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faith · Saturday 29 August 2026 · 7:30am 
Monaghan and Rackwallace Parish Bus to Lough Derg
At Monaghan Courthouse · Monaghan, Co. Monaghan
At Monaghan Courthouse · Monaghan, Co. Monaghan
Monaghan and Rackwallace parish organises a bus each August to Lough Derg’s one day retreat, a shorter alternative to the traditional three-day pilgrimage on Station Island. This year’s bus runs on Saturday, 29 August 2026, leaving the lower car park behind Monaghan Courthouse at 7:30am, with a return the same evening. The trip costs EUR 25 per person for the coach, booked directly through parish volunteers rather than a ticketing system.
The one day retreat drops the fasting and overnight vigil that define Lough Derg’s main three-day pilgrimage season, while keeping the core of the experience: crossing to Station Island by ferry, walking the penitential beds, joining the Stations of the Cross, and taking part in the day’s Masses and Confession. It suits people who want the experience of the island without committing to a full barefoot pilgrimage, and it draws a mixed group, some regulars who have done the three-day pilgrimage before and others attending for the first time. From the Monaghan side, the day is organised informally by parish volunteers named in the parish bulletin as Adrian, Maura and Mary, who take bookings ahead of the date and coordinate the coach. Seats are limited to the size of the bus, so early booking through the parish is advised rather than turning up on the day. The parish runs a similar one-day trip most years as part of its regular pilgrimage programme, alongside its diocesan Knock pilgrimage earlier in August.
The bus departs from the lower car park at the back of Monaghan Courthouse, in the town centre. Lough Derg’s Station Island is near Pettigo, on the Donegal side of the Donegal-Fermanagh border, roughly an hour and a half from Monaghan town by road. Anyone not travelling on the parish coach can drive to the Lough Derg visitor centre directly, where ferries cross to the island through the pilgrimage season.
The bus leaves early from the Courthouse in the centre of Monaghan town, close to the Diamond and St Macartan’s Cathedral, so it is worth arriving a little ahead of time to find parking nearby. There is more to see in Monaghan and across Co. Monaghan.
Heading to Monaghan Courthouse in Monaghan? Monaghan has plenty more to see. Read the Monaghan area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.