EXPERIENCES

Ireland

Fanad Head Lighthouse

“Embrace the wildness of this beautiful location and take a digital detox from the modern world.” Fanad Lighthouse is an iconic working lighthouse at the mouth of Lough Swilly. It has been voted one of the most beautiful lighthouses in the world and it’s easy to see why. Photographers regularly capture stunning, atmospheric images of this evocative structure and the surrounding wild coastline.

The lighthouse was designed by George Halpin, one of the prominent civil engineers of the era. The light was first lit on Saint Patrick’s Day 1817, using sperm oil wick lamps and parabolic reflectors, showing red to the Atlantic and white to Lough Swilly. As working lighthouse and Wild Atlantic Way signature point, this is definitely one for the bucket list.

For a truly unique experience, tour the site for the day and experience one of the finest views on Ireland’s West Coast.

Read what others share about their experience

Tadeusz Wesolowski

3 months ago
Overall, the whole visit was fantastic. The visitor centre is lovely, the coffee is genuinely delicious, and the shop is full of beautiful gifts that are hard to resist. The lighthouse itself is incredible — really well maintained, spotless, and full of authentic details that make it feel like a real piece of history rather than just a...
Paul G

6 months ago
Brilliant way to spend your morning. Lots of interesting historical information about the area with stories of shipwrecks and gold! The staff at the lighthouse were really welcoming and accommodating for my wife and daughter. We also had our dog with us, even though he wasn’t allowed in the lighthouse, he enjoyed some birdwatching whilst my wife...
Zemertz

5 months ago
Lovely working lighthouse. It was great to be able to get to the top and hear about how it works from very knowledgeable guides. Lovely building, fantastic panoramic views and history of the sea wrecks and lost lives and gold. Lovely big waves from the north Atlantic crashing in.
Megan Chism

7 months ago
This was a wonderful experience my boyfriend and I experienced on a Monday. We arrived without knowing what to do, we popped into the visitor centre/gift shop/café. We waited a couple of minutes to see a member of staff that informed us that we could make the 2:30pm talking tour (which was 7 minutes away) but managed to walk to the lighthouse and...
Don B Leask

7 months ago
A great tour well worth going to see, the guide was very knowledgable about the lighthouse and other lighthouses. It’s a fine view from the very top. The guide explained lots of details on how the light and the mechanism had changed overtime. Originally it was a huge weight, cranked up and as it lowered in the lighthouse it rotated the light. As...