Essential Ireland > County Wexford > Wexford
Located on the south east coast of Ireland on the estuary of the River Slaney, Wexford is a town steeped in history and is without doubt one of Ireland’s tourist gems.
Having been a centre of opposition to English and British rule since the 17th century, Wexford enjoys a particularly Irish heritage that is cause for pride among its residents. However, the town’s tragic history records the heavy price it paid for its steadfast loyalty to the cause of Irish independence. Some 1,500 of the town’s 2,000 residents were massacred by the forces of Oliver Cromwell during the 17th century, giving the town a central, if melancholy, place in Irish history. It was also the centre of 1798 rebellion against English rule, underlining the key role the town played throughout Ireland’s long battle for independence.
Today the town is largely a harbour community, drawing its wealth and prosperity from the Irish sea. As a result, it boasts a small town, old world charm that visitors never fail to find endearing. Indeed, the fishing industry is so central to modern Wexford that the town has developed to closely follow the quays.
Running from north west to south east, the mains street runs parallel to the river, with almost all of the town’s attractions and shopping opportunities located here, giving it the feel of a large and welcoming village.
Despite its relative small size Wexford enjoys an unusually refined social calendar that attracts visitors from all over the world. The internationally renowned Opera Festival is held in the town every year, while a number of leading literary figures, such as Eoin Colfer, Colm Toibin and John Banville all hail from the town. But Wexford’s old world charm are far from its only tourist magnet.
The town is famous for its long stretches of sublime beaches and also for its close proximity to the Blackstairs Mountains and Wexford Wildfowl Reserve , which offer some of the finest hill walking and nature spotting opportunities in Ireland.
With its reputation for hospitality, the land of laughter, music, legend and romance with its nearby coastal villages and sunny shores makes for one of Ireland’s most beautiful and memorable holiday getaways.
Having been a centre of opposition to English and British rule since the 17th century, Wexford enjoys a particularly Irish heritage that is cause for pride among its residents. However, the town’s tragic history records the heavy price it paid for its steadfast loyalty to the cause of Irish independence. Some 1,500 of the town’s 2,000 residents were massacred by the forces of Oliver Cromwell during the 17th century, giving the town a central, if melancholy, place in Irish history. It was also the centre of 1798 rebellion against English rule, underlining the key role the town played throughout Ireland’s long battle for independence.
Today the town is largely a harbour community, drawing its wealth and prosperity from the Irish sea. As a result, it boasts a small town, old world charm that visitors never fail to find endearing. Indeed, the fishing industry is so central to modern Wexford that the town has developed to closely follow the quays.
Running from north west to south east, the mains street runs parallel to the river, with almost all of the town’s attractions and shopping opportunities located here, giving it the feel of a large and welcoming village.
Despite its relative small size Wexford enjoys an unusually refined social calendar that attracts visitors from all over the world. The internationally renowned Opera Festival is held in the town every year, while a number of leading literary figures, such as Eoin Colfer, Colm Toibin and John Banville all hail from the town. But Wexford’s old world charm are far from its only tourist magnet.
The town is famous for its long stretches of sublime beaches and also for its close proximity to the Blackstairs Mountains and Wexford Wildfowl Reserve , which offer some of the finest hill walking and nature spotting opportunities in Ireland.
With its reputation for hospitality, the land of laughter, music, legend and romance with its nearby coastal villages and sunny shores makes for one of Ireland’s most beautiful and memorable holiday getaways.