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Countdown
Ever been a tourist in Ireland? How many of these Top 20 heritage sites have you seen?
What tops the list?
HAVE YOU BEEN a tourist in Ireland?
There are some fantastic sights – and sites – across the country that many of us have never been to — or even learned about.
If you’re trying to think of something quiet and cheap to do this January weekend, why not take a peek at this list, just released, by the Office of Public Works (OPW)?
The OPW has a responsibility to maintain a large number of heritage sites across Ireland and junior minister Simon Harris has said last year was a bumper year for tourism.
The fee-paying sites, such as Kilmainham Gaol, continue “to do extremely well”, according to the OPW, and successful events at various locations, including Castletown House and Parklands in Celbridge, also increased the number of admissions.
The following is the countdown of the Top Twenty visited sites for 2014. How many have you been to? How many have you not heard of?
20. Altamont Gardens, Carlow
With 58,023 visitors, this just snuck into the Top 20.
19. Knowth
The Megalithic Passage Tomb attracted 58,566 people to Meath over the 12 months.
18. Cahir Castle
A total of 66,737 people visited Cahir Castle on the River Suir.
17. Battle of the Boyne Site
The important historic welcomed 71,137 people.
16. Charles Fort
A Cork favourite, 74,446 made their way here during 2014.
15. Trim Castle
Still benefitting from its connection to Braveheart, the Meath site attracted 76,511 people to its doors.
14. Glendalough Visitor Centre
A popular trip for Dubliners, the Wicklow centre clocked up 79,810 admissions.
13. Ross Castle
The Killarney lakes site, featuring a 15th-century tower house, saw 83,225 visitors last year.
12. JF Kennedy Arboretum
The plant collection was created in the memory of the former US president who died in 1963. Last year, 92,274 people paid their respects to him there.
11. Dún Aonghasa
121, 001 people took a trip to the prehistoric fort on Inishmore.
10. Newgrange
The popular and famous site snuck into the Top 10 with 139,173 visitors.
9. Clonmacnoise
The Offaly monastery, founded in 544 by St Ciaraán, welcomed 149,472 interested visitors.
8. Phoenix Park Visitor Centre
The 707 hectares just outside the city centre was visited by 135,790 during the year.
7. Dublin Castle
Falling short of the quarter million mark with 217,758 visitors, but it was a good year for the capital’s attraction.
6. Kilkenny Castle
The beautiful city location did well, as always, to attract 259,250 tourists and locals.
5. Rock of Cashel
A perennial favourite, the Tipperary castle saw 272,503 people cross its gates last year.
4. Castletown House & Parklands
A great year for the Celbridge site which saw 285,437 use its grounds.
3. Kilmainham Gaol
Last year, 328,886 paid between €2 and €6 for entry to the old prison.
2. Farmleigh Estate
The RBS 6 Nations Championship winning Irish rugby team were among the 402,773 visitors to the Phoenix Park site.
1. National Botanic Gardens
Despite a small drop in numbers, the Dublin beauty spot is still the only one on the list with over half a million visitors. The total came to 541,946.
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