A day at the Irish National Stud, in Co Kildare, is guaranteed to captivate youngsters with even a passing interest in horses.
LAST TREATS
Open daily, with 35-minute guided tours, it also features a museum and two gardens: the Japanese Gardens, which take about 20 minutes to walk around, and St Fiachra's Garden, dedicated to the patron saint of gardeners. There's also a restaurant, although many prefer to picnic at the tables in the car park, weather permitting. Tickets are €8.50 for adults, €4.50 for under-12s and €18 for families. Call 045-522- 963 or visit www.irish-national-stud.ie. - Madeleine Lyons
PLAN A BREAK
On the wing: Learn how to fly a Harris' hawk from Darragh Brennan, who runs Falconry Ireland, in Co Wicklow. Harris' hawks are top-class hunting birds but very sociable, so it's easy for a beginner to manage one, he says. On the Hawk Walk you fly a hawk with a wingspan of more than three feet (€95 for two hours). The more in-depth Falconry Experience also involves meeting eagle hawks, buzzards and owls, plus lunch at Woodenbridge Hotel & Lodge (€220 for four hours). Call 0402-35146 or visit www.topgifts.ie.
Have a shot: Imagining a burglar breaking into your house is the secret to becoming a good clay-pigeon shot, says the instructor at Rathe House, in Co Meath. After an hour most people get the hang of it - and those who don't are usually good at archery. A weekend of country pursuits also includes horse riding and off-road driving, with plenty of mulled wine and roaring fires (200 a person for groups of five or more). Call 046-9052376 or visit www.rathe house.com ... Sarah Marriott
WATCH OUT
Lovely tail feathers made the roseate tern from west Africa a target of hunters in the 19th century, supplying decorative plumage for fashionable hats. Such was the slaughter that the birds had vanished from Ireland by 1900. Their return to breed, on islands such as Rockabill, off Skerries, has been fostered by BirdWatch Ireland, and a still-fragile population has risen to more than 700 pairs. Before returning south, in August and September, many of them roost on Sandymount Strand in Dublin Bay and on Maiden Rock, off Dalkey. - Michael Viney
STARS AND GRIPES
Susan FitzGerald, actress
Best holiday: A fantastic trip to Kenya to see my sister, who runs a safari camp there. Across the way was a field used in the film Out Of Africa. One day a guide from the Samburu tribe took me for a walk through miles of land with medicinal uses. It was so different from anything we experience in Europe. I considered it a privilege.
Worst holiday: I remember one with my parents. We were camping, and I thought it was the holiday from hell, surrounded by cowpats and having to go to the loo peeking out from the bushes. But those holidays bring you closer. You're all in it together. - in conversation with Fiachra Ó Cionnaith
Where to go, what to see: For entertainment listings, see The Ticket, every Friday in The Irish Times, or go to www.ireland.com/ theticket
