Galway plays host to the weekend's big events with the 53rd Galway International Oyster Festival and Ballinasloe Horse Fair expected to see thousands flood through the city of tribes.
Thousands are expected in Galway this weekend for the annual Oyster Festival.
For seafood lovers, the Oyster Festival runs until Sunday with the highlight event being the Guinness Irish Oyster Opening Championships at Quay's Bar in Quay Street in Galway tonight.
The official festival opening happens at midday Saturday in Eyre Square, Galway, with the festival marquee at Nimmo Pier offering oyster tasting.
The World Oyster Opening Champion will be announced on Saturday afternoon, and the festivities roll over into a Gala Ball at the Radisson Hotel Sass on Saturday night.
Down the N6 is the historic and hugely popular Ballinasloe Horse fair, which has its origins in "The Gathering of the Hostings" dating back to the High Kings of Tara.
The earliest record of a patent being granted for a fair in Ballinasloe was in 1757, when a Richard Trench was granted a patent to hold a fair, and it gradually evolved into a great agricultural show with horses at its centre.
Earlier this week event organisers were appealing for more hands to help deal with crowds in excess of 85,000. The AA Roadwatch website lists a number of streets which will be closed during the event.
New regulations have come into place in the last couple of years, and the fair's organisers have ruled that no trading of dogs, puppies or fowl can be done at the fair.
For those not heading away for the weekend, Ireland take on Argentina in the make-or-break game at Parc des Princes in Paris on Sunday at 4pm, Irish time.
Back at home in Dublin, the Irish Antique Dealers' Fair continues at the RDS in Ballsbridge this weekend, while the third annual Ranelagh Arts Festival takes place in the Dublin 6 village.
The weather is expected to be mostly dry and bright on Saturday, but there will be some scattered showers in places with the same again for Sunday.