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A British YouTuber who makes pub-crawl videos visited the Donegal seaside town of Bundoran expecting a lively night out but found many venues closed. The resulting video captures both frustration and admiration — he called the town a “ghost town” while also praising its coastal scenery.
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Danny, creator of the Honest Places channel, travelled to Bundoran with fellow creator Stumpy — known online as The Northern Ireland Traveller — intending to film a boozy pub crawl. Earlier this year Danny was involved in an incident outside a Glasgow pub, and the Bundoran trip was meant to be a more pleasant outing.
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Bundoran sits on the Wild Atlantic Way and is often billed as Ireland’s surf capital; National Geographic has previously listed it among the world’s top 20 surfing resorts. From his hotel room Danny said he could see a ferris wheel and called the town the “Blackpool equivalent of Ireland.”
Closed doors and surprise emptiness
Walking the town, the pair found a surprising number of pubs shut. Danny asked aloud: “Is something happening today? Look at the weather. People should be making loads of money.”
He later added: “Jesus, we are getting desperate, it might be a sober night.” A landlady they spoke with said several bars only open at weekends, allowing tourists to finish their drinks and enjoy the arcades before the busiest nights.
At one point Danny summed up his unease bluntly: “Without the beach, and without the fairground rides, the place would literally be a ghost town of Ireland. It would be a ghost town. It’s done for. It’s a ghost town and it’s the end of May after a bank holiday and the kids are off.”
Finding quality pubs amid the quiet
Not everything was closed. The pair found immediate cheer at The Railway Bar, praising the staff and the quality of the Guinness. Locals recommended The Celtic Marine Bar next — Danny described it as one of his aesthetic favourites — and they also discovered what he called a “little hidden gem” at The Birds Nest Bar.
Despite those positives, Danny felt the wider town was struggling. He criticised venues that do not update opening times on Google, saying it contributed to visitors’ disappointment.
Local reactions and the view from the beach
Stumpy, usually upbeat in his coverage, told viewers he was surprised and disappointed. “I’m really disappointed in it. I was expecting a lot more because I know loads of people who travel from Belfast and they go to Bundoran all the time and honestly I don’t understand what they are coming here for. There are so many nicer places in Ireland.”
Other viewers from Bundoran offered mixed takes in response to the video. One local wrote: “Still nice in summer but the night life is done.” Another agreed the town felt empty but added: “Bit of a ghost town but what a sunset.” A defender noted the resort fills up during peak summer, saying it’s lively when visitors from the north arrive.
For Danny, the highlight remained the coastline. Strolling to the shore he admired the evening light, calling the sunset “majestic” as it fell over the Donegal hills. He ended the visit with a terse verdict: “Rundown town. Neglected town.”
