+34If you’re seeking a trip that blends luxurious relaxation with genuine heritage interest, a weekend in Cavan should be top of your agenda.
If you’re seeking a trip that blends luxurious relaxation with genuine heritage interest, a weekend in Cavan should be top of your agenda. This year, to mark my mother’s birthday, we decided to spend an August weekend in Cavan, and it’s a trip that will go down in our shared history forever.
It’s only been a few weeks, and we’re already recalling it fondly . From luxuriating in our hotel and wandering through forest parks to taking a step back in time at the county museum and heritage railway, we lapped it all up. Throw in a couple of top-tier meals, a craft workshop and a browse through Cavan’s answer to Avoca, we were utterly in our element.
Here’s a rundown of what we loved the most, and what you shouldn’t miss if you’re planning a trip to Cavan this autumn. , it’s impossible not to be in awe at its scale. Set on 1,300 acres of ancient forest, rolling meadows and pristine lakeland on the outskirts of Cavan Town, every detail of this 16th-century hotel is thoughtfully considered. We checked into a Junior Suite, which was absolutely perfect.
With a king-sized bed you can sink right into and a separate living room area with a second television and comfy couch, I loved the furnishings and soothing colour palette. It’s exactly as described: refined sophistication meets serene relaxation. The hotel itself invites you to unwind and mingle across the reception area and on-site bar, and the dining options are incredible.
We enjoyed a delicious three-course meal at Maxwell’s Restaurant, which has a really relaxed, laid-back ambience that makes you want to stay a while, and breathtaking views across the estate. If I see a slow braised beef cheek on a menu, I am absolutely getting it, and this one is up there with the best I’ve had. Served with confit artichoke, cauliflower purée, beef tallow crumb and red wine jus, it was melt-in-the-mouth perfection.
Massive shout-out to the mac and cheese side — I’m still dreaming about it. We treated ourselves to a back, neck and shoulder massage during our stay, and the spa is absolutely gorgeous. Even just sitting in the waiting area, you can feel your stress slip away. Designed by Heinz Schletterer, there’s an indoor/outdoor hydrotherapy pool, a water mint thermal suite, a gym and gorgeous relaxation rooms.
One of the standout experiences from our trip to Cavan has to be the felting workshop at. Located in a purpose-built craft studio in the south of Cavan beside a field with a flock of native, rare-breed Roscommon, the studio and tea rooms are owned and run by Sandra Coote, who guided us through the needle felting and helped us create gorgeous landscape scenes from the fibres of wool gathered and spun from their own sheep.
Sandra is a woman with a wealth of knowledge, someone from whom passion radiates. The studio itself is filled with antique crafting equipment, and your eye catches on every second item. From sock knitting machines to bags of their own hand-dyed wool that’s spun time and again to extend the life cycle of the material, it’s so special seeing the process play out from start to finish.was both charming and thought-provoking.
Run by a team of volunteers, the space is designed to bring you back in time, and it’s so well preserved. At this station circa 1885, the line connected with the Great Northern Railway broad-gauge branch to Ballyhaise on the Clones to Cavan line, and at Dromod connected to the Midland Great Western Railway mainline from Dublin to Sligo. The line was extended to Arigna in 1920.
The tour felt wonderfully nostalgic, and the restored station has been lovingly brought back to life with its original stone buildings, platforms and railway memorabilia. There are genuinely fascinating photographs, artefacts and stories that make the past feel present, and history buffs will thoroughly enjoy this slower-paced tour that’s full of character.in Ballyjamesduff is well worth a visit for any history enthusiast.
Housed in a former convent, it takes you on a whistle-stop tour through more than 6,000 years of Cavan history, from ancient artefacts and medieval treasures to the everyday objects that tell the story of life in the county. I particularly enjoyed the folklife gallery, their Women of Influence exhibition, and the Sheela-na-gigs in their Medieval gallery.
Football fans will enjoy the GAA History exhibition, and they’ve even got a World War One Trench Experience, the largest outdoor replica trench open to the public in Ireland and the UK. Finally, their 1916 Rising Experience and Exhibition is a really immersive feature of the museum. It’s a replica of the GPO façade and a series of tunnelled-through contemporary building interiors that allow visitors to experience the claustrophobic fighting conditions endured by the rebels.at the famous Derragarra Inn.
Located in Butlersbridge, just outside Cavan town, the award-winning, family-run restaurant has a massive menu to choose from, and cosy seats set around toasty fireplaces. To start, we had brie served with a berry and onion compote that I still haven’t stopped thinking about, and creamy mushrooms on toast. The main menu offered pretty much everything you could think of, and the parmesan and herb chicken was the winner.
Before departing, I asked our resident Cavan expert, Dearbhla Lovett, if there was anything we shouldn’t leave without seeing, and when she describedas Cavan’s answer to Avoca, we knew we had to stick our heads in. A bakery, eatery and lifestyle store, hours could be lost browsing through their curated selection of jewellery, homeware, books, hampers and wellness items, and their gorgeous café was the perfect stop for brunch.
Naturally, we left with loaves of soda bread, face creams and teddy bears.
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