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heritage · Saturday 15 August 2026 · Various 
Corcomroe Abbey - A New Monastery in an Old Place (Heritage Week)
At Corcomroe Abbey · Abbey West, Bellharbour, Co. Clare
At Corcomroe Abbey · Abbey West, Bellharbour, Co. Clare
During National Heritage Week, art historian Silvina Martin brings one of the Burren’s most atmospheric medieval sites to life with a guided tour of Corcomroe Abbey. This is not a standard ruins walk - Martin’s focus is the story of the Cistercian monks who arrived in North Clare at the start of the 13th century and fundamentally reshaped the people, the landscape, and the religious culture they found here. If you have stood at Corcomroe on your own and wondered how it came to be, this is the tour that answers that question properly.
Silvina Martin specialises in built heritage and medieval architecture, and the tour draws on that depth. The Cistercians who settled here came from Inislounaght Abbey in County Tipperary, most likely in the late 12th century, with the foundation attributed to Donal Mór O’Brien or his successor. What they built was remarkable for its time - the church, constructed roughly between 1210 and 1225, shows intricate stone carvings and decorative detail unusual for Cistercian buildings of this era, which typically favoured austerity. The effigy tomb of Conor O’Brien, King of Thomond, is one of the few surviving contemporary representations of an Irish chieftain and is housed within the ruins.
Martin’s tour asks the harder questions: what was already here before the monks arrived, how did the Cistercian model of agriculture and land management transform the valley, and what happened to the older monastic culture of the Burren? The setting adds to the experience - the abbey sits in a quiet valley beneath bare limestone terraces, the kind of landscape that makes history feel close.
The abbey is an unguided Heritage Ireland site maintained by the Office of Public Works, open year-round at no charge. This Heritage Week tour is a rare opportunity to walk it with expert commentary.
Corcomroe Abbey is not on the main tourist circuit, which is part of its appeal. It lies near the village of Bellharbour on the R480, roughly 8km east of Ballyvaughan and about 35km north-west of Ennis. From Ballyvaughan, take the N67 east toward New Quay and follow signs for Corcomroe. The approach road is narrow but passable. A small car park sits at the site. The Heritage Week event listing notes that the tour is accessible by public transport - check with the organiser if you are travelling without a car.
Ballyvaughan is the main village for exploring this stretch of the Burren and the Galway Bay coastline, with good pubs, seafood, and the Burren Smokehouse nearby. There is more to see in Ballyvaughan and across Co. Clare.
Heading to Corcomroe Abbey? Clare has plenty more to see. Browse the area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.