ARE YOU ALREADY looking forward to the working week coming to a close?

Well, why not look into some cheap and cheerful weekend activities? We know it’s only Tuesday, but having something fun and free to look forward to can brighten up the whole week. After all, it’s only four days to the weekend – and at least it’s not Monday!

We’ve put together some resources and practical tips to help you find something great to do this coming weekend, for very little cost.

1. Family fun

Looking for something to do with the kids? Look no further than mykidstime.ie. My Kids Time show you clubs and classes, somewhere new to take the family, and even family-friendly places to stay if you decide to go for a weekend break.

You can also check out familyfun.ie, where listings are broken down by county. They also offer a newsletter you can get emailed out to you.

2. Really regional

Make sure to look up local websites to see what’s on in your vicinity. These websites are replacing the parish noticeboard and all the event listings are yours at the click of a mouse. Why not try:

• WhazOn.com for Cork-specific listings
• burrenbeo.ie for the latest news on the living Burren
• visitwexford.ie for the latest on festivals and events in Wexford
• craftinireland.com to let you know about craft events all over Ireland

If you know of any region-specific sites or blogs in your area that promote local, free events, let us know in the comments.

3. Discovering Ireland

You might think that Discover Ireland and Discovering Northern Ireland are geared at tourists visiting our fair shores, but they also work just as well for people looking to holiday in their own surroundings. Get your fill of culture and fun, and keep up to date with the latest outdoor events, festivals and Gathering parties.

Click here for your own Gathering calendar.

4. Culture vultures

Check out museum.ie for all the events going on in the Archaeology, Decorative Arts & History and Natural History museums in Dublin. They also have events listed for the lesser-known Country Life museum in Castlebar, Co Mayo.

There are plenty of workshops, talks and events for kids on in the national museums, so keep your eyes peeled on their quarterly Calendars of Events for upcoming free fun.

5. Localise

There’s no replacement for local knowledge. The Dublin Event Guide for Free Events is compiled by Joerg Steegmuller, and you can get it direct to your inbox every week. More than 10,000 readers get the e-zine now, starting from it being sent to 10 friends in 2007.

Look out for local bloggers in your own area highlighting free events.

6. Taking the high road

If you’re into the great outdoors, you should check out Mountaineering Ireland, the representative body for walkers and climbers in Ireland. They organise meet-ups, lectures and walking festivals, with clubs around the country – their calendar of upcoming events is here.

7. Soundcheck

If music is more your thing, try the Festival and Gig Guide for concert listings and keep your eyes peeled for free gigs.

Make sure to also keep an eye on music blogs – Nialler9 does a regular gig guide every Tuesday and you can also subscribe to it on an email newsletter. He’ll tell you what’s free and how to enter competitions for free gigs too.

We know that nothing can come close to local knowledge. Let us know in the comments section if there’s anything fun and free to do over the weekend in your area.

Centra wants to brighten up your day. That’s why they are offering coffee for only 1c with any purchase in participating stores today.