Skellig Michael Travel Guide

Tourist Guide
Skellig Michael
Photo by Karen Grubb
Photo by Philip Rigter
Photo by Phil Rigter
Photo by Megan Conner
The Skellig Rocks, with its most famous islands Skellig Michael and Little Skellig, tower out of the Atlantic Ocean seven miles west of the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry. This isolated position on the very edge of Europe was chosen by a small group of monks to be the home of their remote and inaccessible monastery, sometime between the 6th and 8th centuries.

The monks moved back to the mainland in the 13th Century, but the island remained a holy place and pilgrimage destination until the 19th Century. At this time, two lighthouses were built here and Skellig Michael then became an important part of Ireland’s maritime history.

Skellig Michael was recognised by UNESCO on its World Heritage List in 1996, owing to its outstanding natural value. Today, it’s home to a large variety of breeding seabird species whose enigmatic calls characterise the island’s sense of magic and mystery.

Visitors to Skellig Michael can’t help but be in awe of the achievement of the monks, all those hundreds of years ago, who turned this remote but beautiful island into their home for so long. It retains a special spiritual appeal, which serves as a reminder of the island’s former life as monastic abode, almost as if the monks’ spirits remained.

Rising out of the ocean, these great rocky islands are a place of solitude, wonder and beauty, a place once described by George Bernard Shaw as “incredible, impossible and mad” and “part of our dream world”.

Seagull Cottage B&B
Seagull Cottage B&B
4 out of 5
Seagull Cottage, Portmagee, Portmagee, County Kerry
The price is ฿2,697 per night from 6 Dec to 7 Dec
฿2,697
฿3,061 total
includes taxes & fees
6 Dec - 7 Dec
Stay at this 4-star B&B in Portmagee. Enjoy free Wi-Fi, free parking and breakfast (surcharge). Popular attractions Skellig Experience Centre and Bray Head Loop ...
9.4/10 Exceptional! (103 reviews)
"It was great!"

Reviewed on 27 Oct 2024

Seagull Cottage B&B
The Royal Valentia Hotel
The Royal Valentia Hotel
3.5 out of 5
Market Street, Knightstown, Valentia Island, Kerry
The price is ฿4,238 per night from 29 Nov to 30 Nov
฿4,238
฿4,810 total
includes taxes & fees
29 Nov - 30 Nov
Stay at this 3.5-star business-friendly hotel in Valentia Island. Enjoy free Wi-Fi, free parking and breakfast (surcharge). Our guests praise the helpful staff ...
8.6/10 Excellent! (75 reviews)
Good trip
"The lady who served in the restaurant on Friday night was excellent."

Reviewed on 10 Nov 2024

The Royal Valentia Hotel
Butler Arms Hotel
Butler Arms Hotel
4 out of 5
New Line Road, Waterville, Kerry
Stay at this 4-star beach hotel in Waterville. Enjoy free breakfast, free Wi-Fi and free parking. Popular attractions The Story of Waterville Cable Station Exhibition ...
8.8/10 Excellent! (113 reviews)
Nice place
"The hotel was a modest 3 star . The location is great but the building is tired and needs updating. Breakfast was good. I just wouldn’t claim that it was a 4 star hotel, in its heyday, maybe."

Reviewed on 26 Oct 2024

Butler Arms Hotel
Lowest nightly price found within the past 24 hours based on a 1 night stay for 2 adults. Prices and availability subject to change. Additional terms may apply.
Stunning 1-bed Apartment Valentia Island
Stunning 1-bed Apartment Valentia Island
3 out of 5
Valentia Island, County Kerry
Stay at this 3-star apartment in Valentia Island. Enjoy free Wi-Fi, free parking and a garden. Popular attractions Skellig Experience Centre and St. Brendan's ...
2/10 (1 review)
"Booked the wrong dates and asked staright away for a refund but that wasnt a possibility even tho it was a mistake and enough time to post it up for rent again"

Reviewed on 20 Aug 2023

Stunning 1-bed Apartment Valentia Island
Lowest nightly price found within the past 24 hours based on a 1 night stay for 2 adults. Prices and availability subject to change. Additional terms may apply.

Cities near Skellig Michael