WHAT IS THERE TO DO IN AND AROUND MILLTOWN?
The Top Ten Things to do in Milltown: a huge variety of activities are on offer – click on the links below for more information!
Walking and Cycling
Whether you just want a leisurely evening’s stroll in the woods, a family nature walk or you want to climb Ireland’s highest  mountain before breakfast, you can do all three from Milltown! The backroads of Milltown are very quiet and you might spot an ogham stone, or a dolmen, a rare bird or even one of the local community also out enjoying the fresh air! (If you do, be sure to stop for a chat!) A series of 7 walks, each with its own theme, plus a half-day cycle tour around the parish boundary are being developed at present and maps will shortly be available in the town. Click here for more information on the local heritage so you can plan your walk around it.
Milltown lies between 2 of Ireland’s long distance footpaths and there are discussions underway plans afoot at present about possible linking these two paths through Milltown itself. 
is 215 km(135 miles) long, making it the longest marked footpath in the Republic. It starts and ends in Killarney and strays inland for the first 3 days winding through the spectacular MacGillycuddys Reeks past the 1041 metre (3404 foot) Carrantouhill the highest mountain Ireland before moving around the coast trough Cahersiveen, Sneem, Waterville, Caherdaniel, Sneem and Kenmare. It is generally well-marked, does not require any special skills and can be walked by any reasonable fit person. If you are staying in Milltown, you might want to pick up a section of the walk between Glenbeigh and the mountains around Glencar or around Caragh Lake.
is a 178 km (112 mile) circular route that goes from Tralee to Camp to Annascaul to Dingle, Dunquin and back to Tralee via Castlegregory. If you are staying in Milltown, it is easy to pick up a stretch of the route perhaps around Annascual.
Serious walkers will find challenges in the Macgillycuddy’s Reeks, Irelands highest mountains and serous cyclists might want to head off to the Gap of Dunloe and the Black Valley for a day trip which covers variety of terrains: smoothly surfaced roads, small country lanes, rough tracks, bogland, wood, uphill and down through the dramatic ice-carved Gap of Dunloe. Head from Milltown in the direction of Killarney and turn right to Fossa. Back to top of page.
Healthy Living
Milltown is the perfect place to get away from the strains and stresses of modern life. Come and unwind with a reflexology session, do some yoga and eat some delicious organic food – for more information on Milltown as a centre for Health and Welling click here. You will go home refreshed and relaxed! Back to top of page.
Bird watching
 The Milltown area covers a wide range of different habitats - bog land, marshland, river, estuary, streams, groves and within the town itself, old walled gardens and waste ground. Each of these supports a specific form of animal, bird, plant and insect life. It is particularly good for birdlife – click here for further information. Back to top of page.
Festivals
Come and stay in Milltown during the annual Bealtaine festival in early May – click here for more information. Back to top of page.
Music
Milltown has developed an outstanding reputation in not only the local area but also in Kerry and Munster because of its strong links with traditional Irish music. We have hosted no less than 3 different Irish traditional music events: the Munster fleadh, the Kerry fleadh and our own Feile Cnoc an Oileain. Click here for more information. Back to top of page.
Watch Gaelic sport
Ireland’s national sports are hurling and football. There are local matches played regularly in the GAA stadium in Milltown – check locally to see if there is one on when you are staying – both games are fast and furious and we guarantee you will enjoy it!
Some essential information before you go: Gaelic football uses a ball which is round like soccer ball but the players can kick, handle and run with it, as in rugby. They can pass it in any direction but only by kicking or punching. The goalposts are similar to rugby posts and a goal is worth 3 points and is scored by putting the ball below the bar while a single point is scored when the ball goes over the bar. Hurling is a ball and stick game, much faster and more physical than hockey. The goalposts are the same as in Gaelic football but the leather ball or sliotar is the size of a baseball. A player can pick the ball up on his stick (hurley) and run with it for a certain distance. Back to top of page. 
Horse riding and Pony trekking
There are two local riding stables – please contact them directly for more information:
Abbeyglen Riding Centre, Lyre Road, Milltown: 066 9767714
Woodlands Equestrian Centre, Faha, near Milltown: 064 44044
If you enjoy the colour and excitement of the Hunt, several local hunts (fox friendly!) meet in and around Milltown – ask locally for dates. Back to top of page.
The beach – swimming, surfing and windsurfing
Kerry has some of Irelands finest Blue Flag beaches:
 Inch Beach is only 20 minutes drive from Milltown - three miles of magnificent sandy beach, enjoyed by swimmers, windsurfers, hanggliders and shore anglers. In summer, take a family picnic and make a day of it and in winter, look out for the ducks and waders in the wetlands behind the dunes. These dunes have Stone Age graves and shell middens left by ancient inhabitants and more recently the beach has been the location for several Hollywood movies.
30 minutes drive away is Rossbeigh just outside Glenbeigh village - where legend has it Oisin and Niamh crossed the sea from Rossbeigh to Tir na nog. Horseracing takes place along the sand from time to time, evoking that legend. Back to top of page.
Fishing
There are 13 managed Rainbow Trout lakes throughout Kerry and Cork offering superb sport to both casual and experienced anglers. Boats are available for hire in many locations and all the lakes are accessible from the road. The season is June to August (check exact dates locally) and Day and Season permits are available as are boat permits. The River Laune runs through Killoroglin (15 minutes drive from Milltown) and it enjoys a run of salmon throughout the year and a good run of spring salmon. It also holds good stocks of brown trout.The season is January to September (check exact dates locally) and again permits are available. There are many smaller rivers in the area and sea angling is possible all over Kerry – such as from Inch beach, Cromane and Rossbeigh. Back to top of page.
Golf
County Kerry is on of the most popular golf destinations in the world with a superb combination of world renowned links and parkland courses, all with beautiful scenery.
Telephone the golf courses below for more information:
Ballybunion Tel 068 27146, Dingle Tel 066 9156255, Dooks Tel 066 9768205,
Killarney Tel 064 31034, Ring of Kerry Tel 064 42000, Tralee Tel 066 7136379,
Waterville Tel. 066 9474102. Back to top of page.
Milltown as a touring base
Milltown is located in the heart of Kerry and as such provides an excellent base from which to tour the many attractions of the Kingdom. Make Milltown your base and go off on day excursions to some of the following:
The Ring of Kerry
Ring of Kerry is one of Ireland’s premier tourist attractions, a 179 km circuit from Killarney, past Milltown to Killorglin, Glenbeigh and past the spectacular coastal scenery around Kells and on to Cahersiveen, over the Coomakesta Pass to the fishing village of Caherdaniel, through Sneem, Kenmare and finally back to Killarney and Milltown. It can be done in a day by car or you can take one of the many organised coach tours.
 Drive to Dingle with its dry stone clochauns or beehive huts, Gallurus Observatory, sea trips to see Fungie the dolphin and the Oceanworld aquatic centre, take a ferry from Dingle to the Blasket Islands made famous by the autobiographies of former islanders such as Peig by Peig Sayers, visit the lakes and mountains of the Killarney National Park and if the weather is bad why not go to Tralee with its steam railway, the Aquadome complex of pools, slides and rapids, Kerry County Museum, and Siamsa Tire national folk theatre or Crag Cave Irelands most exciting showcave.
Visit nearby Killorglin with its rumbustious three-day celebration Puck Fair in August an annual binge of storytelling, music making and horsetrading or spend a few hours in Listowel, Ireland’s literary capital and former home of John B Keane with its annual Writers Week. A trip to the Skellig Islands (boats from Port Magee or Ballinskelligs) is one of the highlights of any trip to Ireland. Early Christian monks founded a monastery on the jagged 217m rock of Skellig Michael from the 7 th to the 12 th or 13 th centuries. It is a great place to see birds – such as storm petrels, kittiwakes and puffins. Back to top of page. |
