Free/Cheap/Different things to go in Galway

JohnCleary

OK so we all know we can walk the fecking prom or Barna/Rinville woods, but what is there to do in Galway that people may not think of off the top of their heads

I've still not been to the museum, really must go there someday.

A little different (on a real slow day) but what's the craic with sitting in on court cases? Can you literly just walk into the room when a case is on? I know it's a bit weird but imho it's a good thing - you sit in on someone being sent away for a few years for committing a crime and I guarantee you'll think twice about doing such an act :pac:

Anything else? I'm not an arty-farty type but would love to experience something i'm not used to - inspire me, boardsies!

mikom

JohnCleary wrote: »

you sit in on someone being sent away for a few years for committing a crime

Chance would be a fine thing.

paconnors

Bushin wth a Btl Of Buckie

LowOdour

Sitting on the green in Eyre square on a fine sunny day is great fun.
With 2 essential things (sunglasses and a book) you can ogle at scantily clad women all day without them noticing you perving!

JohnCleary

mikom wrote: »

Chance would be a fine thing.

Yeah true but we can always hope that we'll walk in on something dirty You often see the Prison Service van parked round the back of the Courthouse

paconnors wrote: »

Bushin wth a Btl Of Buckie

:pac: Thing's that don't involve alcohol - i'm trying to think outside of the box here

Cosmo K

JohnCleary wrote: »

A little different (on a real slow day) but what's the craic with sitting in on court cases? Can you literly just walk into the room when a case is on?

That sounds interesting, beats walking the prom in the rain. Or, you could go to a property auction, and push up house prices in Galway, just be careful not to buy anything....

hoody

JohnCleary wrote: »

A little different (on a real slow day) but what's the craic with sitting in on court cases? Can you literly just walk into the room when a case is on? I know it's a bit weird but imho it's a good thing - you sit in on someone being sent away for a few years for committing a crime and I guarantee you'll think twice about doing such an act :pac:

Yep, you can do exactly that, did it one day about 8 or 9 months ago. Place can be packed but you can just walk on in and take a seat. Its definitely an eye opening place to be, might be a bit voyueristic, but it's real human drama and yer as entitled to be there as anyone else.

Failing that, sign up for a course in anything, I did this last year, had a great time, got to meet new people and test the ould noggin a bit. The course I did was geared to my career but sure ya could do anything, brush up on the Gaeilge or whatever.

biko

www.galwaycitymuseum.ie
Might not be the most exiting thing ever but it's free.

swe_fi

JohnCleary wrote: »

OK so we all know we can walk the fecking prom or Barna/Rinville woods, but what is there to do in Galway that people may not think of off the top of their heads

I've still not been to the museum, really must go there someday.

A little different (on a real slow day) but what's the craic with sitting in on court cases? Can you literly just walk into the room when a case is on? I know it's a bit weird but imho it's a good thing - you sit in on someone being sent away for a few years for committing a crime and I guarantee you'll think twice about doing such an act :pac:

Anything else? I'm not an arty-farty type but would love to experience something i'm not used to - inspire me, boardsies!

I had to go down to the police station a couple of weeks back for...something...I had to wait about 1h in the reception area because someone was away for lunch. It was very entertaining because you cannot help but hearing what people are coming in for. A suspected drug-dealer was named (loudly) over the counter and the cop said "yeah i know the guy, he's a bit dodgy alright", one person was complaining about "maybe" losing €500 "I cannot remember, I think i had more money" all sorts of stuff like that. Proper weird. Maybe you can ask if you can ride along in a cop-car for the day, say you are doing a school project or a documentary or something.

Or go down to the harbour and ask if you can come out on one of the fishing(?) boats for the day? (Alternatively do this and then jump off halfway and swim back)

Or...get drunk and hang out with the winos / homeless people for a day. Wear a suit while doing this.

unJustMary

Claddagh Ring Museum (Quay St)

Galway Crystal

Royal Tara

(they're all shop type places, with museum/display things attached)

Art Galleries

Hang out in the social space and watch the crusties. Some cheap courses etc are run there too.

Story Night (9pm first Tues of every month, shortly moving to a new venue, was in the Spirit Centre) ... has been E2 per night.

Join a church choir (choirs are always desperate for men, church ones are free, others usually have a membership fee)

Barna Woods / Silverstrand / Cappagh Park / Merlin Woods

Recitals in the library (lunchtimes? 1st Tues of the month, I think)

Various free concerts in St Nicholas' church: watch their noticeoard for details. (Often touring American groups ... quality varies from distinctly ok to outstanding, can't beat the price though.)

mashling

Get all the stale bread out of the press and go down to the Claddagh to feed the swans. Always makes for dramatic viewing

legatti

LowOdour wrote: »

Sitting on the green in Eyre square on a fine sunny day is great fun.
With 2 essential things (sunglasses and a book) you can ogle at scantily clad women all day without them noticing you perving!

Freak alert!!! get some help pal:(

dr.bollocko

legatti wrote: »

Freak alert!!! get some help pal:(

:rolleyes:

LowOdour

legatti wrote: »

Freak alert!!! get some help pal:(

ah stick to watching nationwide with your cup of bovril ya ould biddy....there was nothing weird meant by it.

LadyMayBelle

Was listening to a feature on the radio yesterday about the problems people have when coming to visit Ireland, and one of the things is, that they run out of things to do. I'm from Galway, and besides going to the cinema or bowling (talking non-pub related activities now for a mo) there is feck all to do.

IMO the museum is disappointing. I understand it is not designed to bring international exhibitions but it is a pity they don't bring more exciting national ones; there are only so many times i want to 'discover' the history of Claddagh and learn about currachs and hurls.

Looking in Art galleries etc small cutesy shops on Flood St and Quay St takes about a half hour. I def couldn't knock a day out of Galway if I were a tourist.

Rant over.

padraig71

Have an argument with a preacher/anti-abortionist/political activist/chugger on Shop Street. Or stand on a box and spout your own brand of seafóid for a while. Galway's vibrant street life is one of its attractions and it's free to join in.

Or take a bag when you go for a walk and collect some rubbish on the way. Good karma and very satisfying.

Go foraging in season. e.g. Dangan is good for blackberries and sloes. Not too sure about the potential for freeganism as far as supermarket skips etc.

Chris_5339762

Find all the Geocaches in Galway.

inisboffin

Tag along behind one of the city tours and find out all about the architecture in Galway, if you don't know about it. They're an hour or two. I find reading some of the stuff in St. Nicks quite fascinating tbh.

The Colleges often have exhibitions, was at a deadly one on Fr Griffin Rd a year or two ago, some amazing stuff by the fashion and furniture students.

Social Space still open? I heard it was mid-closing.

There'll be lunchtime theatre coming back to Galway in Mar/April at Kellys - *think* it's about a tenner, but that includes soup or whatever.

Get a kite, they're great craic!

If you're a tourist, there's a 'canal walks' booklet.

Bunk into talks in the Uni.

Carolyyn

Charlie Byrne's bookshop is always a great way to pass time in town..!

Then if you're the sporty type there's new tennis and basketball courts over in Doughiska, and tennis courts in Westside and Ballinfoyle.

Joining something like the kayaking club is another idea. It costs E80 for the year but works out great value cos all you need is a wetsuit, they provide all the gear and access to boats for most of the year. And there's loads of great places to go kayaking in and around Galway.

padraig71

Chris_5339762 wrote: »

Find all the Geocaches in Galway.

What's a geocache? Suggests a buried hoard, but the word is unfamiliar.

inisboffin

Something similar to geocache is the dropspot
I LOVE this idea, and had great craic with it in the States.

It seems they've changed the website, I know of 3 or 4 spots that used to be mapped in Galway, but never used them. They might be connected to a similar thing. I will ask my friend who did it here and maybe have some Galway dropspots, perhaps one just for Boardsies!!

Chris_5339762

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geocaching

www.geocaching.com

12 of them close to the city now. Go find!

Cosmo K

Sittings - Galway district court:

http://www.courts.ie/Courts.ie/Library3.nsf/16c93c36d3635d5180256e3f003a4580/4d4167358059a356802576ac0053c883?OpenDocument

Zzippy

Definitely try the court. I've had occasion to spend most of a day in there waiting for a case to be heard and found it one of the most entertaining things to do - it can be absolutely hilarious at times. Make sure you turn your phone off - Mary Fahy can be a right dragon if she hears a phone ring, but if you're lucky you'll see that and its part of the entertainment. Its eye opening as well, gives a real insight into how some sections of society live according to completely different moral guidelines to most of us.

JohnCleary

Zzippy wrote: »

Definitely try the court. I've had occasion to spend most of a day in there waiting for a case to be heard and found it one of the most entertaining things to do - it can be absolutely hilarious at times. Make sure you turn your phone off - Mary Fahy can be a right dragon if she hears a phone ring, but if you're lucky you'll see that and its part of the entertainment. Its eye opening as well, gives a real insight into how some sections of society live according to completely different moral guidelines to most of us.

Hmm what a way to kick off the next boards beers!!!

pleasant Co.

Chris_5339762 wrote: »

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geocaching

www.geocaching.com

12 of them close to the city now. Go find!

That's awesome!

dafunk

It was a while ago now but wasn't there some talk of free and different activities going on in some of the city's coastal areas after hours ....?



> : D

unJustMary

LadyPennyworth wrote: »

Looking in Art galleries etc small cutesy shops on Flood St and Quay St takes about a half hour. I def couldn't knock a day out of Galway if I were a tourist.

I was a tourist!

The Claddagh Ring Musuem takes 30-45 minutes on its own, if you've got a mind to have a good look. Ditto Judy Greene's. And having a pint in one of "Galway's famous establishments".

This is my personal options list for visiting tourists is below - the won't all suit John, cos some are overly touristy or not cheap. But there's far from nothing to do.


Galway City things to do:

City walking tour
Bus tour
Walking the canals (need guide)

Salthill Prom
Ballyloughan “prom”
Cruise: the Corrib, or Galway Bay
Silver Strand beach
Rusheen bay, kayaking or windsurfing
Barna woods

Aquarium
Museum
Crystal factory
Tara china factory
Claddagh ring museum
St Nicholas’ collegiate church
Cathedral

Greyhounds
GAA or hurling match
Movie
Theatre
Art galleries
Pub – gig, trad session
Casino
10-pin bowling


City walking tour options (2-3 hours to do 'em all)

• Eyre Square (Browne door, fountain, last gallows site)
• City wall fragments inside the shopping centre and in back gardens around
• Pro cathedral building
• Lynch's castle / memorial window
• King's Head
• Market (Sat)
• St Nicholas's church
• Nora Barnacle's house (closed in the off-season, but tell the story outside)
• Claddagh ring musuem
• Druid's lane – excavations (can’t go inside)
• Nun's Island – Poor Clares convent
• University
• The cathedral (former jail site)
• Salmon weir
• Town Hall theatre, courthouse, Franciscian church
• The canals and former mill buildings (Mill St)
• Dominic St - Lady Gregory's family townhouse, the Arts centre
• The Claddagh (focus on the basin and statues/memorials)
• Spanish Arch (the start of the Forthill story)
• Blake's Castle
• Docks
• Forthill Cemetery
• St Augustine’s Well
• Forster St – Magdalene laundry site, statue

Day trips from Galway

Aran Islands (Inis Mor etc)

Cliffs of Mohr / The Buren / Doolin caves

Connemarra:
- Spiddal
- Clifden
- Letterfrack
- Roundstone
- Kylemore Abbey
- Or a bus tour

Westport:
- Museum of Country Life
- Knock
- Ballintubber Abbey

Bridget’s Garden (Roscahill)
Glengowla mines (outside Oughterard)
Horseriding (Tonabrockey, Bushypark)
Gort (Coole Park, Kiltartan museum)
Bunratty Castle / folkpark
Portumna (castle)
Loughrea (lake, pet farm, cathedral, horse museum)
Athenry (castle, heritage centre)
Farmers market:
- Oranmore (Thurs pm)
- Moycullen (Fri pm I think)
- Clarenbridge (Sun, monthly, 1st?)

loser2old4board

Walk all the way from the Commercial boat club in Woodquay
following the river walk where possible all the way to Nimmo's Pier
and then on though South Park (Swamp) out to and along the causeway to Mutton Island, and back again if you fancy, for a different view of the city. Bring a camera. Or if it's summertime take a trip up the lake on the Corrib Princess for a different view again. The cost won't break the bank.
Check out the canal walks as well.

dafunk

Unfortunately there's a shortage of indoor activities in Galway and with the weeks of constant rain we get it'd be nice if there were some more indoor options other than go to cinema to see some mainstream ****e, bowling, the acquarium (worth a visit), the museum (takes 4 minutes) or the art galleries (takes 15 minutes).

hoody

A good indoor activity would be the Pureskill place up in Knocknacarra, think its €12 an hour to try out a selection of indoor sports. Supposed to be great fun, I gave it a go down the docks during the VOR stopover last year and it was good craic. There does need to be more indoor stuff around town though.

kraggy

inisboffin wrote: »

Something similar to geocache is the dropspot
I LOVE this idea, and had great craic with it in the States.

It seems they've changed the website, I know of 3 or 4 spots that used to be mapped in Galway, but never used them. They might be connected to a similar thing. I will ask my friend who did it here and maybe have some Galway dropspots, perhaps one just for Boardsies!!

That's a brilliant idea. We could have great fun with that.

And having one just for boardsies would be great.

lookinbusy

For the geocaching thing, do you need to spend alot on a gps thingy or is there cheap one that will do the job, anywhere to get them in town?

unJustMary

I've been told that lots of modern cellphones have some GPS capability built in. Never really investigated though, don't know how usable it is.

alwaysadub

hoody wrote: »

A good indoor activity would be the Pureskill place up in Knocknacarra, think its €12 an hour to try out a selection of indoor sports. Supposed to be great fun, I gave it a go down the docks during the VOR stopover last year and it was good craic. There does need to be more indoor stuff around town though.

We did a tournament with different businesses in Galway in Pureskills a couple of months back. Was good craic alright.
Unfortunately i discovered i was pure ****e at most sports but sure was a good laugh!

Fuinseog

JohnCleary wrote: »

OK so we all know we can walk the fecking prom or Barna/Rinville woods, but what is there to do in Galway that people may not think of off the top of their heads

I've still not been to the museum, really must go there someday.

A little different (on a real slow day) but what's the craic with sitting in on court cases? Can you literly just walk into the room when a case is on? I know it's a bit weird but imho it's a good thing - you sit in on someone being sent away for a few years for committing a crime and I guarantee you'll think twice about doing such an act :pac:

Anything else? I'm not an arty-farty type but would love to experience something i'm not used to - inspire me, boardsies!

the city museum is many things, least of all a place with artefacts. its also the city art gallery and a general place to gather.there is very often something happening down around there.

you can visit a court case, i don't recommend the district cos the judge just mumbles away. the circuit is open to all unless its a chld custody or abuse case.

susanroth

Carolyyn wrote: »

Charlie Byrne's bookshop is always a great way to pass time in town..!

Then if you're the sporty type there's new tennis and basketball courts over in Doughiska, and tennis courts in Westside and Ballinfoyle.

Joining something like the kayaking club is another idea. It costs E80 for the year but works out great value cos all you need is a wetsuit, they provide all the gear and access to boats for most of the year. And there's loads of great places to go kayaking in and around Galway.

Can anyone join the kayak club even if you've never stepped into one before and can you join anytime of year

Dunjohn

lookinbusy wrote: »

For the geocaching thing, do you need to spend alot on a gps thingy or is there cheap one that will do the job, anywhere to get them in town?

Keeping in mind that this thread is the first I've heard of geocaching, couldn't you just type the coordinates into Google Earth and memorize where it points you to?

airvan

Galway City things to do:

City walking tour
Bus tour
Walking the canals (need guide)

Salthill Prom
Ballyloughan “prom”
Cruise: the Corrib, or Galway
etc
etc
etc
etc
etc

Ok unJustMary, excellent but after ALL that. What else is there to do?:P

Carolyyn

susanroth wrote: »

Can anyone join the kayak club even if you've never stepped into one before and can you join anytime of year

Hiya the kayaking club runs beginner courses starting around April until July and this is the best way for a complete beginner to get involved. Otherwise you would need to have some kayaking experience before you could join. You can email the club info@galwaykayakclub.com for more information. I know that the summer courses filled up pretty quickly last year, and the earlier you get your initial training the better so that you can enjoy the water throughout the summer. It's a fantastice way to spend a summer evening!

DonnieScribbles

lookinbusy wrote: »

For the geocaching thing, do you need to spend alot on a gps thingy or is there cheap one that will do the job, anywhere to get them in town?

We got a pretty basic one on Komplett for about €100. There's probably cheaper ones now though. But as unJustMary said, a phone with GPS would do the job initially, borrow someone's maybe!

Dunjohn wrote: »

Keeping in mind that this thread is the first I've heard of geocaching, couldn't you just type the coordinates into Google Earth and memorize where it points you to?

You could do that too. If you're familiar with the area it's usually pretty easy. There's a number of caches in Galway that are possible to find without the use of a GPS. There's generally encrypted clues and sometimes spoiler pictures that usually paint a pretty clear picture! We've hidden 4 caches in Galway, 3 of which could be found without a GPS I'd say.

On the thread topic, season tickets to the Galway Film Society are €36, works out €4 per film, one film every sunday for nine weeks in the Town Hall Theatre. There's also a student and unwaged discount of €32 which is even cheaper

They seem to screen European films that have done the festival circuit that you aren't likely to see anywhere else, apart from maybe 1am on RTE 2 some idle Tuesday :pac: Some of those films are good!

unJustMary

airvan wrote: »

Ok unJustMary, excellent but after ALL that. What else is there to do?:P

:P right back at ya!

Bone carving workshop: www.bonecarving.ie - one-day classes are not cheap, but definitely different

Candlemaking: www.connemaracandles.ie

Connemara Heritage and History Centre (http://www.connemaraheritage.com/)

I've not tried any of 'em .. but have seen enough ads and/or gone past often enough to be sure they exist. (Bone carving is very new, though).

After that, I'd be suggesting longer term clubs, classes etc. Zillions I could suggest ... too many to list.

galwaygal09

http://www.enjoyfreetoday.com/ is a website on free things to see and do in Galway, has things like Exhibitions, Music gigs, Festivals, Talks/Lectures etc

Events page is here http://www.enjoyfreetoday.com/festivals-n-events.php#events

also on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/wwwenjoyfreetodaycom-Free-things-to-see-do-in-Galway-City-and-County/180552446845?ref=nf#!/pages/wwwenjoyfreetodaycom-Free-things-to-see-do-in-Galway-City-and-County/180552446845?ref=nf