Live music and nature at its wildest prove an intoxicating combination for a visit to County Cork to take in the Kinsale Jazz Festival.

NO part of the Emerald Isle is more than 60 miles from the coast and what a coast it is with some of Europe's most dramatic beaches.

I’M RIDING the crest of a curving wave, as poised as a ballerina, the swell of the Atlantic Ocean carrying me to shore into the muscles of a hunk with soft Irish eyes. This is how I want my surfing to be.

IT features world-class golf, spectacular mountain scenery and now a spa. Visit the charms of the Irish seaside resort of Newcastle...

IF you're up for a bit of the craic on St Patrick's Day or any other time of year, head for fun-packed Belfast - especially if you like a drop of the hard stuff and a knees-up.

For some genuine, old-fashioned Irish hospitality stay in a B&B. Here are six of the best.