Letterfrack
The perfect base for Connemara National Park 🌄
Letterfrack is a vibrant and beautiful West of Ireland village. Lying at the head of beautiful Ballynakill Bay, it is overlooked by majestic Diamond Hill mountain, and is the entrance points for Connemara National Park.
Letterfrack Village
Letterfrack village was developed in the immediate aftermath of the famine, c.1850, by a Quaker couple, James & Mary Ellis, wealthy textile merchants from Bradford in England. From the late 1800s until 1973, the Christian Brothers operated the Letterfrack Industrial School in those buildings until 1973. The former Industrial School is now owned by community-owned company, Connemara West Plc, who have been instrumental in transforming the heretofore discredited industrial school into a vibrant community space which houses the highly-regarded Atlantic Technological University National Centre for Excellence in Furniture Design and Technology; Forum a community partnership company; Connemara Community Radio; Conservation Letterfrack; Youthreach; a crèche, and Books at One.
Music & Festivals 🎶
Letterfrack is renowned for its live traditional Irish music. The well-known traditional music lover, Leo Hallisey, organizes “Bog Week” and “Sea Week”, two immensely popular festival events. They bring large numbers of traditional musicians together in Letterfrack for music, hill-walking, and a programme of discussions on environmental matters. There is also live traditional music throughout the year in the local pub, Veldons Seafarer Pub and Restaurant.
Dining in Letterfrack 🍽
Letterfrack offers a good selection of places to eat and drink. Among these are its two cozy dining pubs, Veldons and The Clover Fox , and the delightfully elegant Rosleague Manor Hotel nearby. The village boasts the popular Café Kabo, just off the village green for fabulous breakfast and lunch menus, and a tea shop at the Connemara National Park.
Veldons Seafarer Bar & Restaurant
Housed in a whitewashed cottage in the scenic village of Letterfrack in the heart of Connemara, Veldons Seafarer Bar & Restaurant offers a warm and friendly atmosphere with timber nooks, crannies, and an open fire. Specialising in local seafood like Cleggan crab and Clew Bay oysters, the menu also features steak, chicken, and vegan options like wild mushroom linguine with sun-dried tomatoes and pesto.
Open during the high season, Veldons serves hearty meals, light bites, and creamy chowder. Enjoy a pint or a glass of wine while savouring the finest west of Ireland produce. Whether you’re a local or a visitor, Veldons promises a memorable dining experience with its welcoming ambiance and delicious food.
Clover Fox Restaurant
Clover Fox Restaurant in Letterfrack offers a blend of great food and reasonable prices in a traditional Irish pub setting. Located beside the entrance to Connemara National Park and near Kylemore Abbey, this charming spot provides a warm welcome and friendly service enriched with local knowledge.
The seafood bar features delights from Smoked Atlantic Organic Seafoods, Connemara Seafoods, and Burren Smokehouse, including fresh oysters, mussels, clams, and razorfish from Killary Fjord Shellfish. Enjoy fresh fish from Renvyle and Cleggan, paired with organic vegetables and salads from Glynns of Carnmore, and wild organic honey by Anthony Coyne. Meat lovers can indulge in Connemara Mountain-fed Sea Breeze Lamb, and grass-fed Prime Irish Hereford Steaks. Clover Fox prides itself on using fully traceable ingredients, including crab meat, claws, and scallops from the Renvyle Peninsula.
Visit for a hearty meal, enjoy impromptu music sessions, and experience the true essence of Irish hospitality.
Letterfrack: Entry point to Connemara National Park
The main entrance to the Connemara National Park is located in the village, and it is the starting point for an array of very fine moderately challenging walks. Perhaps the most popular of these is the extraordinary raised pathway which leads all the way to the top of the Diamond Mountain. But Letterfrack is not all about hiking and taking lunch. ATU Connemara / GMIT houses the National College of Furniture Design which hosts a most impressive exhibition of bespoke furniture design during the summer months.
Getting up close and personal with nature is easy in Letterfrack. The extensive Connemara National Park makes it a paradise for bird watchers and plant lovers alike. And enthusiasts of geology, too, are not left out. Letterfrack’s unique rock formations have been fascinating geologists for centuries. Just 5 minutes from Letterfrack is Kylemore Abbey and Victorian Walled Gardens with its 1,000 acre estate which is full of flora and fauna waiting to be explored.
Things to do in Letterfrack
- The walks around and up Diamond Hill are a must. Dig out your walking shoes and make your way to its summit to enjoy stunning views of the park, the bay, and the famous Twelve Pins mountains.
- Visit Kylemore Abbey and Victorian Walled Gardens which offers loads to do from interactive museum exhibitions, a Gothic Church, extensive gardens, woodland walks amidst picturesque landscapes, a craft shop, pottery studio, handmade chocolate factory along with tasty treats at the restaurant and tea rooms.
- Pop into Books At One in Letterfrack which has a great selection of books and browse their selection of wines, cakes, handmade candles, soaps and local honey.
- Shop at The Clover Fox for a range of crafts from prominent Connemara based artists using Wool, Ceramics, Silk, Glass, Cashmere, Wood Carvings Art, Books, Pashmina, and much more.
- Treat yourself to lunch in wonderful Rosleague Manor. Resting on the quiet shores of Ballinakill Bay, and beautifully secluded within 30 acres of its own private woodland, Rosleague Manor in Connemara is one of Ireland’s finest regency hotels.
- Visit one of the three best beaches in Connemara, Glassilaun Beach, Lettergesh or White Strand, all only a few minutes drive north of Letterfrack village.
Getting to Letterfrack 🚌
By bus, car, bicycle, or foot. Citylink and Bus Eireann both provide a daily bus service from Galway City to Letterfrack. Alternatively follow the N59 west from Galway to Glendollagh Lough, and then the R344 northwards to Letterfrack.
Where to stay 🛌
Letterfrack has a great range of comfortable accommodation options from small hotels, guesthouses, hostels, B&B’s and campsites nearby.
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Follow the coast
Letterfrack is surrounded by beautiful coastal destinations. Don’t miss Renvyle and Killary if you are travelling north or Inishbofin, and Cleggan, if you are travelling south.
Letterfrack Map
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