Doolin (Dubh Linn) Overview

Something of a national shrine to Irish traditional music, the little village of Doolin draws thousands of visitors every year to its three pubs for nights of craic that go straight from tapping toes to Guinness-soaked heads. With four excellent hostels, bikes for rent, and a campsite by the pier, Doolin is the base of choice for trips to the Cliffs of Moher or the Aran Islands (20min. ferry ride to Inisheer). Walk 15min. up Fisher St. to see crashing waves or a few minutes out of town for rolling hills crisscrossed with stone walls. Most of Doolin’s 200-odd permanent residents either farm the land or run the town’s B&Bs, campsite, hostels, and pubs.

Transportation. Buses stop across from the Doolin Hostel and the Rainbow Hostel. Advance tickets can be purchased at the Doolin Hostel, and schedules of current service are available at all four hostels. Buses run to Limerick (M-Sa 8am, Su 10:40am; €13, students €10.70), and to Galway (M-Sa 8:40am, Su 1:45pm; €12, students €10). There is an express bus to Dublin (M-Sa 8am; €17.10, students €14). The Limerick Route also services Lahinch (€4), Liscannor, Lisdoonvarna, Ennistymon (€5, students €4.70), and Ennis. The Galway Route services Ballyvaughan. Connections are available to Clifden, Cork, Dingle, Dongeal, Killarney, and Sligo. There is additional local service in summer. Bus service to the Cliffs of Moher departs regularly in the summer, though the times change slightly every year (15min., €2.30). Ferries to the Aran Islands leave from the town’s pier, about 2km from the town center along the main road; if you’re headed to Inishmore, take a ferry from Rossaveal are easier (see Aran Islands). A tourist office is located inside the Hotel Doolin between the upper and lower villages on the main road. Rent bikes at the Doolin Bike Store on the main road, next to the Aille River Hostel (☎707 4260; open daily 9am-8pm; €10 per day) or at the Rainbow Hostel, Upper Village (☎707 4415; €10 per day, €8 for hostel guests). Jimmy Garrahy runs a taxi service (☎086 813 9090).

Orientation And Practical Information. Doolin can be divided into two villages separated by about 1km, though many locals ignore such distinctions. Fisher Street runs up from the pier to the Lower Village (a.k.a. the Old Village), and traverses a stretch of farms and B&Bs to the Upper Village, an area called Roadford. Toomullen (also an area name) lies just beyond Roadford. Virtually all of Doolin’s human and commercial life resides on the main road from the pier to Toomullen. The 14km paved segment of the Burren Way links Doolin to the Cliffs of Moher. Pedestrians find the route an exhausting but manageable half-day trip; the steep climb along the road from Doolin to the Cliffs lets cyclists coast the whole way back, saving energy for a night of foot-stomping fun at the pubs. Hiking or biking also saves the parking cost at the cliffs.

A traveling bank comes to Lower Village weekly on Thursdays. The nearest ATM is in Ennistymon, 7km southeast of town. Internet access is available at the Doolin Internet Cafe, tucked inside the Doolin Activity Lodge between the Aille River and Doolin Hostel. (☎707 4888; www.doolinlodge.com. €3 per 30min., €5 per hr. Open daily 8am-10pm.) The nearest post office is in Ennistymon. Stamps are sold at the Doolin Deli.

Accommodations And Camping. Tourists pack Doolin in the summer, so book early; the high season continues through September, with spillover from Lisdoonvarna’s six-week matchmaking festival. Locals know where the money is: almost every house on the main road is a B&B. Friendly, laid-back  Aille River Hostel (HIH) 1, Main St., is halfway between the villages. Out front, the Aille River gurgles around an island overflowing with wildflowers. Musicians often stop by the hostel to warm up before gigs. (☎707 4260; www.eastclear.ie/ailleriver. Free Internet access. Washer and detergent free, dryer €2. Kitchen open 24hr. Dorms €15; Camping €7.50.)  Doolin Cottage 2 is next to the Aille. A friendly proprietress keeps the rooms spotless and bright. Vegetarians savor fresh fruit, natural yogurt, and honey for breakfast, but the full fry is also available. (☎707 4762. Open Mar.-Oct. Rooms with bath Mar.-June and Oct. €28 per person; July-Aug. €30.) Rainbow Hostel (IHH) 1, Toomullin, Upper Village, is steps from legendary pubs McGann’s and McDermott’s. The newly refurbished wooden interior has comfy pastel rooms. Owners offer free guided Burren walking tours and a slide show of flora and fauna to interested guests. (☎707 4415; www.rainbowhostel.com. Laundry €5.50. Bike rental €8 per day for guests; €10 for non-guests. Dorms €15; doubles €30.) Next door, equally cheery colors decorate the comfortable rooms with coffee, tea, and TV at Shannons’ Rainbow’s End B&B 3. (☎707 4415. Singles €50; doubles €70.) Doolin Hostel (IHH) , Fisher St., Lower Village, is the oldest hostel in town. The hostel includes a small shop, bureau de change, and a bus ticket booth by its entrance. (☎707 4006; www.doolinhostel.com. Open Feb.-Nov. Laundry €4. Kitchen lockout 10pm-7:30am. Reception 7:30am-9pm. Dorms €16; private rooms €22 per person.) Nagle’s Doolin Camping and Caravan Park , by the Doolin pier, provides a well-kept grassy site for tents and caravans, a self-serve kitchen (bring your own utensils), showers, and laundry facilities. (☎707 4458; www.doolincamping.com. Open Apr.-Sept. Shop with groceries open July-Aug. daily 9am-9pm. Showers €1. Laundry: wash €4, dry €4. 2-person tent €14; 1-person with no car €7.50. 2-person caravan with electricity €17; July-Aug. €18.)

Food And Pubs. The Doolin Deli , Lower Village, is a small convenience store with cheap baked goods. It packages sandwiches (€2.50-3), bakes fresh scones (€1.20) and soda bread (€2.35), and stocks basic groceries. (☎707 4633. Takeaway only. Open June to mid-Sept. M-Sa 9am-9pm; mid-Sept. to May M-Sa 9am-6pm.) The Doolin Cafe , Upper Village, has creative, home-grown dishes (entrees €14-21). The lunchtime panini (served with salad) are tasty, if somewhat overpriced at €9. Arrive before 7pm to score main courses at reduced prices. (☎707 4120. Open Apr.-Oct. daily 6-10pm; mid-July to Aug. also noon-3pm.) The Lodestone , Lower Village, the thatched cottage just before the bridge, is a small cafe run by Magnetic Music, County Clare’s first recording company. Stop by for espresso drinks (€2-4) and desserts or to pick up a schedule of concerts by Ireland’s top trad musicians. (☎707 4988; www.magnetic-music.com. Open mid-July to mid-Aug. daily 9am-9pm; otherwise 9:30am-8:30pm. Concerts at 10pm; ticket prices vary but are usually €15 and up, slightly less when purchased in advance).

Local foot-traffic (along with many of the best-known traditional musicians in the country) heads to  McDermott’s, Upper Village, nightly around 9:30pm. Serious sessions prove that Doolin’s trad is more than a tourist trap. (☎707 4328; www.mcdermottspubdoolin.com. Kitchen open until 9:30pm. Live trad nightly early spring to late autumn and on winter weekends.) O’Connor’s, Lower Village, is the busiest and most touristed pub in town. O’Connor’s serves good pub grub until 9:30pm, when music and Guinness take over. Instrument-toting visitors are welcome to join the trad sessions. (☎707 4168; www.oconnorspubdoolin.com. M and F-Su trad. Entrees €9-18.) McGann’s, Upper Village, has music nightly at 9:30pm and attracts fair weather pubgoers with its outdoor seating. (☎707 4133. Kitchen open daily Mar.-Dec. 11am-9:30pm; Jan.-Feb. 6-9:30pm.)

Daytrip From Doolin: The Cliffs Of Moher. The  Cliffs of Moher, members of an elite group of Ireland’s super-touristed attractions, draw more gawkers on a clear July day than many counties do all year. Although cliffs compose much of Clare’s coast, this stretch is popular with tourists because the cliffs are at their highest: 213m of sheer rock face battered by strong winds and Atlantic waves. Touristy they may be (attracting 1 million visitors per year), but with good reason—the views are breathtaking, and unquestionably among Ireland’s most dramatic. To the north, the Twelve Bens of Connemara form dark and mysterious silhouettes against the skyline; to the west lie the misty Aran Islands; to the south more cliffs jut from the sea along the route to Loop Head, while the Kerry Mountains peak across the River Shannon. The view straight down is exhilarating—gulls whirl far below the edge, and farther down still the overmatched waves explode against unrelenting limestone. Look for the visible layers on the cliff walls—they are composed of shale and sandstone deposited as sediment over 350 million years. O’Brien’s Tower is a viewing point just up from the car park. Don’t fall for its illusion of medieval grandeur—it was built in 1835 as a tourist trap by Cornelius O’Brien, an early tour-promoter. (Tower open, weather permitting, daily Mar.-Oct. 9:30am-5:30pm. €1.) Most tour groups cluster around the tower, safely experiencing the exhilaration of the drop through telephoto lenses and binoculars. The more adventurous, though less intelligent, climb over the stone walls and head left, trekking along a clifftop path (officially closed) for more spectacular views and the possibility of a 213m fall. Warning: Winds can be extremely strong at the top of the cliffs, and a few tourists get blown off every year; Let’s Go strongly discourages straying from the established paths, which are clearly marked and designed to prevent impromptu cliff-diving competitions. The new Atlantic Edge exhibit in the Visitors Centre offers a high-tech interactive educational experience, teaching tourists of all ages about the past, present, and future of the cliffs. The center also contains shops and a cafe, though the food options in Doolin are superior and less crowded. (☎708 6141. Open July-Aug. daily 9am-7:30pm, Sept.-June daily 9:30am-5:30pm. €4; students €3.50. Parking fees start at €5.)

Cliffs of Moher Cruises operates a cruise on the Jack B from the Doolin and Liscannor piers. The fantastic cruise sails directly under the cliffs; come in April or May to see the puffins. (☎065 708 6060 or 087 204 9583; www.mohercruises.com. 1hr.; Apr.-Oct. departs Liscannor 9am, Doolin noon, 3:30, 4:30pm; changes may occur due to weather. Ticket office at Doolin Pier. €20; students €18.) The cliffs are 9km south of Doolin on R478. Bus Éireann sends two to three buses per day on the summer-only Galway-Cork route, sometimes stopping at the cliffs for 30min. The local Doolin-Limerick bus provides an additional three buses per day. In winter, a bus originating in Galway departs Doolin at noon and deposits riders at the Cliffs for 1hr. before retracing its route. Buses depart regularly for Limerick via Ennis (with connections available), making local stops at Doolin and Lahinch; service increases significantly in early June through mid-September. The well-signposted 32km Burren Way weaves through limestone and wildflowers from Doolin and Liscannor. Let’s Go never recommends hitchhiking and hitchers reportedly have some difficulty finding rides.