Islands to Visit Cork.      Best Activity and Experiences Cork.     Family Days Out Cork

Islands of Cork to Visit

 Cork County is the largest county in Ireland, with a large coastal area, many lighthouses, and islands to visit or travel around.  Cork is the area where the Ancient East and Wild Atlantic Way regions meet. Spend a week visiting all the islands of Co Cork, or choose a few to visit. The islands are all rugged, wild, beautiful, and welcome visitors. Most are occupied all year round. Some have no shop or facilities on the islands, while others like Whiddy have one pub. The islands are serviced by ferries and private boats to access, YOU may bring a bike on some island trips to enjoy the narrow lanes and make the most of your trip. 

Spike Island

Spike Island is in Cork harbor close to Cobh, and though not part of the Wild Atlantic Way it’s so close that a visit should not be missed. The island at the entrance to the 2nd largest natural harbor in the world has been a monastery, a prison, and a fortress. Take a ferry from Cobh to Spike Island to enjoy the views and visit the old prison which won gold in the Best Attraction category of the International Tourism and Travel Awards in 2019. You can dine in the cafe or bring a picnic to eat in the barrack square. Guided tours are organized for groups and you can pre-book a boat to the island here. 

Sherkin Island

Sherkin Island ( Inish Arcáin) in Roaringwater Bay West Cork, is accessed from Baltimore, Skibbereen. The Ferry takes 10 minutes from the mainland, You can bring dogs on leads or bikes to the island but there is no car ferry. The island is the ancestral home of the O’Driscoll Clan and is 5km long by 2.5km wide and has a population of over 100 people. The island is quite flat for walking the lanes, has a lovely sandy sheltered beach about 1km from the pier, an artists community,  2 pubs, no shops and worth a half-day visit.  The Franciscan Friary ruin at the top of the pier was established in 1460 by Fininan o Driscoll. 

Cape Clear

Cape Clear Island (Oilean Cléire) is the largest of Carbery’s Hundred Isles on the Wild Atlantic Way. It is the closest island to the Fastnet Rock Lighthouse and is a great place to spend a relaxing day or longer. The island is 5.6km long and 1km wide with a permanent population of 145 people. Take a return trip to Cape Clear Island (Oilean Cléire), the largest of Carbery’s Hundred Isles on the Wild Atlantic Way in Co Cork. It’s a great place to spend a relaxing day or longer and you can easily walk the island on a day trip. 

Cape Clear is a Gaeltacht (Irish speaking) island with a rich archeological heritage including standing stones, a marriage rock, Dun an Air Castle, a lighthouse, and a 12th-century church. There are lovely walking trails on the island across the hills covered in heather and wildflowers, a goat farm, and a heritage center.  We suggest a full day on the island, though you can do it on a half-day trip. The island trip can be combined with a trip around Fastnet Rock LIghthouse, 9km southwest of Ireland. The lighthouse clings to the rock, rising dramatically from the sea, and has stood for over a century, a marvel of engineering.  Details for this trip and booking on ActivityDays.ie You can also take a bike to the island for a small extra charge.

Heir Island

Heir Island in Carberys Hundred Isles is accessed off Cunnamore Pier, west of Skibberreen is 2.5km long by 1.5km at its widest point. The O’Driscoll island ( Inis uí Dhrisceoil) has a passenger ferry taking you to an unspoilt island in 4 minutes. The quiet lanes have stone walls, small fields and  wildflowers. Walk to the sandy beache and cliffs, past  single story cottage built in the 19th century  dot the landscape. The island has a sailing centre, a cookery school and restaurant, yoga and retreat centre for groups but no shop or pub.Due to the unspoilt scenery there are  well-known artists based on the island 

Whiddy Island

Whiddy Island in Bantry Bay is a small island 5.6km long by 2.4 km wide with a permanent population of under 30, one pub,  and lots of quiet lanes within an easy walk of the ferry pier. The eastern end of the island has an old seaplane base from World War 2 and a ruined Victorian fort. The walks are mapped as part of the Sheep’s Head Way routes, with most on very quiet roads. The western end of the island is dominated by large crude oil storage tanks. A regular ferry service from the mainland can be booked here. 

Garnish Island

Garnish (Illnacullin) Island in sheltered Glengarriff Bay is home to a garden of rare beauty that horticulturists from all over the world travel to admire. The grounds cover the small island and are laid out in beautiful walks with wonderful specimen plants from many parts of the world thriving thanks to the island’s sheltered location and the warming effects of the Gulf Stream. Take a boat trip to Garnish Island from Glengarriff pre-booked with Activity Days. Take a night kayak trip around Glengarriff Bay or a boat trip around the much larger Bantry Bay. 

Bere Island

Bere Island 2km off Castletownbere on the Beara Peninsula is 125km from Cork city. The island is about 10km long and 3km wide and has a population of just under 200. It was home to a major  British naval base until 1938 when it was returned to  Irish Government control. The island is served by 2 ferries, both taking a few cars. You can walk around the two Martello towers, the Lonefort naval battery and there are many other walking options on the quiet roads.

Dursey Island

Dursey Island is the most westerly of Cork’s inhabited islands and is located at the Western Point of the Beara Peninsula with the Dursey Island Cable Car Ireland’s only cable car. The Island Cable Car runs about 250 meters above the sea and can carry six people at a time on a 15-minute trip from the mainland to Dursey Island. It runs continuously during scheduled hours from 9.30 to 5.30. and is managed by Cork Co Council.  The crossing costs €10 return for adults and payment is in cash, taking 6 people per trip.  The island offers walking routes, bird, whale, and dolphin watching, a historical burial ground, and many historical features. The island has 7 families farming mostly sheep on the island, and everything is carried across by the cable car. 

Guided tours organized and a bus tour by contacting Activity Days. Bring food as there are no shops, pubs or cafes on the island but there s a mobile catering van near the cable car park.  The cable car will not run during the 2022 season as the ancient steel supports are being replaced. Due to opening for the 2023 season