Summer time in Ireland is particularly amazing. Whether it’s breathing in the country air and starring at the clear blue sky while resting on the grass down at Spanish Arch or spending your days at an Irish music festival, there are plenty of attractions to suit you in the Irish summertime.

June, July and August are the time to catch a host of Irish music festivals including the Electric Picnic, Oxygen and the Midlands music festivals, but out west in Galway is where the best Irish summer music festivals are found.

Things seem to go a bit quite towards the end of may and early June with many of the students leaving the city but its not long before the town is buzzing again with the prospect of a fun filled summer

The Galway Arts Festival kicks off on the 17th of July. The festival offers the best in music, theatre and dance, visual art and comedy. Street theatre also plays a major part in the festival providing wonderful entertainment for the summer shoppers. The organisers go all out every year to bring in some of the best international and local acts.

The biggest festival in Galway has to be the Galway races. The races become more popular every year with record-breaking crowds thronging the city. There is hardly an empty bed or empty bar for that matter to be found in the city. The festival attracts punters from every walk of life. There are big time gamblers willing to risk the shirts off their backs as well as the more casual gamblers who are likely to stick a pin in the form guide and risk a Euro or two on the result.

The Oyster Festival, one for the food connoisseurs, takes place in September. This event has proved hugely popular over the years bringing many new faces and strange accents to the city. The pride of the Galway oyster festival is the Native oysters called “Ostrea Edulis”. The oysters are said to go down particularly well with a few pints of Guinness.

Another treat for the artistically minded community in Galway is the film festival. This event gives local filmmakers a wonderful opportunity to showcase their talents. The festival also attracts many international filmmakers as well as their famous leading men and women. In the past such luminaries as Jim Sheridan, Woody Harrelson, Sir Richard Attenborough and Michael Moore have attended the festival.

Ireland is probably not the first place that comes to mind when you think of the typical summer holiday, but believe it or not, it might be the best summer holiday you’ve ever had.