Things to do in Letterkenny
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Letterkenny
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Dark, wet and cheap, with Trad Week and the theatre and museum carrying the trip.
The smart window. Longer evenings, gardens at their best and the coast before crowds.
Midsummer light and the Donegal International Rally, the town biggest crowd.
Earagail Arts Festival month, with venues across Letterkenny and events across the county.
Warmest and busiest, with beaches, Glenveagh and Fanad at their fullest.
The connoisseur month. Crowds fall, light softens and the sea is at its warmest.
Autumn colour at Glenveagh, then winter dark, low prices and fireside pubs.
What's on
- Earagail Arts Festival July
Donegal summer arts festival since 1988, centred on Letterkenny venues with events across the county.
- Donegal International Rally June, usually a weekend
Letterkenny is rally country. Rooms go early and the town is loud with it.
- Letterkenny Trad Week Late January to early February
Traditional music week anchored by An Grianan Theatre and the Regional Cultural Centre.
Best things to do in Letterkenny
St Eunan's Cathedral
Letterkenny landmark cathedral on its hill, with Munich glass, a marble pulpit and views over the town.
Donegal County Museum
Free county museum in a former workhouse, the best orientation to Donegal history before touring.
Glebe House and Gallery
Derek Hill house on Lough Gartan, packed with art, with woodland gardens and a tearoom.
Market Square
Letterkenny trading heart at the foot of Main Street, with cafes, public art and the climb to the cathedral.
An Grianán Theatre
Letterkenny flagship 383 seat theatre for touring plays, comedy, music and festival shows.
Tropical World at Alcorn's
A licensed small zoo built around a free flight butterfly house, with lemurs, meerkats and indoor play.
Letterkenny Cathedral Quarter
The oldest feeling streets in town, around the cathedral and Conwal Church above Main Street.
Regional Cultural Centre
Free galleries, a film club and live music behind the theatre, Donegal main public arts centre.
Where to stay in Letterkenny
Cathedral Quarter and Main Street
eating, drinking and not driving at night
The top restaurants, the pubs and the cathedral at your door, with a hill and limited parking as the trade off.
Paddy Harte Road and the retail edge
all round touring base
The easiest parking in town and the fastest exit to Glenveagh and Fanad, five minutes from Main Street.
Ballyraine and the southern edge
value with a pool, families and groups
Larger hotels with leisure centres and keen package rates, a short drive from dinner in town.
Ramelton Road and the countryside
country house nights and quiet
Manor hotels and country houses above Lough Swilly, needing a car for everything including town nights.
Think twice about
- Retail parks and outer approach road fringes
Car dependent commercial fringes with thin pavements and no evening life. Practical with a car, a poor base without one.
- Main Street front rooms on weekend nights
Letterkenny late bar axis. Not a safety problem, a noise one, especially on a Friday or Saturday night.
- Remote countryside west toward Glenveagh without a car
Lovely and completely isolated at night, with no transport or food options. Choose it knowing that, with a car.
Best restaurants in Letterkenny
The Lemon Tree
Letterkenny flagship restaurant, family run since 1999, cooking Irish produce with French technique.
No. 9 Market Square
A 2024 fine dining newcomer built entirely on Donegal produce, with monkfish and beef fat chips praised.
Sage
A small seasonal restaurant with a loyal local following, the calm alternative when the top rooms are full.
Yellow Pepper
Modern Irish cooking in a former factory, with the best vegetarian range in town and local craft beers.
The Brewery Bar and Restaurant
The town centre all rounder at Market Square, serving food all day by an open fire with craft beers.
Warehouse Bar + Kitchen
Casual dining and live music inside McGettigan Hotel, built for a whole evening in one building.
Burrito Loco
Fresh burritos, tacos and bowls at student friendly prices, with a lunch queue of local workers.
Café Blend
An independent cafe for a proper cooked breakfast before Glenveagh and coffee and traybakes after.
Outdoor things to do in Letterkenny
Glenveagh National Park
A vast free national park around Lough Veagh, with a baronial castle, famous gardens and red deer.
Fanad Lighthouse
A working lighthouse between Lough Swilly and Mulroy Bay, reached by the spectacular Knockalla coast road.
Inishowen Peninsula
A full day loop of ring fort, mountain gap, strands and Malin Head on the Inishowen 100 route.
Ballymastocker Bay
A long golden arc on Lough Swilly beneath the Knockalla hills, Donegal best known beach day.
Rathmullan
A handsome Swilly shore village with a long beach, a pier and the Flight of the Earls story.
Letterkenny Golf Club
An 18 hole parkland course beside the River Swilly, praised for consistent greens and a friendly welcome.
Portsalon Golf Club
An 1891 links beside Ballymastocker Bay, whose second hole is counted among Ireland finest.
Errigal
Donegal highest peak at 751 metres, a quartzite cone paired with the easy Poisoned Glen walk below.
Best hotels in Letterkenny
Castle Grove Country House Hotel
A Georgian country house above Lough Swilly with destination dining, Letterkenny luxury outlier.
Radisson Blu Hotel, Letterkenny
The practical default, a modern four star with a pool and easy parking, five minutes from Main Street.
Mount Errigal Hotel
A large family hotel with a leisure centre and generous portions, strong on kids break packages.
McGettigan Hotel
A Main Street hotel with a lively bar and kitchen, the most convenient bed for a night in town.
Dillons Hotel
A smaller family run hotel in the Cathedral Quarter, trading facilities for position and a personal welcome.
Silver Tassie Hotel & Spa
A family run hotel and small spa north of town, handy for Fanad, Rathmullan and Portsalon golf.
Station House Hotel
The value pick with character, a small hotel with a bistro bar and rates that undercut the big four stars.
Clanree Hotel
The budget touring base, a large edge of town hotel with a leisure centre and ample parking.
Is Letterkenny expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | €65 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | €120 a person |
| Splurge | €260 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- An Grianán Theatre: a few days ahead
- Fanad Lighthouse: a few days ahead
- Letterkenny Golf Club: a few days ahead
- Portsalon Golf Club: weeks ahead
- Lough Swilly: a few days ahead
- Castle Grove Country House Hotel: weeks ahead
- The Lemon Tree: weeks ahead
- No. 9 Market Square: weeks ahead
- Book rooms and top restaurants early for Earagail Arts Festival week in July.
- Check Donegal International Rally dates in June, when rooms go early and the town is loud.
- Reserve The Lemon Tree and No. 9 Market Square days to weeks ahead for weekends.
- Book Fanad tower tours and Portsalon tee times ahead in summer.
Is Letterkenny safe?
- Main Street is loud and crowded on weekend nights. Take a taxi back to approach road hotels after midnight.
- Do not leave valuables visible in cars at trailheads and beach car parks.
- Errigal needs boots, waterproofs and an offline map in any month, and a willingness to turn back.
- Swim at lifeguarded beaches in season. Atlantic and Swilly water is cold with rip currents.
Letterkenny travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Arriving without a car and judging Donegal by Main Street and the retail parks.
- Doing Slieve League as a half day. It is nearly two hours each way from Letterkenny.
- Rushing Glenveagh in ninety minutes and skipping the gardens and the viewpoint path.
- Eating in retail park chains when the good independents are five minutes away.
Getting around Letterkenny: public transport and more
- A car is near essential. The town is walkable, but Glenveagh, Fanad, Errigal and Inishowen are drives.
- Walk the centre but expect hills. Market Square to the cathedral is a real climb.
- Use Letterkenny bus station for Derry, Belfast, Dublin and Donegal Town services.
- Rural roads are narrow and slow. Fuel up in Letterkenny before Fanad and the highlands.
Who Letterkenny suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Good |
| Bachelor parties | OK |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | OK |
Make Letterkenny your trip
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