Erected around 1520 by the O'Hynes clan, Dunguaire Castle is widely believed to occupy the former site of the 6th-century royal palace of Guaire Aidhne, the king of Connaught. Lady Christabel Ampthill restored the castle after buying it for the equivalent of €500 and lived here from the 1950s to the 1970s; her bedroom was in the crafts studio, with her living room at the very top, beneath a new pitched roof.
Climb to the roof for glorious views of Galway Bay and Kinvara. The least authentic way to visit the castle is to attend a medieval banquet .
