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Wexford Town
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Wexford is the
county town of County Wexford. It is situated near the south-eastern
corner of both Ireland and Co Wexford itself. This beautiful
heritage town lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour at the point
where it meets the estuary of the River Slaney.
Wexford was founded by the Vikings and developed by the Normans.
To this day it retains something of this earlier character with lots
of interesting narrow winding streets. It also has a beautiful
marina and a colourful quayside lined with historic buildings. Home
of the internationally renowned Wexford Opera Festival, the town has
abundance of good restaurants and a wide variety of shops. Just down
the coast lies Wexford Bay with miles of sandy beaches, backed by
sand dunes and nature trails.
Wexford’s medieval town walls had 7 medieval gate towers.
Westgate Tower is the only one remaining, and is the only gate tower
in Ireland open to visitors. Built in the early 1300s as a tollgate,
it has seen 700 years of war, peace and commerce. A heritage centre
brings it all to life with a wonderful audio-visual show. Other
attractions include Norman rooms and a walk along the battlements to
Seskar Abbey, which is next door.
Wexford Golf Club is an 18 hole parkland course situated
right in the heart of the town. This beautiful course was upgraded
in 2006 and is now a par 71 course measuring 5950 metres from the
championship tees and provides a challenge for players of all
standards. The course and clubhouse offer magnificent town and sea
views. The wonderful championship links course at Rosslare is just
15km south of Wexford while the superb St Helen’s Bay Golf Resort is
18km away.
Wexford Opera House is Ireland’s first custom-built,
multi-purpose opera house. The spectacular building is nestled in
the heart of the town and offers two separate performance spaces,
The John and Aileen O’Reilly Theatre and the Jerome Hynes Theatre.
The Opera House offers a wide range of entertainment, from light
opera to popular culture, amateur drama, top comedy acts and
international tours.
The Opera House is, of course, the main venue for the renowned
Wexford Opera Festival. Since the 1950s this festival has been a
fixture in the international opera calendar. Some of the world's
greatest singers have made their debuts here and forgotten gems have
been rediscovered.
Wexford Fringe Festival is the largest annual fringe festival
in the southeast of Ireland and runs concurrently with Wexford
Festival Opera. Both Festivals transform Wexford into a vibrant hub
for 18 event-packed days and nights in late October/ early November.
Catering for all ages and tastes, Wexford Fringe Festival features
drama productions, historical tours, classical recitals, jazz,
musicals, light opera, antique and second hand book fairs, the
Wexford Races, and art and photography exhibitions.
The Irish National Heritage Park is located at Ferricarrig,
less than 5km from Wexford. This 35 acre park boasts fantastic and
authentic recreations from Ireland's vibrant history. Here 9000
years of history are brought to life, from man's settlement in
Ireland in 7000 BC to the arrival of the Normans in the 12th
century. Stroll through the park with its homesteads, places of
ritual, burial mounds and long forgotten remains. A new 180m trail
also takes visitors deep into wet woodlands, winding between ancient
trees and pools of water, to experience at first-hand what Ireland
must have looked like to our Stone Age ancestors.
Just over 5km south of Wexford is Johnstown Castle. Historic
farm buildings within the extensive, ornamental grounds of Johnstown
Castle provide the venue for The National Museum of Agriculture and
Rural Life. Major themes covered by the museum include: tools and
machines of Irish farming form 1750 to 1950; Irish dairying; rural
transport; farmhouse furniture (120 pieces on display); and rural
crafts (blacksmith, wheelwright/carpenter, cooper, harness maker,
basket maker and a thatcher).
Situated on the North Slob just a few kilometres from Wexford Town
is the Wexford Wildfowl Reserve. This reserve is a bird
sanctuary with facilities for human as well as avian visitors. The
Reserve is located in the winter feeding grounds of the Greenland
white-fronted geese and these birds are visible in vast numbers, as
well as hundreds of other breeds. There is a visitor centre which
gives an introduction to the birds as well as providing hides and an
observation tower from which to view them. |
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Wexford Town Holiday Homes - County Wexford, Ireland