HEAD WEST TO COUNTY GALWAY'S fresh Atlantic shores. This is the home of Connemara – archetypal Ireland, with its peat bogs, white-painted crofts, breezy lakes and a rocky mountains. Make your base at coastal Clifden, set against a mountain backdrop.

Not far away, Roundstone is a little fishing village with a pretty harbour and some good pubs. Galway City is worth a visit for its street entertainment and September Oyster Festival, not to mention scores of congenial pubs.

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