing, a wetsuit is available to rent
• Bring footwear that can get wet: neoprene booties, sandals or old trainers
• Swimwear to wear underneath, a towel and a warm layer for afterwards