Grattan Square and other Dungarvan, Ireland Things to Do Tips

Grattan Square is the traditional heart of Dungarvan and is still a busy central point to the town. The square hasn't changed much in the last century and although the shopfronts have changed a little, the square looks pretty much the same as it has done for over 100 years. the only real difference is the presence of cars over horse drawn carriage! However, the down side to this modern development is that the centre of thes square is now promarily used for car-parking! It is on Thursdays that the square reverts to traditional life with the morning farmers market selling fresh food produce. The culmination of this market atmosphere is during the Dungarvan Festival of Food which has grown in stature over the past few years and now has a reputation as one of the best festivals of its kind in Ireland. the festival usually happens around Easter.

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King John's Castle is an Anglo-Norman fortification founded in 1185. It is situated at the mouth of the River Colligan. The castle would have originally be surrounded by water and was entered with the use of a drawbridge.
During the Irish Civil War control of the castle (then a barracks) was taken by the IRA forces who set fire to it before leaving in August 1922. With the formation of the Garda Siochana in1922, the castle was used as the local station until 1987. After this it fell into disrepair, but has been restored and is now managed by Dúchas The Heritage Service. There are guided tours, an audio-visual show and exhibitions during the summer season.
Reconstruction work on the castle is ongoing.

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Address: Davitt's Quay, Dungarvan
Directions: Walk to the end of Davitt's Quay and it's on your right.

Clonea is located just east of Dungarvan, about 5 minutes drive. Clonea is a designated blue flag beach and is one of the finest beaches in the South East of Ireland. Clonea has a growing reputation as a good surfing beach and it is clean and very suitable for swimming.
Be warned that during hot summer days the beach gets very crowded and parking can be hard to find. There is a hotel nearby but it's carpark is reserved for hotel guests and is strictly monitored during the summer season.
There is also a caravan and camping park located nearby.

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Address: Clonea Strand, Dungarvan
Directions: Take N25 towards Waterford City. 3 Km outside the town turn right - signposted Clonea and Ballinroad. Follow signs for Ballinroad village. Pass through the village and you will come to a roundabout. Take the first exit and immediately turn right.

The Abbeyside Parish Church down by the seafront in Abbeyside mainly consisits of a relatively new Church dating from 1820, but is attached to an original 15th century monastery tower. The tower was part of an original Augustine Monastery and the ruins of the chancel of the monastery branch out from the tower towards the sea, perpendicular to the 19th century church building. The chancel itself dates from the 13th century with the tower being added later. Today the church serves as the main church for the parish of Abbeyside/Ballinacourty.

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Directions: Cross the Colligan River from Dungarvan into Abbeysode and turn right at the trafiic lights (Spar) Continue along the harbour and follow the sea road and you will pass the Church and Monastic Ruins

Captain Dave Foley was the owner of Shell Cottage in Abbeyside. During his voyages he would frequently collect shells from his ports of call and on his return home would use the shells to decorate the cottage in intricate patterns and mosaic pictures. The cottage is now uninhabited but is stilll private property. You can still see the shell designs at the front of the cottage but the most impressive display is on the rear wall. You can catch a glimpse if you look down the side of the house to the rear garden.
Another unusual feature of the cottage is the grass. The variety of grass known as "Mind Your Own Business" is a variety of grass that looks quite like clover. The grass does not grow.

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Address: Abbeyside, Dungarvan
Directions: Cross the causeway from dungarvan and turn right at the traffic lights onto Strandside South. At the end of the road turn left and Shell Cottage is on your left.

The Moresby Buoy is located at the Abbetside end of the causeway (opposite Eurospar Shop).
The buoy is a monument to the tragic sinking of the Moresby ship in Dungarvan Bay on December 24th 1895. Twenty lives were lost including Captain Coomber and his wife and daughter. In St. Mary's Church of Ireland there you can see the mass grave of the crew of the Moresby. (See my tip on St. Mary's)

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Address: The Causeway, Abbeyside
Directions: Cross the bridge from Dugarvan into Abbeyside. Go to the end of the causeway and the buoy is opposite Eurospar Shop.

St. Mary's Church is the Protestant place of worship in Dungarvan. The churchyard is hidden from view by a very old stone wall that faces on to Emmett Street. The present church was rebuilt to a design by James Pain, about 1828. The church has a T-plan and is built of limestone, the windows have simple Gothic style frames in timber. An extension was added to the east end in 1903, and also at this period, new stained glass windows were installed by Watsons of Youghal. In 1795, the old church was repaired and new sets of entrance gates were erected at a cost of £12. These gates still survive today. A curious feature to the west of the church is the old gable wall with its five circular opes. The wall has perplexed local historians for many years, however it now seems certain that it is all that remains of the old Pre-Reformation Parish Church 'St. Mary the Virgin' records of which date back to the 1300's. The beautiful view from here, much admired by 18th and 19th century visitors to Dungarvan can still be appreciated today. In 1642 during the Civil War, the Irish rebels under a Captain Fennell destroyed the interior of the church and used it as a stable and prison for the Protestant inhabitants.

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Address: Emmet St., Dungarvan
Directions: From Gratton Square walk up Mary's St. towards the St. Mary's Catholic Church. At the top of the street turn left and walk down the street. The church gates are on your right about 200 metres down.

While staying in Dungarvan visitors should take the coastal drive from Dungarvan to Tramore. This whole coastal area is a designated European Geo Park. The drive is littered with small seaside villages such as Stradbally, Bunmahon and Annestown. These villages all have their own beautiful beaches and anyone taking this drive will be rewarded with spectacular coastal views and beautiful, unspoilt beaches.

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Address: Copper Coast, Co. Waterford
Directions: Take the R675 towards Stradbally and then Follow the signs for the Copper Coast or South East Coastal Drive.
Website: www.coppercoastgeopark.com

As you tarvel along the main road between Dungarvan and Waterford City (N25) you can't help but notice the small but spectacular Comeragh Mountain Range which divides Counties Tipperary and Waterford.
You can take a number of turns off the rioad up into the mountains and especially Mahion Falls.
Mahon Falls is a popular walk for visitors and locals alike especially on sunny weekends. The falls are located in the centre of the mountain range and are flanked by high craggy maounain sides. You can either take the path to the falls or if you are out for a bit of a climb you can climb the mountain slopes to take in the falls from a height. There is a free car park nearby where you can leave your car but be advised this carpark becomes very busy at weekends and during the summer and can fill very quickly and there are very few altenative parking opportunities. Also the road is very narrow in places so take it very slowly.

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Address: Comeragh Mountains, Co. Waterford
Directions: You can take any of the signposted roads off the N25 (Dungarvan to Waterford City Road) Follow the signs for Mahon Falls.

Ring or 'An Rinn' in Irish is an official Gaeltacht area near Dungarvan. A Gaeltacht area is an area in whihc the predominant language used locally is Irish. Gaeltacht areas in Ireland are mostly located along the west coast such as Kerry (the Dingle Peninsula) Galway and Donegal.
Ring is the only official Gaeltacht area in Waterford.
Because of this, all road signs and a lot of Shop signs are in the Irish language. If you want to hear the Irish language used in everyday life around Dungarvan your best chance is around Ring. However, due to unforgivable negligence by the planning authorities who have allowed far too much housing development in the area the area has become far more "english speaking" in recent years.
thankfully this is not all that Ring has going for it as it boasts some of the most spectacular views out over Dungarvan Bay and the Comeragh Mountains and some great fishing and cliff top walking trails. Drive to the end of the headland to Helvick Head (Ceann Helbhic) in Irish for the best views.

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Address: An Rinn, Dún Garbháin, Countae Port Láirge
Directions: take the N25 towards Cork and about 3Km outside Dungarvan you'll see a sign for An Rinn. Take this turn and follow signs for Ceann Helbhic.
Website: http://www.waterfordtourism.org/gaeltacht.htm