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Voykit pocket guide · Ireland
Ballymote
Baile an Mhóta
Base in Ballymote only if you have a car: 1 night covers the castle and Carrowkeel; without wheels, use Sligo town and day-trip in by train.
Ballymote is a small County Sligo town of about 1,700 people with a 1300s castle ruin and a rail station, but its real draw is the prehistoric countryside around it: Carrowkeel passage tombs, Keshcorran caves and the Ridge of Moytura. Sights are scattered with no public transport between them, so a car decides whether this is a one-night stop or a pass-through.
- Country
- Ireland
- Local name
- Baile an Mhóta
- Best months
- May–Sep
- Avoid
- Nov–Feb (wet, short days)
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- EUR
- Money
- Currency is the euro (EUR). Cards and contactless work almost everywhere, including pubs and taxis.
- Daily spend
- Budget €50–80 excl. bed · Mid €80–130 excl. bed · High €130+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- Vodafone, Three and Eir run the networks; prepaid SIMs (also 48, Tesco Mobile, GoMo) sell in phone shops and newsagents, no registration fuss.
- Emergency
- Police, ambulance, fire 112 or 999 · Murtagh Cabs +353 71 918 9131
- Plugs
- Types G · 230 V · 50 Hz · Type G three-pin, like the UK; European and US plugs need an adapter.
- Tipping
- Restaurant with table service: 10–15% if service is not included.; Pub: Not expected when ordering at the bar.; Taxi: Round up.; Tour guide or driver: €5–10 per person for a day tour.; Hotel porter: €1–2 per bag.
- Water
- Tap water is safe; occasional local 'boil water' notices are posted by Uisce Éireann.
- Toilets
- Free in shopping centres, museums, pubs (as a customer) and many petrol stations; some public toilets charge 50c.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee or tea in a café | €3–4.50 |
| Irish breakfast | €10–14 |
| Pub pint | €5–6.50 |
| Indian takeaway main | €10–15 |
| Sligo Folk Park adult entry | €12 |
| Train Ballymote → Sligo, one way | €5–8 |
| eSIM or data SIM, about a week | €10–20 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- NOC · Ireland West Airport Knock
- About 45 min by car; bus links are limited
- DUB · Dublin Airport
- About 3 h by car; train from Connolly to Ballymote takes about 3 h
Typical fares
- Train Ballymote → Sligo
- about 20 min, €5–8 one way
- Local Link bus 977 Ballymote → Sligo
- about 30 min, 8 runs Mon–Sat, 3 on Sunday
- Train Dublin Connolly → Ballymote
- about 3 h, every couple of hours
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
You need a car: the tombs, caves and friary are spread across the countryside with no public transport. The town itself is walkable. Local Link bus 977 links Sligo, Ballymote, Gurteen and Castlerea, about 8 runs Monday–Saturday and 3 on Sunday. Murtagh Cabs covers local trips.
See and do
Known for
- Ballymote Castle
- Carrowkeel passage tombs
- Keshcorran caves
- The Fighting 69th Monument
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Sligo town | Train from Ballymote, about 20 min, or Local Link bus 977, about 30 min | About 30–45 min |
| Boyle | Train towards Dublin, about 25 min | About 40 min |
| Strandhill | Car via Sligo, about 40 min | About 45 min |
| Rosses Point | Car via Sligo, about 40 min | About 45 min |
| Enniscrone | Car via Collooney and Ballina, about 1 h | About 1 h |
Sleep
- Town centre (O'Connell St and Grattan St)
- Pubs, shops and the Coach House Hotel; the rail station is a 200 m walk west.
- Wolfe Tone St
- Quieter street south of the centre with B&B rooms.
- Country houses outside town
- Temple House and Coopershill are exclusive-rental estates, not bookable by the room; check before planning around them.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | Dia duitjeea gwit |
| Thank you | Go raibh maith agatguh rev mah agut |
| Please | Le do thoilleh duh hull |
| Where is the station? | Cá bhfuil an stáisiún?kaw will an staw-shoon |
| How much is it? | Cé mhéad é?kay vade ay |
| Cheers | Sláinteslawn-che |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake, first names quickly; avoid: Over-formality; it reads as coldness
- Conversation: Banter, weather and sport; self-deprecating humour; avoid: Opening with Northern Ireland, religion or the Famine
- Pubs: Buy your round; chat at the bar; avoid: Leaving a round without buying one
- Identity: Say Ireland, or the Republic when you need to distinguish; avoid: 'Southern Ireland' and calling it British
- Driving: Lift a finger from the wheel to thank drivers who pull in for you; avoid: Stopping on narrow bends for photos
Scams and watch-outs
- Ballymote Castle is a ruin and not safe to enter: view it from outside.
- Ballinafad castle ruin is also unsafe to enter.
- Intercity buses pass on the main road and do not stop in town; use the train or Local Link 977.
- Mobile signal is 4G from Three and Vodafone but patchy from Eir; no 5G here.
- Carrowkeel and Keshcorran are unstaffed archaeological sites on farmland: leave gates as you find them and take your litter out.
A quiet, low-crime town; the real risks are rural roads, wet weather and unlit archaeological sites. The castle and Ballinafad ruins are not safe to enter.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Ballymote yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Ballymote Castle
- Carrowkeel passage tombs
- Keshcorran caves
- The Fighting 69th Monument
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Discover Ireland — County Sligo: www.discoverireland.ie/sligo
- Irish Rail: www.irishrail.ie
- Transport for Ireland — timetables: www.transportforireland.ie/plan-a-journey/timetables/
- Sligo Folk Park: sligofolkpark.com/
- Wikivoyage: Ballymote, revision 5076422 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5076422
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
BallymoteBaile an Mhóta
Chuig an seoladh seo, le do thoil
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police, ambulance, fire112 or 999
- Murtagh Cabs+353 71 918 9131
No embassies in Ballymote; the US Embassy is in Dublin, and most countries keep embassies in Dublin.
Ballymote Castle is free to view from outside but not safe to enter. Carrowkeel and Keshcorran are unstaffed and free.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/ballymote). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.