Reframing the Future

The village of Letterfrack, nestled beside Connemara National Park and Diamond Hill, treats visitors and residents to some of Connemara’s most stunning scenery and a peaceful atmosphere. This quiet yet vibrant community is home to the National Centre for Excellence in Furniture Design and Technology...

CultureLucy Mashburn20 March 20172016 Issue, Connemara Life, Ireland, Amanda Crowley, GMIT Letterfrack, Gabriel Hielscher, Geraldine O’Brien, Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology, National Centre for Excellence in Furniture Design and Technology, Furniture, Carpentry, Design, Technology, Furniture Design, Connemara, Connemara National Park, Diamond Hill, Letterfrack, GMIT, Saint Joseph's Industrial School, Irish Christian Brothers, Connemara West, Machine Halls, Bench Rooms, CNC, Laser Technology, Robotics, Computer Aided Design, CAD, College, Connacht Tribune, Wood, Dr Fergal Barry, President Michael D. Higgins, Áras an Uachtaráin, Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland, Architectural Association of Ireland, Design and Crafts Council of Ireland, IrelandSkills National Competitions, global Undergraduate Awards, Wood Marketing Federation Ireland, Campus, Irish, Karl Elliffe, Benchmark Furniture, Benchmark, Irish Design, Creative, Carpenter, Construction, Skills, Nádhúra Design, Nádhúra, Woodworking, Interior Design, Hand-crafted, Ainslie Peters, Diverse, Custom, Co-design, Oisin White, Peter Ranalow, Mark Leonard, Michael Cooney, Gerard Conneely, Craftmanship, Tuath, Country Style

Bespoke Luxury

Connemara Carpets has had more than forty years of experience providing durable luxury carpets of the highest quality to clients worldwide.

To the End of the Line

The original trail route from Clifden to Galway meanders through some of the most spectacular scenery western Ireland has to offer, but the polarising isolation of Connemara’s many lakes, rivers, and mountain ranges spurred the need to build the original railway track in 1891.

Guglielmo Marconi

History allows us to look back and appreciate the enormous strides achieved by pioneers in science and technology. Sadly, stories are often forgotten, replaced by the next great advance or discovery...

CultureLucy Mashburn7 March 20172016 Issue, Connemara Life, Connemara, Guglielmo Marconi, Amanda Crowley, Marconi Company, Marconi, Marconi Project, Connemara Chamber of Commerce, Clifden Chamber of Commerce, Galway County Council Chamber, Fáilte Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way, Christopher Shannon, Archaeologist, Archaeology, Jameson Irish Whiskey Family, Irish History, Ireland, Ireland History, Ireland's Western Coast, The Wild Atlantic Way, Radio, Wireless, Radio and Wireless Communication, Communication, Nobel Prize, Physics, Electromagentic Waves, Telegraph, Telegraph Stations, Cornwall, England, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, Clifden, Derrygimlagh, Technology, Marconi's Telegraph, Marconi Light Railway, Radio Station, Letterfrack, R. N. Vyvyan, C. S. Franklin, Jack Phillips, Radio Operators, Wireless Stations, Alock and Brown, Pilot Captain John ‘Jack’ Alcock, Daily Mail, Lieutenant Arthur Whitten Brown, Connemara History, Derrygimlagh Signature Discovery Point, Anne Cleary, Denis Connolly, Historioscopes, Panoramascope, Phones, Innovators, Travellers, Inventions, Inventors

A Family Affair

The rugged landscape of Connemara and the fierce beauty of its coastline frame the lives of those who call the west of Ireland home. Its rich history has been formed through centuries of tradition, the unwavering strength of its people, and a dedication to the land.

A Tradition of Art and Education

The Clifden Arts Festival will shortly be celebrating its fortieth birthday, and it has been getting bigger and better each year.

Ann-Marie Aspell and Tom O’Neill

Ann-Marie and John’s Christmas wedding was celebrated in the beautiful town of Letterfrack, County Galway, with blue skies and lots of friends and family.‘Tom and I chose to get married in Connemara because I am from Letterfrack,’ Ann-Marie says.

Partners in Education

The picturesque village of Tullycross in Renvyle, Connemara, is gaining a reputation as the destination of choice for US colleges to base their Ireland study abroad programmes, especially if they want to offer students a community-engaged experience.

An Gorta Mór

The Irish and their bittersweet love affair with the potato appeared to have started in 1589, courtesy of the Elizabethan adventurer Sir Walter Raleigh, who brought potatoes to Ireland.

CultureMeghn Hill20 February 2017Ireland History, Simon Leyland, Mark Furniss, The Great Famine, Potatoes, Sir Walter Raleigh, Youghal, Sir Robert Peel, Corn Laws, European History, Blue Potatoes, Phytophthora infestans, 2015 Issue

Salt of the Earth

In the summer of 1977, my parents sent me to Ireland to spend time with my grandmother, my great-aunt, and my great-uncle. I was excited, scared, and a little mad—I would be missing the opening of Star Wars.

CultureMeghn Hill14 February 2017Turf Havesting, Laurie Crowley, Tourism Ireland, Renvyle, Western Ireland, Connemara National Park Visitor Centre, Letterfrack, Turf Bog, 2015 Issue

Keeping Time

When I first came to Connemara nearly a decade ago, I wrote down my initial impressions of the first pub I visited.

CultureMeghn Hill13 February 2017Irish Pubs, Music, Guinness, Connemara Ireland, The Black Velvet, Trojan Horse, Guinness Shandy, The Midnight, Real Irish Dancing, 2015 Issue

A Connemara Landmark

Near Letterfrack and Connemara National Park, just a few miles from Ireland’s western coast, the shimmering waters of Kylemore Lough act as a mirror to the impressive neo-Gothic structure known as Kylemore Abbey.

CultureMeghn Hill7 February 2017Kylemore Abbey, Victorian Walled Garden, Letterfrack, Connemara National Park, Ireland's Western Coast, Kylemore Lough, Mitchell Henry, Kylemore Estate, Benedictine Order, Gothic Church, 2015 Issue

Art Is Alive in Connemara

The west of Ireland is home not only to beautiful landscapes and a storied history but also to a rich and vibrant arts culture. When it comes to musical, visual, or literary art, the people of Connemara take pride

CultureMeghn Hill6 February 2017Art, Connemara, The Curlew Theatre Company, Sean and Ros Coyne, Aoife Herriott, Eamon Grennan, Tegolin Knowland, Sean Coyne, Renvyle, Galway, NORAMOLLYANNALIVIALUCIA: The Muse and Mister Joyce, 2015 Issue