by Located in the north-west of Ireland, County Donegal is usually overlooked by tourists, most of whom head south, drawn by Dublin. And yet, this little corner of Ireland is known – and loved – by the top of Hollywood’s A Listers; in particular, the Sex and the City star Sarah Jessica Parker, who has taken to spending her winter in the rural outpost.
Parker lives, for part of the year at least, in a cottage without accepting her husband, the actor Matthew Broderick, whose parents bought the house about 40 years ago. It’s not unusual to see it, but the headland of Kinmuckross is definitely where it’s at.
“It’s a very quiet place,” Henry Doohan, who runs a private driving service, Donegal Tour Guide, told me. He told me stories about the two visiting the local football club – then moved on to stories about the sea god Leprosy, an ancient god who was said to have warned the area of impending storms: a very mixed strong of Hollywood sheen and something more elemental.
The headland is part of the Wild Atlantic Way, a self-drive route in its 10th year, which passes through small towns that tourists might otherwise not visit. Kilcar, the closest to Sarah Jessica Parker’s home, is undeniably charming. There is a cottage industry in artisan cloth products, maintained by workshops such as Studio Donegal. Privacy is sacrosanct, but it’s also good news: a worker in an upstairs room, his head bobbing through threads on a loom, told me the celebrity pair enjoy wearing the local produce.
“Americans love these,” declared Eleonor Hanna, the third-generation owner of Hanna’s Hats, as she was led around her factory floor, past six women sewing together peaks and buttons, before putting on a flat cap. on me. Not something I’d normally wear, but – if SJP’s enthusiastic social media posts are to be believed – an appropriate local sartorial choice.
But despite its star power, Donegal’s real draw – for celebrities and civilians alike – is in the landscape. I wandered to a hill fort, Grianán Aileach, which is not protected among yellow juniper bushes. As with other stone structures, the fort is aligned so that rays of sunlight cut through an opening and fall on the altar stone at the summer solstice. On a rainy day, it was no less commanding; remarkably, one can climb up its stones to look out over the valley.
Glenbeath National Park is equally stunning. Established in 1984, the grounds offer visitors the opportunity to drive and walk amongst the Derrybeath Mountains. At the entrance to the park, the Old Church of Dun Luche stands far below the road. Built in white marble, it is called the Taj Mahal of Donegal: a monument, like the Indian name, to a doomed love affair.
Romantic enough in its own right, the church is situated near Glennigh whose name is irresistible, either a mistranslation of Glenn Neagh or, in a more fanciful telling, the site of a bloody battle between the people in Ulster legends.
This long mythology has long captured the imagination of celebrities. Within the park is a baronial hunting lodge, built by an American businessman as an approximation of Balmoral in 1867, and visited by the likes of Charlie Chaplin and Clark Gable. Greta Garbo apparently loved to talk by the lakeside pool.
The house itself is eccentric, with white, shell-lined corridors and surprisingly glamorous bathrooms. There are many mysteries – after going on a trip to a nearby island, one owner went missing; maybe to see a lover, maybe to start a new life in Paris. Walking through the Italianate gardens and neat orchards, it’s hard to see why anyone would want to leave.
That said, if demigods, Hollywood hotshots and bracing field trips aren’t your cup of tea, there are plenty of lower-key ways to spend your time here. Donegal has the longest coastline of any county in Ireland, making it a flashpoint for naval battles. A comprehensive museum in Dunree – built on the Inniswan Peninsula to defend against a possible Napoleonic invasion – describes its history, from its construction to its defensive role in the First World War, where the British fleet anchor before the Battle of Jutland.
For more of this, drive around the peninsula to the Kenfanad Lighthouse, a wartime-like sentinel. Sharks were seen basking in the bay – that’s enough to make me want to return in the summer, maybe for a picnic.
And there’s plenty of hospitality along the way too. Harvey’s Point, a lakeside hotel near Donegal town, is a lovely lodge, and the county’s seafood is exceptional (I suspect an Irish conspiracy to withhold the best stuff – but who could blame put on them?) is well displayed at Shine’s in Cealla Beaga, where the tuna is extremely fresh.
Likewise, you might while away a few hours at the slick Crolly Distillery (you are in Ireland, after all), where there are tours and tastings, and – unknown to the supernatural in these parts – a soldier gorgeous like walks the floorboards at night.
If the weather leaves you in need of a burst of fresh air, head out near the cliffs of Sliabh Liag, an hour down the coast. At their base, a visitor center gives guests a brief history of the place, then a walk of a few miles (or a shuttle bus, which runs in the busiest months) to the crest, where – suddenly – the view is about you.
On the day I visited, the trails were remarkably quiet somewhere so exceptional (and, according to one staff member, three times higher – and better – than its more famous counterpart, the Cliffs of Moher).
“We’re still a secret to most people,” he told me. And yet even here there is a Hollywood connection. Bob Odenkirk, the Badly broken actor, recently visited to get the views. About 40 years ago, he stayed in a nearby hostel which is now abandoned. “He came here when he was nobody,” he said, with a sly smile. “But people always come back. They can’t help it.”
Fundamentals
Sophie was a guest of Tourism Ireland and Fáilte Ireland.
Loganair flies from London Heathrow to Derry/Londonderry daily from £59 one way.
Harvey’s Point Hotel (00 353 74 972 2208) has rooms from £202 per night. Another good option is the Waterfront Hotel in Graystone (00 353 74 952 2444), with rooms from £120.
It is difficult to visit Donegal without a car. Car hire is available from Avis and Hertz at Derry Airport. Alternatively, Donegal Tour Guide (00 353 (0) 863331031) offers private driven tours of County Donegal, starting at £450 for groups of up to eight people.
