Inishbofin is the closest Island to Connemara and with its 15km² and ~160 habitants a beautiful little place to visit for the day.
The ferry in the morning leaves at 11:30 from Cleggan and takes only 30 minutes. Now in December the last and only ferry back is at 16:00 (last in summer one hour later), which gives you 4 hours to explore the Island.
Everyone recommended me to hire a bike and it definitely makes sence: You can choose between 3 different loop tracks on the island which all would take between 1,5 and 3 hours walking, but with a bike you will be able to see almost all of them and it is way more fun.
An old church and a graveyard towards the east, sand beaches, loads of pastures, blowholes, stag rocks in the north, a light house, old ruins
– Just enough highlights to squish into a short winters daytrip, but spending a couple of nights here would be fantastic to actually explore all of the corners.
It is a cold but very beautiful and sunny day and I can see the Island being a popular but still a bit secret spot to visit in summer – going horse riding, kayaking, snorkeling and scuba diving, fishing or having a picnic at the beach. Whereas in winter it feels like it is only the locals and you, which is great – every single car that passes me waves hello.
For me, the sunshine and the cycling made the experience perfect, I wish I had more than a few hours to enjoy the feeling and the nice little roads on Inishbofin.
– Luka
