Practicalities
Letterkenny's amenable tourist office (July & Aug Mon-Fri 9am-1pm & 2-8pm, Sat 10am-2pm, Sun 9am-1pm & 2-5pm; rest of year Mon-Fri 9am-1pm & 2-5pm; tel 074/21160) is a mile east of town on the Derry road. There's a bureau de change (daily 11am-6pm), plenty of banks , and a post office on Main Street. There are lots of B&Bs in the area, but just a few in the centre, including the Gleneany Guesthouse , Port Rd (tel 074/26088; GBP55-70/?69.84-88.88); Oakland , 8 Oaklands Park (tel 074/25529; GBP26-33/?33.01-41.90); and Willow House , Kilmacrennan Rd (tel 074/21871; GBP33-40/?41.90-50.79). The central Gallagher's Hotel , 100 Main St (tel 074/22066; GBP90-110/?114.28-139.67), is the pick of the more expensive places to stay. Good upmarket alternatives are Castle Grove Country House (tel 074/51118; GBP110-130/?139.67-165.07), out of town on the Ramelton road, offering luxury accommodation and a restaurant with prices to match; Mount Errigal Hotel (tel 074/22700, info@mounterrigal.com ; GBP90-110/?114.28-139.67) a mile out on the Derry road with a leisure centre and nightly entertainment during the summer; and the imposing new Holiday Inn (tel 074/24369; GBP110-130/?139.67-165.07), further out towards Derry, which has its own 20m swimming pool and sauna. There are plenty of places to eat in Letterkenny, and most are on Main Street. At the top of the hill, Galfees has a wholesome daytime buffet and serves excellent coffee. Pat's On The Square , 9 Market Square, is an excellent family-run restaurant specializing in appetizing homemade pasta and ice cream, freshly ground coffee and desserts to die for; while Cafe Rio , opposite the library, is another grand coffee house. Many of the pubs serve lunches too, including an excellent carvery at Dillon's Bar and specials too at McGinley's and The Brewery . Unquestionably, the current place to be seen is the Metropolitan , Lower Main Street, owned by celebrity chef Conrad Gallagher and specializing in 'new world' cuisine. Other choices nearby include The Lemon Tree and The Yellow Pepper , both specializing in reasonably-priced fish and meat dishes, with several vegetarian options. There are enough bars to defeat even the hardiest pub-crawler; a fair few offer Irish music, too. McCarry's , at the corner of the High Road, has music most nights, while the Downtown Lounge , on Main Street, has regular Wednesday traditional sessions and other music at weekends; both McGinley's and the Cottage Bar are popular with students and the latter has a Tuesday session. Nellie's currently offers music four nights a week. On Market Square, The Brewery , with its striking brass interior, is very popular and has music nightly, including the odd session. Letterkenny also has several nightclubs , of which The Golden Grill and Pulse , both on Port Road, are currently the most popular, attracting up-and-coming and well-established DJs. Currently the hippest place to be is The Orchard Inn on High Road whose three floors are usually packed at weekends thanks to music in the lounge and DJs on the top storey. If you just want a quiet pint, then Blake's or McLafferty's on Upper Main Street will satisfy. Letterkenny's proudest new development is its new theatre , An Granan (tel 074/20777), on Port Road, which, apart from an impressive drama programme, has already garnered a reputation as one of Ireland's best music venues (from traditional to classical). There's a four-screen cinema nearby, a bowling centre out on Ramelton Road and bikes for rent from Church Street Cycles (tel 074/26204). Letterkenny also hosts two festivals : the Donegal International Car Rally in mid-June; and the two-week Errigal Arts Festival in mid-July.
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