Daily Times

It’s no secret that the Emerald Isle is rich in beauty – but what of the tiny islands that surround it?

While tourists swarm to the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin and the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare, Ireland’s islands can offer an off-the-beaten-track escape to travellers who are keen to learn more about the country’s culture away from the crowds.

There are around 80 sizeable islands off the coast of Ireland, and hundreds more nestled within the country’s loughs, with some home to tiny modern populations and others dotted with ancient ruins.

These fascinating outcrops include Lambay Island in Dublin, where you’ll find a curious mob of wallabies; County Kerry’s Skellig Micheal, famed as a filming location for two Star Wars films, and Spike Island off the coast of County Cork – nicknamed the ‘Irish Alcatraz’ – where visitors can tour around the cells of a former prison.

‘Mysterious ocean isles, lake-locked havens, and isolated nature sanctuaries: Ireland’s islands are a world of their own… an island visit offers something special: a glimpse into a different life, a chance to hike incredible walking routes, to taste super-fresh seafood and to meet some of the friendliest people around,’ says Ireland.com.

Most islands are just a short ferry ride away from the mainland, while others can be accessed via bridges and even by cable car. Scroll down to see MailOnline travel’s pick of the country’s stunning must-visit isles.Great Blasket Island, Co Kerry, is one of six main islands comprising the Blasket archipelago. The outcrop, which measures four miles (6.4km) long and half-a-mile (0.8km) wide, claims the title of being the most westerly point in Europe. According to rucsacs.com, the Blasket Islands were ‘inhabited for many centuries, probably since the Iron Age’ and Great Blasket had ‘a population of some 160 people during World War I, but this soon dwindled and the island was finally abandoned in 1953’. Today Great Blasket is a popular destination for daytrippers, with draws including a white sand beach called Tra Ban (above), which translates to ‘White Strand’, hiking trails and an abundance of wildlife, ranging from basking sharks to puffins. Visitors can explore the abandoned fishing village on the island and stay in cottages that have been restored and converted into lodgings. Manuel S wrote a review on tripadvisor after visiting Great Blasket in 2019: ‘Silence, donkeys, seals and cliffs. Every minute feels like an hour. The perfect place to breathe and be happy!’ To get there, a ferry service from the mainland runs on a seasonal basis from Ce Dhun Chaoin (Dunquin Pier), Dingle Marina and Ventry Pier

Another one is Spike Island, Co Cork which is nicknamed the ‘Irish Alcatraz’ – boasts a fascinating and dark history, which has included ‘monks and monasteries, rioters and redcoats, captains and convicts and sinners and saints’, the island’s website notes. The island’s star-shaped fortress, Fort Mitchel, dates back to 1804 and at one time was the largest prison in the world, holding up to 2,300 prisoners. It stopped functioning as a prison in 2004, with convicts replaced by daytrippers. The isle was voted Europe’s leading tourist attraction at the World Travel Awards in 2017, with visitors able to explore the convict cemetery, original 19th-century prison cells and the houses of the island’s village, some of which date back to the 1700s. Liam M, who visited the island in May, wrote in a Tripadvisor review that three hours exploring its history ‘flew by’ and it was a ‘great experience for all the family’. Spike Island is reached by ferry from the town of Cobh, the Titanic’s last port of call in 1912.

Tory Island, Co Donegal is located just over seven miles (12km) off the northwest coast of County Donegal, is ‘the most remote of Ireland’s inhabited islands’. It says this remoteness has led to the preservation of many traditions and customs, which include the appointment of an ‘island king’. The title was last claimed by Patsy Dan Rodgers, who died in 2018 at the age of 74, but no one has reigned since. Draws to the rugged outcrop include a T-shaped cross known as the Tau cross, the ruins of St. Colmcille’s 6th-century monastery, a lighthouse, and the Dun Bhaloir fort. Visit between March and September and you may spy puffins nesting on the coast, the tourist board adds. Tory Island is accessible via a passenger ferry that leaves from Magheroarty Pier on the mainland, with the journey taking around 45 minutes

Rathlin Island, Co Antrim is an ‘L’ shaped island measuring six miles (9.6km) long and one mile (1.6km) wide off the northeast coast of Ireland. According to the island’s website, Rathlin, which is home to around 140 inhabitants, was ‘probably the first Irish island to become inhabited’ and it is thought the first settlers arrived there somewhere between 6,000BC to 5,000BC from Scotland. Venture to the island for a tour of its famous ‘upside-down’ lighthouse – the beacon lies at the base of the building, rather than at the top, to cut through low-lying fog. The isle is also home to a huge seabird colony – you can see puffins during the early summer months. Over the years famous visitors have included Robert the Bruce, who took refuge on the isle in 1306 during his struggle for the Scottish crown, and Sir Richard Branson, who in 1987 crash-landed off the coast during his record-breaking Atlantic crossing in a hot air balloon. For those wanting to follow in their footsteps, Rathlin can be reached via a ferry service that operates from Ballycastle in County Antrim, with the journey taking around 25 minutes.