Fanore () is a small village in

County Clare County Clare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern part of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council ...

, on the west coast of

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. The area was officially classified as part of the West Clare

Gaeltacht A ( , , ) is a district of Ireland, either individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home. The districts were first officially recognised ...

, an Irish-speaking community, until 1956.

Geography

Location

Lying on the road between Ballyvaughan and Doolin, Fanore has an extensive sandy beach and sand dunes (known as the "Rabbit Warren") around the mouth of the Caher River. It is also officially recognised as the longest village in Europe.

History

Remains of a

Mesolithic The Mesolithic (Ancient Greek language, Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic i ...

dwelling have been found on the north bank of the river. Nineteenth-century historical maps highlight buildings of interest in Fanore including Fanore Lodge as well as its archaeological heritage.

Economy

The village is very popular with walkers, surfers, rock climbers (being 6 km north of Ailladie - Ballyreen Point), tourists and is particularly interesting to botanists, owing to its location on the edge of the Burren – renowned for its unique flora and fauna. It has a pub, a post office/shop, and a restaurant, as well as a surfing school near the beach.

Transport

Bus Éireann route number 350 links Fanore to several locations:

Ennis Ennis ( , meaning 'island' or 'river meadow') is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in Cou ...

, Ennistymon, Cliffs of Moher, Doolin, Lisdoonvarna,

Kinvara Kinvara or Kinvarra () is a sea port village in the southwest of County Galway, Ireland. It is located in the Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of Kinvarradoorus in the north of the Barony (Ireland), barony of Kiltartan. Kinvarra is also ...

and

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

. There are a number of journeys each way daily. Onward rail and bus connections are available at Ennis and Galway.

Popular culture

Fanore has appeared many times on Irish television: in particular, the ''

Father Ted ''Father Ted'' is a sitcom created by Irish writers Graham Linehan and Arthur Mathews (writer), Arthur Mathews and produced by British production company Hat Trick Productions for British television channel Channel 4. It aired over three seri ...

'' series often featured scenes filmed in Fanore and its surrounding villages.

References

External links

Fanore Tourist information
{{Authority control Towns and villages in County Clare Beaches of County Clare