Come To County Galway For a Fabulous Vacation
Galway town is famous around the planet for its entertainment scene, and its pubs host music most nights of the week. It's got many old fashioned cafes, positioned on narrow cobblestone streets. During the Galway Humanities Holiday, a spread of tin whistles, bodhrns ( hand-held drums made of goatskin ), harps, bagpipes, banjos, guitars, fiddles, jugglers, sorcerers in colourful mask,s poets, painters, and puppeteers entertain passers-by. Actors in traditional Irish costume can often be sighted in town.
Galway's streets are full of history, yet still maintain a recent feel. Students make up a quarter of the city's population, while the medieval town walls sit beside shops selling handcrafted Claddagh rings, a treasure-trove of secondhand and new books and Aran sweaters. A long promenade connects the town with the seaside suburb of Salthill, situated on Galway Bay, home of the region's famous oysters.
The city has an array of drinking and eating options, ranging from the market where farmers in wellies sell soil-covered vegetables to adventurous fusion restaurants restating Irish cuisine. Rambling public houses with wooden staircases serve Guinness, Galway Hooker ale and Irish coffees.
It can't be denied that it rains an awful lot in Galway, yet even this fails to dampen Galway's joie de vivre. When the sun shines, the town is full of life, and it is lively all year. It is frequently referred to as the most 'Irish' of Ireland's cities, with Irish stll spoken in the stores, pubs and streets.
The Irish word for Galway, Gaillimh, has its origins in the Irish word gaill, meaning 'foreigners ' or 'outsiders'. This has stayed a fitting term across the history of the city, which began as a fishing village at the mouth of the salmon-filled River Corrib. It changed into a major town in 1232 when the Anglo-Normans, led by Richard de Burgo, caught the territory. Around 1270, its fortified walls were built.
Richard II granted a charter in 1396, which transferred power from the de Burgos to 14 merchant families or 'tribes'. Here's where the long-lasting nickname of 'City of the Tribes' stems from. Galway's independent status was maintained under the ruling merchant families, the majority of whom were loyalists of the English Crown. Its location on the Atlantic encouraged a prosperous trade in salt, fish, spices and wine with Spain and Portugal. Its support of the English , however , led straight to its downfall when the city was trapped by Cromwell in 1651. In the next year, the city dropped. William of Orange's militia made their own contribution to the destruction in 1691. Trade with Spain declined and, as Waterford and Dublin started to take most sea traffic, Galway stagnated for hundreds of years.
In the early 1900s the town was awakened when travellers started to return and student numbers started to grow. In 1934, the stone-paved streets and thatched houses of Claddagh were replaced to create space for clinical, modern buildings, and ever since construction has expanded. As it is only about three hours from the capital, the city's population continues to increase today as new residents move in. Galway is one of the swiftest growing towns in Europe, yet it remains true to its enthusiastic roots.
Galway's streets are full of history, yet still maintain a recent feel. Students make up a quarter of the city's population, while the medieval town walls sit beside shops selling handcrafted Claddagh rings, a treasure-trove of secondhand and new books and Aran sweaters. A long promenade connects the town with the seaside suburb of Salthill, situated on Galway Bay, home of the region's famous oysters.
The city has an array of drinking and eating options, ranging from the market where farmers in wellies sell soil-covered vegetables to adventurous fusion restaurants restating Irish cuisine. Rambling public houses with wooden staircases serve Guinness, Galway Hooker ale and Irish coffees.
It can't be denied that it rains an awful lot in Galway, yet even this fails to dampen Galway's joie de vivre. When the sun shines, the town is full of life, and it is lively all year. It is frequently referred to as the most 'Irish' of Ireland's cities, with Irish stll spoken in the stores, pubs and streets.
The Irish word for Galway, Gaillimh, has its origins in the Irish word gaill, meaning 'foreigners ' or 'outsiders'. This has stayed a fitting term across the history of the city, which began as a fishing village at the mouth of the salmon-filled River Corrib. It changed into a major town in 1232 when the Anglo-Normans, led by Richard de Burgo, caught the territory. Around 1270, its fortified walls were built.
Richard II granted a charter in 1396, which transferred power from the de Burgos to 14 merchant families or 'tribes'. Here's where the long-lasting nickname of 'City of the Tribes' stems from. Galway's independent status was maintained under the ruling merchant families, the majority of whom were loyalists of the English Crown. Its location on the Atlantic encouraged a prosperous trade in salt, fish, spices and wine with Spain and Portugal. Its support of the English , however , led straight to its downfall when the city was trapped by Cromwell in 1651. In the next year, the city dropped. William of Orange's militia made their own contribution to the destruction in 1691. Trade with Spain declined and, as Waterford and Dublin started to take most sea traffic, Galway stagnated for hundreds of years.
In the early 1900s the town was awakened when travellers started to return and student numbers started to grow. In 1934, the stone-paved streets and thatched houses of Claddagh were replaced to create space for clinical, modern buildings, and ever since construction has expanded. As it is only about three hours from the capital, the city's population continues to increase today as new residents move in. Galway is one of the swiftest growing towns in Europe, yet it remains true to its enthusiastic roots.
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A good option, especially for larger groups or families who may want accommodation which is cheaper than a Galway hotel may be Galway Self Catering which is of a very high standard and very affordable.