Mitchelstown Cave - Mitchelstown

Mitchelstown Cave is a world without sun, without time, a world where man almost feels an intruder, stumbling on a past age, an era where nature reigns supreme. Be surrounded by drip stone formations, stalactites, stalagmites, graceful calcite curtains that hand from sloping roofs, calcite crystals which glisten like diamonds in the distance. Mitchelstown Cave is a must on your itinerary.

Fota Arboretum and Gardens - Fota Island *

Fota Arboretum contains an extensive collection of trees and shrubs extending over an area of approx. 11 hectares (27 acres). The collection includes many tender plants that could not be grown at inland locations with many examples of exotic plants from the southern hemisphere. The Gardens at Fota were laid out by James Hugh Smith-Barry in the first half of the 19th century.

Barryscourt Castle - Carrigtwohill

Barryscourt Castle was the seat of the Barry family from the 12th to the 17th centuries. The present castle is a fine example of a 15th century tower house with 16th century additions and alterations. The bawn wall with three corner towers is largely intact. The ground floor of the keep houses an exhibition on the history of the Barrys and Barryscourt Castle.

Doneraile Wildlife Park - Doneraile *

The Park comprises approximately 166 hectares and is an outstanding example of an 18th century landscaped park in the 'Capability Brown' style. Mature groves of deciduous trees, several restored water features and a number of deer herds can be viewed along the many pathways within the Park. Doneraile Court, the former residence of the St. Leger family, is situated within the Park.

Ilnacullin - Bantry *

Located in the sheltered harbour of Glengarriff in Bantry Bay, Ilnacullin is a small island of 15 hectares (37 acres) known to horticulturists and lovers of trees and shrubs all around the world as an island garden of rare beauty. The gardens of Ilnacullin owe their existence to the creative partnership, some eighty years ago, of Annan Bryce, then owner of the island and Harold Peto, architect and garden designer.

Charles Fort - Kinsale *

Constructed in the late 17th century on the site of an earlier coastal fortification, Charles Fort is a classic example of a star-shaped fort. As one of the largest military forts in the country, Charles Fort has been associated with some of the most momentous events in Irish history. The most significant of which include the Williamite War in 1690 and the Irish Civil War of 1922-23.

Desmond Castle - Kinsale *

Built as a custom house by the Earl of Desmond c. AD 1500, Desmond Castle has a colourful history, ranging from Spanish occupation in 1601 to use as a prison for captured American sailors during the American War of Independence. Known locally as 'The French Prison' after a tragic fire in which 54 prisoners, mainly French seamen, died in 1747. The Castle was also used as a borough jail from 1791 to the onset of the Great Famine when it was used as an auxiliary workhouse tending to the starving populace.