Baltimore Holiday Homes Cork

Baltimore is a pretty fishing village in West Cork, situated 13kms south-west of Skibbereen. This historic maritime village is renowned for its harbour, incorporating sailing, angling and diving trips, ferry crossings to the nearby islands, private boat charters and much more besides.

From Baltimore’s attractive harbour visitors can catch a ferry to the nearby Sherkin Island with its wonderful beaches and ruined abbey. Cape Clear Island can also be reached by ferry from Baltimore. This remote gaeltacht island is noted for its bird sanctuary.

The seas off Baltimore are one of the best places for whale watching in Europe, providing a feeding ground for several whale species for 7 months of the year. There is also a year round population of dolphins and seals. Baltimore has also became a very popular venue for scuba diving, due largely to the number and variety of shipwrecks in the bay. These include a WWII submarine (The U-260) and the bulk carrier Kowloon Bridge.

Baltimore boasts a number of festivals and other events throughout the year covering heritage, traditional music, seafood, historic sailing boats, regattas, angling, arts, storytelling and walking.

One of the most notable landmarks in the area is the Baltimore Beacon, also known as Lot’s Wife. This large stone structure at the entrance to Baltimore Harbour was part of a series of lighthouses and beacons dotted around the Irish coast, forming a warning system.

The remains of the O’Driscoll Castle, Dun na Sead, tower over the village and are a reminder of the once powerful O’Driscoll clan who controlled much of the South West for a number of centuries. Spain Tower to the south-east was another O’Driscoll stronghold. Other places of interest in the Baltimore area include Drombeg Stone Circle, Timoleague Abbey and the beautiful villages of Kinsale and Clonakilty, the former famed for its seafood restaurants. Baltimore is ideally placed to explore the beauty of West Cork, Mizen Head and the Beara Peninsula.