Ireland on a Budget

Today, Oct. 31st, is the official beginning of Samhain (pronounced "sow-in"), an ancient pagan religious festival that originated with the Celts in Ireland. The aim of the three-day festival was to welcome in the harvest and usher in the winter months, the darker half of the year. This was usually done by lighting huge fires. Early historic texts suggest that Samhain was a mandatory tradition that people in their communities were expected to present themselves to local kings ...or chieftains, and if they didn't, they might face punishment from the Gods. Dressing up as monsters or animals was also a common practice so that fairies or witches wouldn't capture them. Today Samhain is collectively known as Halloween around the world. What better way to get into the spooky spirit than to read about some of Ireland's most haunted places, of which there are many. Pictured below is Wicklow's Historic Gaol, a notorious Victorian prison back in the day that has its own sordid stories to tell in the form of day, evening, and paranormal ghost tours. Read more about the 8 most haunted places in Ireland below. Photo: Brian Morrison, Failte Ireland/Tourism Ireland. Visit Wicklow Ireland's Ancient East See more

On this day in 1921, four brave women made a daring escape from Mountjoy Prison in Dublin. They included Eithne (pronounced "Ethna") Coyle, May Burke, Linda Kearns, and Aileen Keogh. All four were members of Cumann na mBan, an Irish republican women's paramilitary organization formed in Dublin on April 2, 1914, aimed to "advance the cause of Irish liberty and to organize Irishwomen in the furtherance of this object...to assist in arming and equipping a body of Irish men for t...he defense of Ireland.... and to form a fund for these purposes, to be called The Defense of Ireland Fund," as written in its constitution. While a football match was being played in the yards of the prison, the women made their stealthy escape by using a rope ladder to climb the walls to freedom. You can see Kearns' Cumann na mBan uniform at the Jackie Clarke Collection museum in Ballina, Co. Mayo. Photo of Kearns' uniform, Colette Connolly. Photo of Burke, from left, Coyle and Kearns pictured at Duckett's Grove, Co. Carlow, standing on a British flag. By Unknown (Lifetime: 1985) - Original publication: An Phoblacht immediate source: http://www.anphoblacht.com/contents/23897, PD-US-expired, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=59324923 See more

Halloween might not be the same this year, but for those of you who live outside of Ireland, there's the chance to celebrate it online with a number of groups that are offering some fun events. They include the incredible Macnas in collaboration with the Bram Stoker Festival, Dublin, Derry Halloween, which is known for putting on an incredible Halloween display around and within its city walls each year, and much more. Discover all in the post below. Photo from the Bram Stoker Festival courtesy of Tourism Ireland. Visit Dublin Visit Derry

Looking to take a golf vacation in Ireland next year? Or perhaps attend the Irish PGA Championship if it is safe to do so? The Carne Golf Links in North Mayo has been selected as the location for the annual competition. Read more in the news item below and discover some of the other things to do and see in this area of County Mayo. Photo: Martin Fleming for Tourism Ireland. North Mayo Carne Golf Links Wild Atlantic Way

On this day 369 years ago (Oct. 27, 1651), the Siege of Limerick ended. It was one of four sieges between the British and Irish forces that took place in the city over the course of about 50 years. Limerick was considered well fortified and a key location for the Irish but also a target of Cromwell's army and the Williamite forces loyal to King William III, also known as William of Orange. The Irish forces were led by Hugh Dubh O'Neill, the 5th Earl of Tyrone, a member of the... O'Neill dynasty who had fled Ireland in 1607 in an event known as "The Flight of the Earls." Hugh Dubh was actually born in Belgium and was a trained soldier who served in the Irish regiment of the Spanish army at Flanders. Hugh was forced to surrender because the city's population was dying of hunger and plague and also because part of his garrison encamped with him in the Irishtown section of the city mutinied against him. While many of the Irish were executed, Hugh Dubh was spared and sent to the Tower of London. Hugh's imprisonment was cut short thanks to the intervention of the Spanish ambassador to England who claimed that Hugh was a Spanish citizen, not Irish. King John's Castle, shown below, was a garrison for the British and their supporters in Ireland during this time. A guided tour of the castle is a must if you're visiting Limerick. Photo: PL Photography, Getty Images Pro. Limerick.ie See more

If you've been to Galway, you know how friendly the city is. Now Condé Nast Traveller UK has confirmed it in the results of its annual Readers Travel Awards. Find out more about the City of the Tribes and what you can expect to find there when travel resumes to Ireland again. It's all in the news story posted below. Keeping our fingers crossed that happens in 2021! Photo: Tourism Ireland. Visit Galway City

If you love Irish whiskey, you might want to try out the latest limited-edition release of The Irishman Whiskey brand, produced by Walsh Whiskey in Co. Carlow, the makers of Writers' Tears. The new whiskey, with its decadent Oloroso sherry finish, is perfect for the holidays. Read more in the short news item below. Carlow is also the home of the Royal Oak Distillery, which provides tours to visitors. Looking for more information on County Carlow? You'll find it in the destination section of Ireland on a Budget's website. Photo: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Joris. Visit Carlow @irelandsancienteast

The popular video game series Assassin's Creed is including a Viking story set in ancient Ireland in its new game, "Assassin's Creed Valhalla," which will be released worldwide on Nov. 10. The Vikings spent about 200 years in Ireland and certainly made themselves known, plundering through the country and targeting monasteries that were known to hold gold and silver valuables. The monastery at Glendalough in Co. Wicklow, pictured below, was one of them. Read more in the news story posted in the comments section. Photo of Glendalough courtesy of Domenico Condello. Ireland's Ancient East

This is Lough Lannagh, which is close to Castlebar in Co. Mayo. The regenerated lake, with beautiful Croagh Patrick in the distance, is considered one of the most scenic urban waterways in Ireland. Not far away from this spot on Oct. 21, 1879, the Irish National Land League was founded. In the Imperial Hotel in the center of town, Charles Stewart Parnell, a Protestant Irish nationalist politician who served as a Member of Parliament, was elected president. Local man Michael D...avitt was among the honorary secretaries elected. This was a pivotal moment for the Irish, predominantly Catholics, who had no real ownership of their own land. The league sought to decrease what was known as "rack rents" or excessively charged rental rates for the small plots of land that many Irish people lived on courtesy of a local landlord, and secondly, to obtain ownership "of the soil of the occupiers," as stated in the resolution agreed to by the members present at that meeting. There would be many twists and turns on the road to gaining full ownership of the land in Ireland. The Land Purchase Act of 1903 was the final law passed by parliament that allowed Irish landowners to gain control. Photo: Walsh Photos for Getty Images. Mayo.ie See more

Stay tuned in 2021 for the release of "The Last Duel" based on a historical duel that occurred in Paris in 1386. Some of the filming for the Disney-backed movie took place in Counties Meath and Tipperary, specifically Bective Abbey, pictured below, and Cahir Castle. Photo: Jonathan Bowers, Unsplash. Find out more in the news item posted below. Ireland's Ancient East Discover Boyne Valley Tipperary Tourism

What's not to love about County Clare? The Cliffs of Moher, the beautiful Lough Derg, shown below, the fascinating Burren landscape formed millions of years ago, and the Loop Head Peninsula, another fabulous coastal route along the Wild Atlantic Way. Read more about this destination in the post below. Photo: Turlough O'Shea for Getty Images. Visit Clare Ireland: Accommodation, Activities, Festivals & Events Discover Ireland

On this day 113 years ago, Guglielmo Marconi's wireless telegraphy station in Clifden, Co Galway, transmitted the first transatlantic message to Glace Bay, Nova Scotia. The station was located in Connemara's Derrigimlagh blanket bog. During the Irish War of Independence, the station was burned to the ground. You can still see the foundations of many of the buildings that made up the site, as well as workers' houses. Find out more in the blog post below. This is #16 of the 20 ...things you may not have known about Ireland. Derrigimlagh was also the site where Alcock and Brown crash-landed after completing the first transatlantic flight from Newfoundland on June 15th, 1919. That site is marked by a large monument. Photo of the station remains courtesy of Dermot O'Halloran, Flickr. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/). Photo of the original station: Robert French - National Library of Ireland on Commons. https://www.flickr.com//nlirel/33738865144/in/photostream/, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=58795255. Connemara Visit Galway See more

There's a new Game of Thrones studio tour coming to Northern Ireland in 2021. If you're a fan like me, you'll be super excited to see this one. Read more in the news story posted below. Photo: Tourism Northern Ireland. Discover Northern Ireland Discover Ireland Visit Belfast