For couples · Galway · Ireland
Romantic things to do in Galway
Ideas for a couples' trip, from small moments to a special day out.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: Yair Haklai, CC BY-SA 4.0
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Quick answer
Galway's romance comes from music, sea light and wild coast: evenings in candlelit pubs, sunsets over the bay and day trips to the islands and Connemara. Couples tend to stay in Latin Quarter.
Key facts
- Romantic ideas
- 5
- Couple-friendly sights
- 3
- Area for couples
- Latin Quarter
- Best months
- May and September
Romantic ideas
1.Sunset from the Claddagh
Watch the light fade over Galway Bay from the quay by the Claddagh basin, with the Spanish Arch across the river.
2.Trad session for two
Find a corner in Tigh Neachtain or Tig Cóilí and settle in for an evening of fiddles and pints.
3.Cycling Inis Mór
Hire bikes in Kilronan and ride the stone-walled lanes to the cliff-edge fort of Dún Aonghasa.
4.Oysters at Clarinbridge
Share native oysters and a pint of stout by the oyster beds south of the city.
5.Sky Road drive
Drive the loop above Clifden for high views over the Atlantic islands.
Sights couples love
Experience · Latin Quarter
Traditional music sessions
Sessions are not performances; sit nearby, keep conversation low during tunes and buy a drink rather than standing around.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Iconic
- After dark
- Couples
- Rainy day
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Waterfront · Salthill
Salthill Promenade
Walk out from the Claddagh along the shore in the late afternoon and finish with a drink in Salthill.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Views
- Kids
- Couples
Waterfront · Claddagh
The Claddagh and Nimmo's Pier
For the ring's history, visit the small museum in Thomas Dillon's shop on Quay Street, which claims to be the oldest Claddagh ring maker.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- History
- Couples
- Photo spot
Where couples should stay
$$$ · Best for first-timers, nightlife, couples and solo travellers
Latin Quarter
The medieval core between Eyre Square and the Spanish Arch holds Shop Street, High Street, Quay Street and Cross Street, with Lynch's Castle, St Nicholas' Collegiate Church and the city's best-known music pubs. Staying here puts every city sight within a few minutes' walk, though rooms are limited and lively at night.
- Good
- Everything within walking distance; Music and pubs on the doorstep; Characterful streets
- Watch out
- Noisy late at night, especially in summer; Few large hotels and high festival prices
- Nearby
- Spanish Arch, St Nicholas' Collegiate Church, Galway City Museum, Lynch's Castle
Romantic day trips
- Cliffs of Moher and the Burren (About 1 hour 30 minutes by car or tour coach) — The Cliffs of Moher rise about 214 metres above the Atlantic along about 14 km of County Clare coast.
- Inis Mór, Aran Islands (About 1 hour 30 minutes by coach and ferry) — The largest Aran Island has stone-walled fields, Irish-speaking villages and the prehistoric cliff-edge fort of Dún Aonghasa.
- Connemara and Kylemore Abbey (About 1 hour 30 minutes by car) — Connemara's bogs, lakes and the Twelve Bens mountains lead to Kylemore Abbey, a castellated 19th-century house on a lake with a Victorian walled garden.
- Clifden and the Sky Road (About 1 hour 30 minutes by car or coach) — Connemara's main town is the start of the Sky Road, a loop with high views over Clifden Bay and the Atlantic islands.
- Cong and Ashford Castle (About 50 minutes by car) — The village of Cong between Lough Corrib and Lough Mask, where the film The Quiet Man was shot, has a ruined Augustinian abbey and woodland walks into the grounds of Ashford Castle, now a luxury hotel.
- Kinvara and Dunguaire Castle (About 35 minutes by car) — The harbour village of Kinvara on the south shore of Galway Bay sits beside Dunguaire Castle, a 16th-century tower house on the water's edge.
For dinner
Share local specialities such as Galway Bay oysters, Seafood chowder and Fish and chips. Native oysters are best from autumn to spring; ask which kind you are being served.
Questions travellers ask
+Is Galway romantic?
Galway's romance comes from music, sea light and wild coast: evenings in candlelit pubs, sunsets over the bay and day trips to the islands and Connemara.
+What is the most romantic thing to do in Galway?
Sunset from the Claddagh: Watch the light fade over Galway Bay from the quay by the Claddagh basin, with the Spanish Arch across the river.
+Where should couples stay in Galway?
Latin Quarter: Pedestrian Shop Street and Quay Street, buskers and traditional pubs.