The abandoned village and writers' cottages of Great Blasket Island — home, until its 1953 evacuation, to Tomás Ó Criomhthain, Peig Sayers and Muiris Ó Súilleabháin, whose memoirs became classics of Irish-language literature — along with the island's White Strand, its 346-metre summit, and its status today as an uninhabited, state-owned conservation island. Great Blasket has no bridge or causeway: it is reachable only by a small, weather-dependent seasonal passenger ferry from Dunquin Pier (April-September), with a final transfer by inflatable boat, so this trail's trigger radius is set generously to allow for GPS uncertainty over open water. Looking for things to do in Great Blasket Island? Start here — no car, no ticket, no booking.
Opens the free interactive app — point your phone at each stop and hear it speak, in 12 languages.
Stops on This Trail
An Baile — The Abandoned Village, Great Blasket
Tomás Ó Criomhthain's House
Peig Sayers' House (Upper Village)
Muiris Ó Súilleabháin's House (Ruins)
Rinn an Chaisleáin — Soup-School Ruins & Calluragh
The 1953 Evacuation
An Trá Bhán (The White Strand)
An Cró Mór — The Island's Highest Point
Great Blasket Island Today
For Schools
This trail is also available as a free printable classroom worksheet or full trail booklet — no site visit required. See how Classroom Prep Mode works →