Céad mile fáilte (welcome) to Travel Around Ireland.

So, you’re curious as to what Travel Around Ireland is all about. And who is behind the website? Who is that lady in the picture?

Well, that lady is yours truly. Catherine, but you can call me Cath.

A picture of Cath Jordan from Travel Around Ireland standing in a wooded area with a blue rain jacket on her and smiling to the camera.
Yours truly, in Altamont Gardens, County Carlow.

Travel Around Ireland is all about discovering, exploring, and getting immersed in all things Ireland.

My mission with Travel Around Ireland is to share everything you need to know about travel in Ireland, its culture, and everything in between.

Exactly what can you expect to find here?

✔ Travel guides to all the counties and major cities in Ireland, starting with Dublin.

✔ Comprehensive guides about things to see and do in Ireland.

✔ Articles about Irish culture, names, lifestyle, and even some of its beautiful language.

And all of this from a local, an actual Irish person! Someone who has lived and breathed the country, and who still does on her many visits home. Because Ireland will always be home.

I want to show you Ireland, make you want to visit it, and help you fall hopelessly in love with the Emerald Isle and all its magic and charm.

Enjoying the Guinness Storehouse.
Table Of Contents
  1. Céad mile fáilte (welcome) to Travel Around Ireland.
  2. What makes Travel Around Ireland different from all the other Ireland travel websites?
  3. What qualifies ME to write about all this and why should you listen to me?
  4. A few other facts about Cath Jordan
  5. And before you go
  6. Where else can you find Travel Around Ireland
  7. Where has Travel Around Ireland been featured

What makes Travel Around Ireland different from all the other Ireland travel websites?

Why should you read the travel guides here? Why stop here and not one of the other blogs about Ireland?

There are lots of blogs and websites about Ireland out there. Some of them are soulless, and many of them are generic, filled with the top 10 places to visit in destinations across Ireland. There are plenty written by others who have visited Ireland (albeit briefly), and then there are others written by media companies with no heart and soul in their articles.

That’s not to say you won’t come across Dublin’s top attractions here on Travel Around Ireland. Or articles about the famous landmarks in Ireland. Of course you will. But I promise to deliver so much more, including my own personal experiences of the places I have actually visited in Ireland.

As well as sharing the places I have visited, I also share fun things like weird laws in Ireland (some of which even I didn’t know about), and hilarious Irish mammy sayings that I can hear myself saying to my son these days.

Outside the famous Temple Bar pub in Dublin.

On Travel Around Ireland, you will find informative, comprehensive guides among the lighthearted ones to enjoy a laugh over. For places I have yet to explore, I research them thoroughly so you don’t have to, and I will share all the information I can find to help you visit yourself.

Grab a cupán tae (cup of tea), get comfy, and have a click around, le do thoill (please in Irish).

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch. I love hearing from my readers, especially ones who send me emails like this:

I just wanted to say thank you for all of your great articles and information about Ireland and Northern Ireland. My husband and I went on our honeymoon in May and had such a wonderful time. Your website and the facebook group helped me with our planning so much and definitely made me feel more prepared.

We’re already talking about the next trip! 🙂

Best, Amy

Occasionally I will write about the best hotels or tours, and while I cannot do them all myself, I will not give personal recommendations unless I would stay at the hotel myself or take the tour.

You can also find answers to questions such as

I write in-depth guides as well as shorter fun articles, and if you want the latest articles sent straight to your inbox so you never miss them, complete the box below to be added to my email newsletter list.

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What qualifies ME to write about all this and why should you listen to me?

So, you may be asking yourself “why should I listen to you”? What makes you qualified to tell me about travelling in Ireland?

Firstly, I am Irish. I was born in Botswana to Irish parents and subsequently raised in South Africa (thanks to my Dad’s jobs) until my family decided to return to Ireland permanently in 1987 when I was 9. I grew up in South County Dublin, in a Dublin that looks very different to the one today.

I went to school, secondary school, and university in Dublin. I met my husband, a northsider, online, and after 2 months of chatting, we met face-to-face in the Mercantile pub on Dame Street. And the rest, as they say, is history.

A picture of a family with the mu, dad and little boy sitting on a blanket in a woods with their black german shepherd dog beside them.
A family photo from a few years ago.

Secondly, although we now live abroad, I travel as much as I can in Ireland when we return every year to visit our family, who all still live in Ireland between Dublin and County Kildare.

I am not someone who has visited Ireland once or twice for a week or two at a time. I’ve lived, breathed, grown up in, and even worked in Dublin. And now I enjoy Ireland as a tourist.

Cath Jordan, founder of Travel Around Ireland, sitting under the purple flowers of a jacaranda tree with a white denim jacket on her and smiling at the camera.
In our local town.

Third, as mentioned, we return at least once a year to Ireland, spending around 70% of our time exploring new-to-us places, and 30% of our time with our family.

Although my family had holidayed during my youth in places such as County Galway, Kerry, Wexford, and Wicklow, I never really explored Ireland properly while living there.

School and university were my focus. And besides, it was on my doorstep, always there to visit whenever I wanted. Only I didn’t. And then I moved to the UK after finishing university to join my then-boyfriend, now husband.

Fourth, it has become hugely important to me to show our son the country of his heritage. As a result, regular trips to the Emerald Isle have featured in his life since he was a baby.

Together we’ve visited the Rock of Cashel, saw the monastery and lakes of Glendalough, and been inside the passage tomb at Newgrange, something my Mum did as a young girl.

After going inside the passage tomb of Newgrange.

And lastly, I love writing and am damn good at research. My English teacher in secondary school used to receive 10 A4-page essays (back and front) to correct. My Ph.D. thesis (in Organic Chemistry) was 352 pages long, combining all of my theoretical research with my laboratory research of 5 years.

So, you could say I have a passion for writing and research. If there is something I don’t know, I research heavily and get down into the weeds until I find what I am looking for.

If there is something you want to know, tell me so I can get on it.

I held off starting this website for years while writing about family travel, but I bit the bullet in 2019 and here we are.

A few other facts about Cath Jordan

  • I was TU Tallaght’s first student to graduate through from degree to a Ph.D. without leaving or taking a break. 9 long years.
  • I only started being called Cath when I moved to the UK. A colleague asked if he could, and I became known as Cath from then on (thanks John G). But never, ever Cathy.
  • I worked as a Senior Scientist for 9 years in Wales before we left for Portugal, testing bulk cargos (oil, gasoline, diesel, and the like) for multi-million-dollar insurance cases.
  • We lived in South Wales for 15 years before hijacking my parent’s retirement in Portugal.
  • We live near the Spanish border and can celebrate New Year’s twice from our terrace. Once at 11 pm and then again at midnight.
  • Our son holds an Irish passport and speaks English with an Irish accent (so I’ve been told). But, when he switches language to Portuguese, his accent changes, especially when chatting to his friends. And he corrects my Portuguese!
  • I am hugely patriotic and covet my Irish family, heritage, and my Irish passport.
  • I only started properly learning about Irish history and our fight for independence about 5 years ago.
  • I miss Irish foods such as Irish sausages, white pudding, and Hunky Dory Cheese and Onion crisps. Amen to family visiting!
  • I love planning our trips to Ireland, or anywhere else for that matter. My husband jokes that he only needs to show up and say, “Where are we going today?”.
  • I am hard-working, organised, loyal, and a perfectionist, all traits of my star sign, Capricorn. I am as stubborn as a goat and can be pessimistic at times, although I am actively working on that.
  • I love dance and trance music, although not when I am writing.
  • A cup of tea is never far from my hands.
  • And I am a huge Take That fan, having seen them six times, with tickets for my seventh concert of theirs already secured.
Always with a cup of tea.

And before you go

I have visited many of the counties in Ireland and have a few more to tick off my own personal Ireland bucket list if you will. I am sharing that bucket list with you to show you that even as a local, I want to explore even more of Ireland so I can share my experiences with you.

Top places I have visited in Ireland

  • Dublin ✔ (Well, I am from there)
  • Kerry ✔
  • Galway ✔
  • Wexford ✔ (One of my favourite counties to date)
  • Wicklow ✔
  • Mayo ✔
  • Clare ✔
  • Waterford ✔
  • Cork ✔
  • Limerick ✔
  • Tipperary ✔
  • Carlow ✔
  • Laois ✔
  • Kilkenny ✔
  • Kildare ✔
  • Offaly ✔
  • Meath ✔
  • Louth ✔

My top 10 favourite places I’ve visited in Ireland so far

☘ Newgrange

☘ Kilmainham Gaol

☘ Hook Lighthouse

☘ Blarney Castle

☘ Glendalough

☘ Glenbarrow Waterfall

☘ Irish National Heritage Park

☘ Kilkenny Castle

☘ Rock of Cashel

☘ The Ring of Kerry

Top 10 places on my Ireland bucket list

  • Skellig Michael
  • Giant’s Causeway
  • Glenveagh National Park
  • Loop Head Lighthouse
  • Kilkee Cliffs
  • Slieve League Cliffs
  • Killary Harbour
  • Aran Islands
  • Ross Castle
  • Torc Waterfall

Where else can you find Travel Around Ireland

Travel Around Ireland can also be found at:

Where has Travel Around Ireland been featured

Travel Around Ireland has been featured in the following media outlets:

  • Travel Transformation podcast with Jessica Coleman (Episode 89)
  • Choose Your Happy Place with Lisa Stanworth (July 24th 2023 episode)

I have also contributed articles to the following websites about travel in Ireland:

  • No Hurry To Get Home – 7 Top Historical Places in Ireland to Visit
  • 52 Perfect Days – Amazing Things to Do in Waterford, Ireland
  • Rate Punk – Top 10 Places to Visit in Ireland 2023
  • Travel Melodies – Top 7 Things to Do With Kids in Ireland Who Love Culture and Art
  • Winged Fork – What to Do in Dublin on the Weekend (from a local)
  • Volumes & Voyages – 8 Must-visit Historical Sites in Ireland You Cannot Miss
  • Our Globetrotters – Exploring Historical Places in Dublin With Kids
  • Groups Are A Trip – How to Plan the Perfect Girls Trip to Dublin
  • The Gap Decaders – The Best Things to Do in Ireland (34 Highlights)
  • European Cities With Kids – Dublin With Kids: Your 2023 City Break Guide
  • Mommy Travels – Girlfriends Getaway in Dublin, Ireland
  • Kate Abroad – 2 Days in Dublin, Ireland

And if you’d like to know more about moving to Portugal:

  • XYU and Beyond – Pros and Cons of Living in The Algarve in Portugal

Make sure to visit and join our free Ireland Travel Group Facebook page where you can get even more ideas and get your burning questions answered. Click the button below to join now.

Click here to join the Facebook Group now!

If you’d like to get in contact please email me at cath@travelaroundireland.com. If there is anything you’d like to see next on this site, please let me know!