After an unforgiving winter and a wretched spring, the country is to get its first sustained bout of sunshine, with weather forecasters predicting high temperatures for the rest of the week.
Temperatures in some parts reached 18 degrees yesterday, with most regions hovering between 15 and 17 degrees thanks to a large anti-cyclone stretching from Scandinavia to the Azores.
While Ireland is a long way from the Azores, after almost a year of only fleeting sunshine and feeble temperatures, thousands of people took advantage of the warmer climate, with parks and attractions packed yesterday and Sunday.
Dublin Zoo, reopened after the foot-and-mouth scare, had about 25,000 visitors over the extended weekend.
For those with a passion for hill-walking, fishing and other leisure activities, the sunshine may disappear before they get a chance to indulge.
Department of Agriculture restrictions on these activities will not be lifted until Friday, when Met Eireann says the weather is likely to become more changeable.
But there was no sign yesterday that people were short of things to do, with sporting and musical events reporting large crowds. T-shirts, shorts and plenty of pale flesh were in evidence.
Among the events which pulled in the crowds were the Heineken Green Energy Extravaganza in Dublin, the Bray Jazz Festival, Feile na Bealtaine in Dingle, Co Kerry, the Kilkenny Rhythm and Roots Festival and the ESB Vogler Spring Festival in Sligo.
Mr Michael McCauliffe, of Met Eireann's weather service, said the temperatures were nowhere near a record for May, and the reason people might think it is so hot was because April was "noticeably cool".
"The temperatures are more pleasant than hot, but because we have had such a disappointing spring, people are enjoying the temperatures, which are the hottest so far this year on a continuous basis," he said.
However, Mr McCauliffe would not be drawn on the rest of the summer. "We just look at the weather over the very short term," he said.
FIRE officers in Kerry appealed to farmers and the public to be vigilant in rural areas during the fine weather, following a number of gorse fires over the weekend.