Skip to content

Best Viewpoints in Ireland

Panoramic mountain passes, headland lookouts, and coastal drives

From Wild Atlantic Way headlands to winding Wicklow mountain passes, Ireland's best viewpoints reveal how sea, bog, and glaciated valleys meet. Many are reachable right from iconic coastal touring routes or short ridge walks. These ten lookouts offer some of the finest panoramas across the island.
Torc Mountain — photo by TJBrosnan at English Wikipedia #1

Torc Mountain

Torc Mountain (Irish: Sliabh Torc, meaning 'mountain of wild boar'), at 535 metres (1,755 ft), is the 329th–highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin list. It is a popular mountain for hill walkers as it has a stone or boarded path (using railway sleepers) from its base at Torc Waterfall to its summit, which has views of the Lakes of Killarney. Torc Mountain is part of the Mangerton Mountain Group range in County Kerry, Ireland.

Popularity
48
Explore place →
Mizen Head — photo by Ent-ente #2

Mizen Head

Mizen Head (Irish: Carn Uí Néid) is traditionally regarded as the most southerly point of mainland Ireland although Brow Head is the actual southernmost point. It is at the end of the Mizen Peninsula in the district of Carbery in County Cork.

Popularity
28
Explore place →
Ceann Sléibhe — photo by Gerd Eichmann #3

Ceann Sléibhe

Slea Head (Irish: Ceann Sléibhe) is a promontory on the westernmost part of the Dingle Peninsula, in southwest County Kerry, Ireland. It can be reached by the R559 road, with the nearest villages being Ballyickeen and Coumeenoole. The headland itself, together with the larger part of Mount Eagle's southern slopes, is formed from steeply dipping beds of the pebbly sandstones and conglomerates of the Slea Head Formation, dating from the Devonian period and traditionally referred to as old red sandstone. To Slea Head's northwest is Dunmore Head, the westernmost point of Ireland. Slea Head is a well-known landmark and viewpoint, with a full view of the Blasket Islands. On 11 March 1982, the Spanish container ship, Ranga, was wrecked at Dunmore Head, close to Slea Head after losing power in a storm.

Popularity
23
Explore place →
Slievecoiltia — photo by David Purchase #5

Slievecoiltia

Slieve Coillte (from Irish Sliabh Coiltair, meaning 'mountain of Coltar') is a hill in the south of County Wexford, Ireland. The hill is the highest point on the Hook peninsula, with an elevation of 268.5 metres (881 ft). Villages around Slieve Coillte include New Ross, Slaught, Cassagh, Gusserane, Campile, Ramsgrange and Duncannon. On a good day the whole of the Hook peninsula can be overseen, up to the 12th Century Hook lighthouse on Hook Head, one of the oldest operational lighthouses in the world.

Popularity
17
Explore place →

More Top-10 lists