Sligo

Traditionally a small, quiet coastal town of 17,892 people (but an area of 12.9 km² or 5 sq mi), Sligo has experienced significant redevelopment since the 1990s and now offers much in the way of shopping, entertainment and eating out. It's a great base from which to explore the often underrated west and north west Atlantic coast of Ireland. A lot of new development has taken place along the Garavogue river, most notably the regeneration of J.F.K. and Rockwood Parades, consisting of shops, cafés, bars, a number of apartments, and a new footbridge over the river.
O’Connell Street is the town's main street. Two new shopping centres (The Quayside and Johnston's Court) opened in 2005, bringing national and international chain-stores to the region.

Location

Sligo is surrounded by the Dartry Mountain range to the north, the Ox Mountains to the south, and Sligo Bay and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. The Dartry range includes the well-known Ben Bulben (sometimes called Ireland's table mountain). Knocknarea Mountain, 5 km (3 mi) west of the town, is best known for the stone cairn at its summit (actually a burial mound dating to the Neolithic period).

History

Sligo's Irish name, Sligeach (pronounced SHLEE-gok, which means the place of shells), comes from the large number of shellfish found in the local river and its estuary, and from the Stone Age food preparation areas in the vicinity. The river (now known as the Garavogue) was originally also called the Sligeach. This whole area, from the river estuary at Sligo, around the coast to the river at Ballisodare Bay, was rich in marine resources, dating back as far as the Mesolithic period.
Sligo was a significant location as far back as the Early Neolithic period, as demonstrated by the numerous ancient sites close by. Particularly notable are the megalithic tombs at nearby Carrowmore. According to local archaeological digs (when a new road was being built), 'Magheraboy demonstrates the early Neolithic settlement of this area of Sligo, while the longevity of the activity on the site indicates a stable and successful population during the final centuries of the fifth millennium and the first centuries of the fourth millennium BC.'
The Lord Chief Justice of Ireland, Maurice Fitzgerald, is said to have established the medieval town of Sligo, building the Castle of Sligo in 1245. As a result, Sligo became an important crossroads strategically and commercially. Sligo Abbey is the only medieval building left standing in the town.

Twinned cities

Sligo is twinned with three towns/cities (sister cities), namely:

• Crozon, in Brittany, France
• Kempten im Allgäu, in Bavaria, Germany
• Tallahassee, in Florida, United States of America

There are regular trade and tourism links with these cities throughout the year.

Other items of interest

• There are two local newspapers in Sligo, each of which gives details of local news, sports and entertainment on a weekly basis. The Sligo Weekender is published on Tuesday while The Sligo Champion is published every Wednesday.
• A round of the World Rally Championship was based in Sligo on November 16th-18th, 2007. Rally Ireland was a great success and returned in January 2009 after a fantastic first year.

By rail

• Irish Rail

  phone: +353 71 916-9888
  address: Lord Edward St
  Eight trains per day Monday to Sunday from Dublin's Connolly Station. The trip takes a little over 3 hours and adult prices range from €32 to €44 with price reductions for children under 12, students with valid student ID and free travel for children under 3. Oddly enough, the price for a return journey is exactly the same as for a single one. If your travelling days are variable, travel Monday to Thursday or Saturday, as tickets are more expensive on Friday and Sunday (the busier days).

By bus

• Bus Éireann

  phone: +353 71 916-0066
  address: Lord Edward St
  Buses or coaches operate throughout the day from most major towns/cities. From Dublin: 6 buses daily M-Sa, 5 on Su and public holidays, journey time: 3½-4 hr. From Galway: 6 buses daily M-Sa, 5 on Su and Public Holidays, journey time: 2½ hr. From Belfast: 3 buses daily M-Sa (change at Enniskillen), 2 on Su (change at Dungannon), journey time just under 4 hr. Bus Éireann prices are approximately half that of the train but buses can be a bit stuffy! Similar concessions/price reductions apply as for train travel.

• Feda O'Donnell Coaches

  phone: +353 74 954-8114
  operate from Gweedore, County Donegal, and Galway as follows:
  From Gweedore (via Letterkenny): 2 buses daily M-Sa, 3 on F, 3 on Su, journey time 3 hours 15 minutes.
  From Galway (Cathedral): 2 buses daily M-Sa, 4 on F, 4 on Su, journey time 2 hr.

By car

• From Dublin take the N4 road west (approx. 210 km (130 mi), 2½ hr.
• From Galway take the N17 road north (approx. 145 km (90 mi), 2-2½ hr.
• From Belfast, Northern Ireland, take the M1 Motorway, which leads onto the A4. This becomes the N16 when you cross the border at Belcoo/Blacklion (approx. 200 km (125 mi), 3-3½ hours).

By plane

Sligo airport SXL, with flights from Dublin, is to the west in Strandhill.

Sligo town, at 12.9 km² (5 sq mi), is small enough to walk from one end to the other in an hour.

By bus

There are buses which run from the main bus station to Strandhill (Route 472) and Rosses Point (Route 473) (small nearby coastal towns) regularly. There are also two city services around the town and surrounding area (Route 478, runs M-Sa about every 20 minutes from Cartron (on the R291 Rosses Point Road), via the town center to Cairns Road and back again to Cartron and Route 478A, M-Sa every hour from the Bus Station via Strandhill Road to Carrowmore). There is also a Nightrider service (Route 478N F Sa approximately hourly 20:30-02:30) which leaves from Sligo Town to nearby towns of Collooney, Ballisodare, Strandhill and Rosses Point.

By car

As in many parts of Ireland, parking spaces can be difficult to find, although most hotels and bed and breakfasts have their own free parking for residents only. If you wish to park in the town, there are a number of local authority operated car parks dotted around the town. To park in a public car park or on the street in most parts of the town centre, you must pay and display at the nearest meter. Parking costs €1.20 per hour (generally ever day 08:30-18:30, although some locations have different pay times or days). Parking costs can be paid for by Euro coins, credit cards or mobile phone. You can prepay for your parking if you park outside these hours, i.e., If you leave you car overnight, you can pay for your parking from 08:30 the next morning. If you pay by coins, the machine does not give change, so you should try to have exact change available. You will, however, receive a parking disc for the remainder of the next hour, e.g., pay €2, and you get a disc for 1 hour 40 minutes. Some car parks allow for all-day parking at a special rate. The meters in these car parks will display this option. If you don't pay, or your time has run out, you may receive a parking ticket, with an on-the-spot fine of €40, or €80 if you park illegally in a wheelchair-user only zone (always marked, often with blue paint).
There are also some private car-parks which have different rates of payment (and different punishments if you don't pay). The (Catholic) Cathedral, for example, uses barriers, with payment of €3 when leaving the car-park. If you can leave your car until church services (mass) times, you may be able to leave without paying (but do you want to cheat the church?) Parking at Sligo General Hospital is metered, and costs €2.40 for up to four hours, or €4 for up to 24 hours. The local bus (Route 478) passes just outside the hospital every 20 minutes during the day, and costs 70 cent to bring you into town. If you don't pay for your parking at this carpark you are liable to be clamped, with a release fee of €65.

• Sligo Abbey

  phone: +353 71 914-6406
  address: Abbey St
  Founded by Maurice Fitzgerald in 1253, destroyed by fire in 1414, rebuilt in its present form; the Abbey was burned in 1642 and everything valuable in it was destroyed. Much of the structure, including the choir, carved altar and cloisters remain.

• Famine Memorial

  address: Quay Street Car-park
  One of a suite of three sculptures commissioned by the Sligo Famine Commemoration Committee to honour the victims of the Irish Potato Famine (1845–1849), when over 30,000 people emigrated through the port of Sligo, here commemorated by this sculprute. A plaque in the background, headed 'Letter to America, January 2, 1850' tells one family's sad story.
• Carrowmore Megalithic Cemetery has over 60 tombs, the earliest dating to 3700 BC. It's 4 km southwest of Sligo, open April-Oct daily.

• Sligo Rovers Football Club

  phone: +353 71 917-1212
  address: The Showgrounds, Church Hill
  Sligo Rovers are Sligo's main football (soccer) team. They play in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland. They were founded in 1928 and are managed by Liverpudlian, Paul Cook and his assistant Gerry Carr. Rovers season runs from early March - mid November and tickets to their games can always be purchased at the gate on match nights. Home matches usually every other Saturday with an 20:00 kick-off.

• The Model

  phone: +353 71 914-1405
  address: The Mall
  Hosts fantastic permanent exhibition of Jack B. Yeats work (brother of the poet W.B. Yeats), along with local and travelling exhibitions. Beautiful Atrium Cafe (Bridgestone and Georgina Campbell guides recommended). Free wireless hotspot in the Cafe.

• County Sligo Heritage and Genealogy Centre

  phone: +353 71 914-3728
  address: Áras Reddan, Temple St
  Searching for your Sligo roots? The Centre offers a full service to enquirers whose ancestors hailed from County Sligo.

• Sligo Races

  phone: +353 71 918-3342
  address: Sligo Racecourse, Cleveragh Rd

• Kitesurfing LessonsWith the north west's only kitesurfing school.

• Lough Gill Boat TripsFamily run tours of Lough Gill with pleasant commentary, poetry and refreshments. Opportunity to combine with trip to Parkes Castle

• Yeats International Summer School

  phone: +353 71 914-2693
  address: Yeats Memorial Building, Hyde Bridge
  The poet William Butler Yeats is much associated with Sligo. In particular "The Lake Isle of Innisfree" is a reference to a small island on nearby Lough Gill. Yeats, who spent much of his youth in Sligo and its environs, died in 1939 and is buried, under bare Ben Bulben's head in the graveyard in Drumcliffe, County Sligo.

Most of the shops in Sligo are concentrated in a small area, based around O'Connell Street, Wine Street and Grattan Street. It also has a two new shopping centres, Johnston Court and The Quayside. The town has a huge range of the normal High Street shops, including most of the Irish and British chains. These include clothing, grocery, electronics, books, music, sports, fotwear, Etc., Etc. Apart from all of those, there are a number of one-off shops in Sligo, which make it well worth the visit. Just a small selection of these is outlined below.

• The Cat and The Moon

  phone: +353 71 914-3686
  address: 4 Castle St
  stocks a wide range of hand-made gold and silver jewellery (from their own workshop), both for retail sale and specially commissioned articles. The Irish Craft Boutique also features a huge selection of other Irish-made jewellery, glass, ceramics, textiles, furniture and handcrafts. The Art Gallery (upstairs) hosts regular exhibitions, usually promoting young local and other Irish Artists.

• Michael Kennedy Ceramics

  phone: +353 71 914-8844
  address: Market Cross
  Unusual and quirky pieces of ceramic art sit alongside beautiful (but usable) dinner services in this shop of Sligo-based ceramic artist and potter, all hand-thrown here or in the artist's studio in Gort, County Galway.

• Kate's Kitchen

  phone: +353 71 914-3022
  address: 3 Castle St
  Fabulous delicatessen, with all types of food catered for, from home-baked hams to some of the finest chutneys, preserves known to man. Also contains a separate toiletries area (Hopper and Pettit), specialising in Crabtree & Evelyn and other fine ranges.

The choice of good quality restaurants in Sligo has improved immensely over the last few years. Please note, that all the hotels listed in the Sleep section below also have restaurants, and many have carvery lunches served at the bar.

Budget

• Pepper Alley

  phone: +353 71 917-0720
  address: Rockwood Parade
  Busy sandwich bar, (especially at lunchtime) with some hot food also available.

Mid-range

• Poppadom Restaurant

  phone: +353 71 914-7171
  address: 34 O'Connell St
  Bridgestone best Indian Restaurant from 1999-2004, top quality Asian food, good mix of Indian, Thai, Indonesian, Etc

• Fiddler's Creek

  phone: +353 71 914-1866
  address: Rockwood Parade
  Steaks, chicken, pasta dishes. Speedy, friendly service, busy especially at weekends. Separate menu also available at the bar.

• Mardees

  phone: +353 71 914-7637
  address: 25 Castle St
  New restaurant, with small but interesting menu, bright decor, very friendly efficient staff. Excellent value "Early bird" menu from 17:00 to 19:00 with huge portions!

• Bistro Bianconi

  phone: +353 71 914-1744
  address: O'Connell St
  Pizza and Italian restaurant. Very friendly staff, owner Pat Grimes always on hand to assist with your choices. All pizzas baked in a traditional wood oven (visible from the street). Complete menu available as take-away from High Street branch; Phone +353 71 914-7000.

• Source Sligo

  address: O' Connell St
  A restaurant in the heart of Sligo, it serves tapas and other delicious food. It has a great wine menu and also has a cookery school.

Splurge

• Coach Lane

  phone: +353 71 916-2417
  address: 1-2 Lord Edward St
  Offers some unusual dishes (e.g., ostrich with marsala); lots of local produce, including steaks, lobster, salmon. Also plenty of salads, pasta and chicken dishes. Cooking style ranges from traditional to spicy and much in between.

• Conrad's Kitchen

  phone: +353 71 911-9400
  address: The Model, The Mall
  Famous chef Conrad Gallagher has opened a great local restaurant, for local people, in the heart of Sligo's art district and positioned right in the centre of the Model Art Gallery.

Bars/Pubs

• Fiddler's Creek

  phone: +353 71 914-1866
  address: Rockwood Parade
  Very lively bar, especially at weekends. In-house DJ and live bands 4 or 5 nights a week, also show all major live sporting events on large screens.

• McGarrigles

  phone: +353 71 917-1193
  address: 11 O'Connell St

• McHughs

  phone: +353 71 914-2030
  address: Grattan St

• Shoot The Crows

  phone: +353 71 916-2554
  address: Market Cross, Grattan St
  Old Sligo pub (founded 1876) with an eccentric past (not least where the name comes from!), long narrow pub, the music collection reflects the eclectic tastes of the owner, Ronan "Uisce" Waters, comprising of Latin, Soul, Motown, Jazz, Funk, Blues, Reggae, Punk, Afrobeat and Irish Traditional among others, and the most unusual front window you've ever seen.

• The Stables

  phone: +353 71 914-2280
  address: Wine St

• McLynn's

  phone: +353 71 914-2088
  A traditional Irish bar with music and an old-style setting. One of the best pints of Guinness you'll find. Old Market St. Sligo.

Nightclubs

• Pure Nightclub

  phone: +353 71 914-4721
  address: Teeling St
  With four bars and three dance floors, this is a busy club, especially catering to students of the near-by Institute of Technology, Sligo.

• Lola Montez Nightclub

  phone: +353 71 916-1250
  address: J.F.K Parade

• The Clarence

  address: Wine St
  A decent alternative to Pure or The Velvet Room. Very popular with students.

Bed and Breakfasts

• Most bed and breakfasts are on the roads into and out of the town, especially on the old Dublin road (Pearse Road, R287), Cairns Hill (head out the R287, turn left at the traffic lights just at the Gaelic Football Pitch, Markievicz Park) and the Bundoran road (N16). Most cost around €30 to €35 per person sharing.

• Philmar House B and B

  phone: +353 71 914-5014

Holiday apartments

• Milligan Court

  phone: +353 71 913-8945
  address: Lake Isle Rd
  1- and 2-bed apartments and town houses, normally used as student accommodation for the local Institute of Technology, but let as holiday accommodation during the summer months. Named after comedian Spike Milligan, whose father was born nearby.

• Yeats Village

  phone: +353 71 913-8945
  address: Ballinode
  self-catering homes and apartments (sleeping up to 6 people), within 10 minutes walk of town centre.

• Clarion Holiday Village and The Grove Clarion

  phone: +353 71 913-8945
  address: Clarion Rd, Ballinode
  2, 3 and 4-bed apartments, within 15 minutes walk of town.

• Gateway Apartments

  phone: +353 71 914-5618
  address: Ballinode
  1- and 2-bed apartments let as holiday apartments for the summer months. Reception is open 24 hours. A free internet terminal at reception and free internet in both apartment bedrooms.

Hostels

• Harbour House

  phone: +353 71 917-1547 or +353 86 259-8293 (mobile phone)
  address: Finisklin Rd
  In the old Harbour master's house, built in 1840s, advance booking advised, especially in summer season.

• White House Hostel

  phone: +353 71 914-5160
  address: Markievicz Rd
  Open from 01 Mar to 31 Oct.

• The Railway Hostel

  phone: +353 87 6905539
  address: 1 Union Pl
  There is no cooker at this hostel, only microwave ovens.

Hotels

• Clarion Hotel

  phone: +353 71 911-9000
  address: Clarion Rd
  4-star hotel in Elizabethan former hospital, 76 bedrooms, 91 suites.

• The Glasshouse

  phone: +353 71 919-4300,
  address: Swan Point, Hyde Bridge
  Dramatic design, resembling the prow of a ship, on the river bank. Sligo's newest hotel, with funky interiors. The View bar is a stylish lounge, with great views across the river. AA Rosette Award winning restaurant.

• Innisfree Hotel

  phone: +353 71 914-2014
  address: High St

• Ocean Sands Hotel Enniscrone Co. Sligo

  phone: +353 96 26700
  address: Enniscrone

• Radisson SAS Hotel & Spa

  phone: +353 71 914-0008
  address: Ballincar
  The hotel also features Sólás Spa & Wellness Centre, which provides holistic therapies and spa breaks.

• Sligo City Hotel

  phone: +353 71 914-4000
  address: Quay St

• The Sligo Park Hotel

  phone: +353 71 919-0400
  address: Old Dublin Rd

• Sligo Southern Hotel

  phone: +353 71 916-2101
  address: Strandhill Rd

Telephones

As elsewhere in Ireland, phone numbers in Sligo comprise an area code (071) and a local number (7 digits). All phone numbers shown in this guide display both the area code and the local number. When calling from a landline within the same area, you can ignore the area code, or leave it in, as you wish. If you are calling from another area within Ireland or from a mobile phone, you must use the area code. Likewise, if you are calling internationally, you must use the following format: Your international access code + 353 + 71 + the local number, i.e., you drop the 0 from the area code.

Internet

• County Sligo Library

  phone: +353 71 914-2212
  address: Stephen St
  Free Internet facilities available for members and visitors. Four terminals available for adults, and two specifically for children (with kid-friendly software). Also fourteen further terminals available in Reference Library, on nearby Bridge Street (Reference Library Opening Hours; M-F 10:00-12:45 and 14:00-16:45). Quietest in the mornings. Visitors should bring some ID (such as home Library card), and will be required to sign an "internet agreement form".

• The Model Café

  phone: +353 71 914-1405
  address: The Mall

Crime is relatively low by most European standards but not very different. As with any sizeable town in Ireland, visitors and locals alike can feel intimidated by the large crowds hanging around outside fast food outlets, pubs and clubs, usually between the hours of 00:00 and 03:00 on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. These areas are generally well patrolled by Gardaí (police), but best avoided, where possible.
If you need the emergency services (Gardaí, ambulance, fire service, coast guard or mountain rescue) dial 999 or 112 from any phone.

Publications

There are three weekly newspapers in Sligo. If you're looking for entertainment listings, either the Champion or Weekender are fine, if you want to know what's the official business/political line on something local in Sligo, the Champion is required reading, the Post is hardly worth the price (it's free).

• The Sligo ChampionSligo's oldest surviving newspaper (over 150 years old) containing all the local news and events for the town and county of Sligo and local parts of the surrounding counties of Roscommon, Leitrim, Donegal and Mayo

• Sligo WeekenderFor a paper called The Weekender, it comes out mid-week, but otherwise good entertainment listings

Religious services

There are places of worship all over the town; your hotel or Bed and Breakfast should be able to direct you to one nearby. If not, though, the following are centrally located in the town.

Roman Catholic

• Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception

  phone: +353 71 916-2670
  address: Temple St
  Beautiful 130+ year-old building in a Normano–Romano–Byzantine style, it is the only example of a Romanesque style Cathedral built during the 19th century in Ireland.

• St. Anne's

  phone: +353 71 914-5028
  address: Cranmore

• St. Joseph's

  phone: +353 71 914-2422
  address: Ballytivnan

• Dominican Friary

  phone: +353 71 914-2700
  address: High St
  Holy Cross is the only church run by a religious order (rather than directly by the diocese) in the Diocese of Elphin.

Church of Ireland/Anglican

• The Cathedral Church of St Mary the Virgin and St John the Baptist

  address: John St

Sligo is very well located for exploring the Northwest Ireland and Lakelands area of Ireland, and the following are very easily accessible as day trips:
County Sligo.

• Carrowmore

  address: on the Knocknarea peninsula
  The site of a prehistoric ritual landscape. Around 30 megalithic tombs can be seen in Carrowmore today, older than Newgrange or Knowth (in the Brú Na Bóinne Archaeological Park in the east of Ireland) and which even predate the Egyptian Pyramids.

• Rosses PointRosses Point is a pretty little village with a beautiful golden sandy beach, perfect for families. The Atlantic Ocean is cold for swimming, but perfectly safe here. Sea boat trips are available from here.

• StrandhillThe village has undergoing much renovation, and has a great walking beach and dunes. It is not safe to swim here. It is, however, a great surfing beach.

• Knocknarea Mountain

  address: Strandhill
  Just over 1000 ft (305 m) high, and can be climbed in 20 to 40 minutes. Fantastic views of the coast-line with a very large cairn or burial mound on the summit, which local legend says is the grave of the ancient Celtic warrior Queen Maedbh (pronounced May-v). Climbers are requested not to climb on the cairn or to use the stones from the cairn.

• Ben BulbenProminent table mountain, dominating the landscape to the North. Can be climbed at certain points in about 1 hour or so. It is said to be the final resting place of Diarmuid and Gráinne, the eloping lovers from the Fenian cycle of Irish mythology.

• Coney IslandSaid to have given its name to its better known namesake in New York City. In Irish it translates as Oilean na gCoiníní (Island of the Rabbits, Coinín means rabbit). If you're feeling adventurous, and the tide is out, you can drive across the strand to the island. Do check with locals regarding tide times, as almost every year tourists (and locals) get stuck in the sand.

County Donegal. The forgotten county, Donegal has some of the best scenery anywhere in Ireland. It is also probably the least developed county (from a tourist perspective) in Ireland, due to its relative isolation, and proximity to the border with Northern Ireland.
County Leitrim. The least densely populated county in Ireland, and suffered much from emigration, particularly during the 1950s to 1990s. In recent years the population has started to rise, and consequently, more development is occurring all over the county.

• Glencar Waterfall

  address: Glencar, County Leitrim
  Beautiful waterfall in a small narrow glen, immortalised by the poet W.B. Yeats in his poem, The Stolen Child: Where the wandering water gushes/From the hills above Glencar,/In pools among the rushes/That scarce could bathe a star.

County Mayo.

• Achill Island, stunning beaches making it a family holiday favourite.

County Galway.

• Galway is a thriving, bustling, university city, very popular with tourists, and well worth the 140 km (90 mi) trip down the N4/N17.