Photos © HOME AT FIRST

TRADITIONAL IRISH COMFORT WITH A SUPERB LOCATION: A SHORT DRIVE
TO DONEGAL TOWN, BETWEEN THE MOUNTAINS AND THE SEA.

THE ACCOMMODATION: McElhinney’s Cottage is traditional Irish family farmhouse ten minutes drive west of Donegal town. The four-bedroom, three-bath restored stone family farmhouse sleeps up to nine persons. The house has a large open plan kitchen/dining area including dishwasher, microwave, range & oven, full-size fridge/freezer, and under-counter clothes washer with spin dryer. The cozy sitting room has a restored original Inglenook fireplace, comfortable new furnishings and a TV with VCR. There is one double bedroom with bathroom on the ground floor, and three additional bedrooms and two bathrooms on the second floor, all tastefully done with furnishings appropriate to the history and setting of this Irish family home. All four bedrooms, the living room, and the kitchen have TV’s.
 

 

 SPACIOUS, MODERN KITCHEN AT McELHINNEY'S COTTAGE.
Photo © HOME AT FIRST
 

THE SETTING: McElhinney’s Cottage is set on fifty acres of land. Its rural location offers private surroundings with panoramic views. The cottage is ten minutes west of Donegal Town (population approximately 1200 year round residents). A popular tourist destination, Donegal town has a good selection of pubs and restaurants, as well as food shops, and a large tourist information center. This handsome county town is an ideal home base for day-trip car touring throughout the northwest of Ireland with its beautiful national park and coastal area, as well as into parts of rural western

Northern Ireland.

         The restored cottage was the childhood home of its owner/hostess, who now lives only a short drive away from her ancestral home with her husband and daughter on their own farm.

THE LOCATION: With a restful view from its rural, hilltop perch, McElhinney's Cottage location provides a superb setting in an especially scenic region of Ireland. Donegal Bay and the surrounding rugged coastal and mountain scenery provide the region with a classic Irish appearance. The spirited, haunting traditional music performed by local bands in many of the town’s lively pubs also help give Donegal its special flavor. Donegal is traditional Ireland at its most authentic.

TOURING, ATTRACTIONS, AND ACTIVITIES POSSIBLE:
         Donegal Town’s heart is The Diamond, called by the Irish Times as one of Ireland’s finest town centers. Visit Donegal’s restored castle, and explore its ancient Fort of the Foreigners. Be sure also to explore the town’s bustling shops — especially

its woolen outlets — and dine in its excellent

restaurants. See the ancient harbor Anchor, with modern boats tied up along the jetty. See too The Hassans anchorage where "coffin ships" carried away emigrant refugees fleeing the Great Famine more than 150 years ago.
         Outside of town within easy day trip range are the National Park in Donegal, Belleek Pottery right across the border in western Northern Ireland, Yeats historical sites an hour south in County Sligo, and much more. Great golf is plentiful in this part of Ireland. The closest course may also be the best available, the superb 18-hole links course at Murvagh

 

COMFORTABLE LIVING ROOM WITH CLASSIC FIREPLACE.
Photo © HOME AT FIRST
 

just south of Donegal town. Murvagh also has

a good beach safe (if rarely warm enough) for swimming. Scuba diving off St. John’s Point is warmer — thanks to wetsuits. There is salmon fishing in the River Eske, and ocean fishing from charter boats and along the open beaches. Guided and unguided walks are abundant in Donegal town and throughout the county, especially on the hills and headlands of the peninsula west and north of Donegal town. All this make you hungry? Excellent restaurants and pubs are located throughout the region tempting you away from your cottage's fully-equipped kitchen!

AVAILABILITY: For current availability information, call HOME AT FIRST at (800) 523-5842, or contact us by e-mail at: info@homeatfirst.com.
 

Learn more about travel with HOME AT FIRST to: NORTHWESTERN IRELAND