Activities to do in Mayo
While you’re visiting, there’s plenty for you to do. Here are a few ideas and suggestions to help you. We’ve given links to websites with further information whenever we can.
Sports
With so much space and natural amenities, we’ve plenty of sports to offer you:
Golf
Now here’s something we’re really good at! Great courses (including a world class links) with very reasonable green fees. Facilities vary depending on course.
18 Hole Courses
Ballina
Ballinrobe
Carne (Belmullet)
Castlebar
Claremorris
Westport
Enniscrone
9 Hole Courses
Achill Island
Ashford Castle
Ballyhaunis
Ballinrobe
Clew Bay
Mulranny
Swinford
Fishing
Mayo is famous around the world for the quality and diversity of the fishing in sea, lake and river. Salmon, trout and coarse fishing, shore fishing and deep-sea angling are all widely available. Boats, ghillies and equipment can be booked locally. Licences (available locally) are essential for trout and salmon fishing.
There’s even a School of Fishing at Pontoon Bridge Hotel. Whether you’re an expert or a complete novice, you’ll find fishing to suit you in Mayo.
Western Regional Fisheries Board
North Western Regional Fisheries Board
Ghillies
Pontoon Bridge School of Fishing
Newport House
Sea Angling Centres
Coarse Angling
Equestrian
The hardy Connemara pony is native to this area and the traditions of horse and horse breeding are long established. Equestrian Centres are common, offering lessons, trekking and trail riding on both ponies and the world-famous Irish hunters. Equipment is usually supplied.
For something completely different - how about a horse drawn caravan holiday!
Árd Aoibhinn Stables, Tourmakeady
Ashford Equestrian Centre, Ashford Castle, Cong
Carrowholly Stables & Trekking Centre, Carrowholly, Westport.
Claremorris Saddlery & Equestrian Centre, Claremorris
Coolcronin Trekking Centre, Foxford.
Drumindoo Equitation Centre, Castlebar Road, Westport.
Mayo Horse Drawn Caravans Holidays, Belcarra.
Westport Woods Riding Centre, Knappagh, Westport
Walking
Mayo offers a wonderful variety of short walks, hill walks and way marked trails. The terrain varies from level, easy going to tough mountain climbing where specialist equipment is essential. Whatever you choose, the scenery is unfailingly stupendous and walks are almost always uncrowded.
Official guidebooks for trails such as The Western Way, The Foxford Way and The Bangor Trail are available in tourist offices and bookshops. Guides to shorter walks can also be purchased locally. Guided walking and mountain climbing is also available and Castlebar's International 4 Days' Walks Festival is always popular!
Castlebar International 4 Days Walks Festival
Croagh Patrick Walking Holidays
Way Marked Trails
Beaches
Mayo's 10 EU Blue Flag beaches at Bertra, Clare Island, Dooega, Dugort, Elly Bay, Golden Strand, Keel, Mulranny, Old Head and Ross Strand are guaranteed clean, safe, sandy and easy to access. Water sports are widely available with particularly good surfing and diving conditions. In addition, dotted along the coastline are a number of adventure centres.
For something a little different - try kiting or kite surfing on a long sandy beach. That’ll really be something to write on the postcards!
Blue Flag Beaches
Kite Surfing
Delphi Adventure Centre
Uisce Adventure Centre
Achill Outdoor Education Centre
McDowells Hotel & Activity Centre
Islands
Islands are always very special places, with fascinating histories and tantalising hidden nooks and crannies. Mayo’s islands are no exception and are ruggedly beautiful as well. Clew Bay is said to have an island for every day of the year and ferries run regularly to the larger off-shore islands of Inishturk and Clare Island. Achill, Irelands largest island is connected to the mainland by a bridge. The Mullet Peninsula has some gorgeous, uninhabited off-shore islands, which are important wildlife sanctuaries. There are no regular ferries but boats can be hired locally.
Cycling
Mayo provides a good choice of cycling terrain. There is one signposted route The Humbert Route which runs from Kilcummin, near Ballina in North Mayo through the lakes and hills to Charlestown where it crosses into Co. Sligo. The route then continues through Sligo and Leitrim to finish in Ballinamuck, Co. Longford.
Mayo Leisure Cycling
Birdwatching
The Mullet Peninsula on the north-west coast of Mayo is an area of rugged beauty, with extensive machair grassland, golden sand beaches, sheltered bays and inlets, cliffs and offshore islands. Birdwatch Ireland has maintained a bird reserve for many years to help protect some of our threatened species such as Corncrake and the Red-necked Phalarope.
This spectacular landscape contains an impressive array of habits. Termoncarragh Lake, is a coastal freshwater lake fringed by reedbed. It also has machair grassland, wet grassland and a marsh system nearby, Annagh Marsh. The area has a rich variety of flora and fauna. A considerable number of bird species, which are threatened and declining, reside here.