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Planning a holiday in Ireland

  • Newgrange

    © narvikk/iStockphotos

    Photo of Newgrange – the site of a Stone Age temple

  • Newgrange stones

    © matejphoto/iStockphotos

    Close-up photo of decorated stones at Newgrange

  • Dingle

    © Rafal Stachura/iStockphotos

    Photo of the Dingle Peninsula – the most westerly point of Ireland

  • Fungi

    © FrankMirbach/iStockphotos

    Photo of the famous dolphin Fungie (the Dingle dolphin) jumping out of the water

Planning a holiday in Ireland

Planning a holiday in Ireland

Would you buy a ticket to see sunlight? Some people do this once a year in a very special place in Ireland. Newgrange is the site of a Stone Age temple, which dates back to about 3200 BC. That means it’s older than the Great Pyramids. The temple consists of a giant earth mound with 97 decorated stones around it. Deep inside the mound there is a tomb. Every year thousands of people buy tickets for the Newgrange Lottery, and the prize is a visit to the tomb around Winter Solstice in December. This is the only time there is sunlight covering the whole of the floor inside the tomb, and everyone who has been there says the experience is magical. The lucky 25 winners are drawn by local schoolchildren.

The Dingle Peninsula is a huge contrast to Newgrange. Here you will find the most westerly point of Ireland – and Europe. There is nothing here between you and America except huge skies and the wild Atlantic Ocean.

The town of Dingle is famous for one of Ireland’s celebrities, a wild dolphin called Fungi which first came here in 1983. Dolphins normally live in groups called pods. It is extremely unusual for a single wild dolphin to stay for so long in one place living alongside humans. Fungi loves swimming along with local fishing boats and entertaining tourists on the tour boats. He is not fed and trained to do tricks, like captive dolphins are. He is nearly always there. If he doesn’t turn up, tourists don’t need to pay for the boat trip!

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