LITTLE MUSEUM OF DUBLIN : An eclectic collection of objects conveying the social history of Dublin and Ireland . Here you will find a Ryanair business class ticket , proving that not all the weird history is from aeons ago .
NATIONAL MUSEUMS : Ireland boasts three of them : the Treasury at the National Museum of Ireland , in Dublin city centre , is dedicated to Ancient Irish Art , often worked in gold and silver ; Collins Barracks houses temporary exhibitions ; and the Folklore Collection is in Mayo . The Natural History Museum has been described as a museum that should be in a museum .
NEWGRANGE : This postcard attraction of Stone Age Ireland is the world ’ s most ancient engineered site . It caught the dawn rays of the solstice sun for 500 years before the oldest of the pyramids was built . Nowadays , access is restricted to the ancient mound but a nearby visitor centre recreates the experience .
ROCK OF CASHEL : You won ’ t get a better sense of medieval Ireland – where bishop and prince clung to power for 1,000 years and lived jowel by jowel – than atop the ‘ rock ’ that watches over the flat , rich plains of Tipperary . Nearby , the interpretative Brú Ború cultural centre gives a terrific summary of Irish history .
ST MICHAN ’ S : Few people visit because there is so little room . Call up and get a parishioner to give you a tour of the vaults where you can meet some ancient mummified remains , including an incongruously tall gentleman who fought in the Crusades . It may be Dublin ’ s best attraction of all , although amongst the least visited .
SLIEVE LEAGUE : These cliffs are even higher than those at Moher , but limited access hampered the number of visitors to Donegal ’ s famous cliff tops … until now . A visitor centre is planned .
TITANIC CENTRE : This distinctive and stunning white building sits on the site of the former Harland & Wolff shipyard , in the city ’ s Titanic Quarter . It was designed as architectural waves to reflect its ill-fated subject . Here you can check out the actual cabin sizes used by the passengers … even First class would not cut it with today ’ s cruise customers . The nearby riverside has an ever-growing number of restaurants and cool places to hang out .
KYLEMORE ABBEY : This park and magnificent faux-castle are rather popular with the French . The banner from the Battle of Ramillies hangs in the front hall .
Ireland ’ s top twenty visitor attractions by visitor numbers :
1 Guinness Storehouse 1,491,536 ; 2 Cliffs of Moher 1,242,576 ; 3 Dublin Zoo 1,130,720 ; 4 National Aquatic Centre 996,249 ; 5 Giant ’ s Causeway Centre 827,400 ; 6 Tayto Park , Ashbourne 765,000 ; 7 Book of Kells 761,057 ; 8 National Gallery 735,547 ; 9 Titanic Centre 684,720 ; 10 Botanic Gardens Glasnevin 552,785 ; 11 National Museum , Kildare St 469,494 ; 12 St Patrick ’ s Cathedral 466,423 ; 13 Ulster Museum 456,680 ; 14 Fota Wildlife Park , Cork 433,620 ; 15 Science Gallery 411,052 ; 16 Rock of Cashel , Tipperary 409,753 ; 17 Farmleigh 402,773 ; 18 Blarney Castle 390,000 ; 19 Number 29 370,000 ; 20 Chester Beatty Library , Dublin 355,680 .
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