CORK-IRELAND

There is a (only slightly) friendly rivalry between Dublin, the capital, and Cork, the fiercely independent second city of the Republic of Ireland. Corconians are proud of their city's rebel history and provocatively proclaim Cork the true capital of Ireland. The city's history and geography is riddled with incident - from their support for Perkin Warbeck, a pretender to the English throne in the 15th century to the burning of Cork medieval city centre by British forces in 1920. Today, Cork is a city of a quarter of a million souls with the second largest natural harbour in the world, and is enjoying a cultural and business renaissance, with old buildings and waterfront properties being tidied up, and music, theatre and film festivals as well as cool bars and restaurants livening up the social scene. The local food culture is second to none in the British Isles - well developed for both locals and visitors in this gateway city to the remote, wild and beautiful southwest of Ireland.

WHERE TO STAY

• BALLYMALOE HOUSE

  Shanagarry(00 353 21 465 2531)
  Ballymaloe House is a County Cork institution, set in a river valley 40 minutes' drive from the city. It's a graceful old house, ablaze with wisteria in spring, and has spawned the Allen family, who between them run the hotel, restaurant, cookery school, farm and new events venue The Grain Store, as well as appearing on TV. The Allens have been into Irish produce - much of it their own - for 40 years. The food is superlative, there are rambling grounds and the rooms have a fresh, country charm.

• CLARION HOTEL

  Lapps Quay, Cork, County Cork(00 353 21 422 4900)
  This totally modern hotel has a wonderful location by the River Lee. Overlooking Cork City Hall, it's close to the business, shopping and entertainment areas. The lobby atrium is decked out in futuristic glass and chrome and scattered with fuchsia pink modular chairs. The 191 practical and deeply comfortable minimalist rooms, all non smoking, have light oak wood interiors, sensitive lighting and plush duvet-covered beds dressed with Egyptian cotton sheets. Bathrooms are black granite. Food at Clarion's Sinergie restaurant is a melange of classic and popular European dishes and the setting is self-consciously vibrant. Kudos has fresh cooked Asian dishes straight from the wok, while Savour is a coffee shop with wireless broadband. Children are welcomed.

• HAYFIELD MANOR HOTEL

  Perrott Avenue, College Road, Cork, County Cork(00 353 21 484 5900)
  This much extended hotel is one of Cork's only five-star properties, and it lives up to its rating. Basically a Georgian property, it is set in acres of grounds on a hill overlooking the city, and is only a ten-minute walk from the town centre. Expect a warm, folksy and brogue-infused welcome at the main doors - the doorman has been known to break into song. This is the place to leave behind the exigencies of travel and indulge the exceptional service or simply unwind. All 88 rooms have orthopaedic king size beds, air-con, marble bathrooms with Elemis products, 42" flat screen TVs and high speed internet access. Fine dining featuring contemporary Irish cuisine is served in Orchids restaurant, while Perrott's Garden Bistro favours a more relaxed and international menu.

• IMPERIAL HOTEL

  South Mall, Cork County Cork(00 353 21 4274040)
  The Imperial, part of the Flynn Group, claims to be Cork's oldest hotel. It is housed in architect Thomas Dean's Commercial Rooms of 1813 and the Waterford crystal chandeliers, marble floors and brass fittings of the lobby and public area make sure you don't miss that. The 125 rooms are more muted and tranquil, ensuring this hotel's popularity with the business community, which regularly gives The Imperial awards. Timber-sided bathtubs are a nice touch. The hotel has four stars, and the fine dining offer is at Pembrokes, where you can choose from a seasonal menu mixing the Irish and Mediterranean cuisines, using fresh local produce. The Food Hall is a sociable lunch venue and you could enjoy baked crab and potato cakes or goat's cheese and red pepper quiche, or even a Seville orange and ginger pudding. And, last but not least, if neither of those appeal, Lafayette's Brasserie is a good place to lose yourself in the papers.

• MARYBOROUGH HOTEL AND SPA

  Maryborough Hill, Douglas, Cork, County Cork(00 353 21 436 5555)
  The Maryborough Hotel has 94 modern rooms in a fine looking 18th-century mansion. The 19 acres of grounds were laid out three hundred years ago. The hotel has good dining and a well stocked cellar, and is located just ten minutes from Cork City centre, making it is a lively, comfortable and relaxing four-star hotel. The spa is both modern and beautiful, using ESPA treatments.

• PARADISO ROOMS

  16 Lancaster Quay, Cork, County Cork(00 353 21 4277939)
  Café Paradiso has just three simply appointed rooms in townhouse accommodation directly over the eponymous restaurant, each with a unique character and design. Breakfast is in served in classic Paradiso style, using the local produce with a seasonal twist.

• SHEEN FALLS LODGE

  Kenmare, County Kerry, Ireland(00 353 64 41600)
  Heading west along the south coast road out of Cork takes you into spectacularly beautiful County Kerry. A tourist route known as the Ring of Kerry takes you to Kenmare, a pretty little village well served with restaurants and shops, and overlooked by the five-star Sheen Falls Lodge hotel, which is consistently acclaimed in Condé Nast Traveller awards and just over an hour's drive from Cork. The original 16th-century home of Lord Lansdowne is not a beautiful building, but it is surrounded by water and a wild landscape. The hotel more than makes up for its architectural plainness with an almost Buddhist calmness, which includes a real fire in the reception. Most rooms overlook the stunning Sheen River Falls, and there are miles of salmon fishing upstream on the Sheen River - if you are canny enough to land a fish, your ghilly will bring it back to the hotel's kitchen where you can enjoy it for supper that night.

• GARNISH HOUSE

  Western Road, Cork(00 353 21 427 5111)
  A guesthouse with great breakfasts.

• WHERE TO EAT

  AN CRÚIBÍN
  1 Union Quay (00 353 21 431 0071). Downstairs serves simple  fare; there's finer dining upstairs at The Silk Purse.
  

  BALLYMALOE HOUSE
  Ballymaloe House, Shanagarry, County Cork (00 353 21 4652 531; www.ballymaloe.ie). 20 miles from Cork is the legendary Ballymaloe House, owned and operated by Darina Allen, doyenne of Irish cooking. With her family, she runs a farm, gardens, shop, café, cookery school and stalls at farmers' markets. Accommodation is also available, in the form of individually decorated rooms, some in an ancient tower (see Where to stay in Cork).
  
  CAFE PARADISO
  16 Lancaster Quay, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 4277939; www.cafeparadiso.ie). Chef Dennis Cotter is acclaimed by Irish, European and the US food critics as one of the great vegetarian chefs of our day. His highly original and often quirky recipes are delicate and thoughtful, but a meal at Paradise leaves you content and well fed. It's very suitable for meat eaters, and if you get tired, you can retreat to the restaurant's three double bedrooms (see Where to stay in Cork).

  COAL QUAY MARKET
  Cornmarket Street (00 353 21 7330 178). Temporarily held on Cornmarket Street, this farmers' market takes place every Saturday with artisan cheese a speciality.

  CRAWFORD ART GALLERY
  Emmet Place (00 353 21 427 4415). A great lunchtime destination.

  EXCHANGE TOFFEE WORKS
  37a John Redmond Street (00 353 21 450 7791). Visit for an old-school sweet treat.

  FRANCISCAN WELL
  North Mall (www.franciscanwellbrewery.com). This microbrewery serves a good range of stouts and red ales.

  FARMGATE CAFE
  English Market, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 427 8134). Visit the bustling 19th-century English Market in Cork's city centre and cast your eyes to the heavens to see tables of hungry and happy shoppers enjoying Cork's freshest and most enchanting food, supplied direct from local growers daily. Kay Harte has created a perfect lunchtime café/diner in a beautiful building that enhance the retailing of traditional and modern food that goes on below. Sausages, oysters and soups all appear on the menu, as well as one of her signature dishes, home corned beef.
  
  IDAHO CAFE
  19 Caroline Street, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 427 6376). A friendly and tiny café serving Mairead Jacob's first class freshly prepared home cooking from an international menu throughout the day. Conveniently situated behind Brown Thomas department store.

  JACKIE LENNOX'S
  137 Bandon Road (00 353 21 431 6118). Cork's best chipper: the chips are a must.
  
  JACOBS ON THE MALL
  30A South Mall, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 425 1530; www.jacobsonthemall.com). Jacobs On The Mall is one of Cork's most popular restaurants. It is large and modern and located in an old Turkish bath building in the financial district next to the Bank of Ireland. The international menu has a strong streak of local produce that is beautifully prepared.

  MAHON POINT FARMERS' MARKET
  Mahon Point Shopping Centre (www.mahonpointfarmersmarket.com). The market takes place every Thursday.

  MAX'S WINE BAR
  48 Main Street, Kinsale, County Cork (00 353 21 477 2443). Despite the name, Max's, run by husband and wife team Olivier and Anne Marie Queva, is one of the finest French restaurants in Ireland. Kinsale is a seaside holiday village near Cork, with plenty of fishing and the restaurant's shellfish and prime fish are superfresh and prepared in mainly French tradition with some inevitable modern Irish touches thrown in. The wine list is terrific.
  
  TABLE
  Brown Thomas Department Store, 18-21 Patrick Street, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 427 5106). Good freshly prepared food in this department store, which also offers a children's menu. It is the sister restaurant of well-thought-of Dublin eateries Itsa4 and Itsa Bagel.

  THE ENGLISH MARKET
  Entrance on Grand Parade and off St Patrick's Street (www.corkenglishmarket.ie). It is open from 8am to 6pm, but closed on Sundays and most public holidays. Within the market, the Farmgate Café (021 427 8134) serves excellent breakfasts, local delicacies and delicious cakes. Kathleen Noonan Pork and Bacon is the place to buy crubeens, bodice and drisheen (00 353 87 2971895), and On The Pig's Back is a wonderful cheese and cured meats stall (www.onthepigsback.ie).

  UNIVERSITY COLLEGE CORK
  University College Cork (00 353 21 490 1423; a.sheehan@ucc.ie) Runs an annual, week-long Artisan Food Summer School about Irish produce. The next one will be held in July.

• WHAT TO SEE

  COBH HERITAGE CENTRE
  Cobh, County Cork (00 353 21 4813 591;www.cobhheritage.com). Located in the old Queenstown railway station, Cobh Heritage Centre contains a large interactive exhibit about the exodus of the Irish peoples from Cork to New York in the 19th century. Themes include the Titanic, emigration and famine, and there is a new genealogy service available.
  
  CORK ARTS THEATRE
  Camden Court, Carroll's Quay, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 4505 624; www.corkartstheatre.com). Cork Arts Theatre is a very successful small purpose-built community theatre that promotes new and cutting edge drama.

  CORK BUTTER MUSEUM
  O'Connell Square (00 353 21 430 0600) Gives an insight into the local history.
  
  CORK CITY GAOL
  Convent Avenue, Sunday's Well, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 4305 022;www.corkcitygaol.com). Housed in a castle like building, the gaol has been restored as an unintentionally kitsch attraction, furnished with life-sized wax figures and sound effects.
  
  CORK PUBLIC MUSEUM
  Fitzgerald's Park, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 4270 679; www.corkcity.ie). Cork Public Museum hosts a diverse collection of memorabilia and ephemera from Cork's political and historical past.
  
  CORK VISION CENTRE
  St. Peter's, North Main Street, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 4279 925;www.corkvisioncentre.com). In the city centre, the Cork Vision Centre shows the conservation of the city, and explores Cork's evolution from past, through present and onwards to future development.
  
  CRAWFORD ART GALLERY
  Emmet Place, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 4907 855; www.crawfordartgallery.com). The Crawford Art Gallery houses permanent and temporary exhibits of Irish and international art. Among the major Irish artists in the collection are James Barry, Nathan Grogan, Walter Osborne, Paul Henry, Jack B. Yeats, Harry Clarke and Sean Keating.
  
  DESMOND CASTLE
  Desmond Castle, Cork Street, Kinsale, County Cork (00 353 21 774 855). Desmond Castle, also known as the French Prison, endured Spanish occupation in 1601 and was a prison for captured American sailors during the American War of Independence. A one-building history of the region in the form of an urban tower house.
  
  NATIONAL SCULPTURE FACTORY
  Albert Road, Cork, Country Cork (00 353 21 4314 353;www.nationalsculpturefactory.com). The National Sculpture Factory is a contemporary arts centre set up by sculptors - check them out to find out what's going on in the Cork art scene.
  
  OPERA HOUSE
  Emmet Place, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 427 0022; www.corkoperahouse.ie). Cork has the only purpose built opera house in Ireland, which is home to Cork City Ballet as well as the opera company. In fact, there has been an opera house o the site of the present modern building since 1855.

• WHERE TO SHOP

  ANTIQUES
  
  LYNES AND LYNES
  48a MacCurtain Street, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 4500 982; www.lynesandlynes.com). Lynes and Lynes sell quality Irish antiques with both a showroom and auctions.
  
  WOODWARDS
  26 Cook Street, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 4273 327; www.woodward.ie). Woodwards holds occasional sales of silver, painting and sculpture.
  
  FASHION
  
  Ladies' fashion shops are found on Oliver Plunkett Street, Patrick Street, St Patrick Street, Castle Street and Winthrop Street in Cork city centre, while men can also head to French Church Street and North Main Street to get their fashion fix.
  
  FOOD
  
  Cork is enjoying something of a renaissance in artisan foods. Farmers' markets routinely present the most glorious fresh products, and with more shopper-friendly rules than farmers' markets the UK, you'll find more variety through the year. Look out for heroic modern Irish food brands like Gubbeen for cheeses and charcuterie, Caherbeg for pork, Arbutus for bread and Ummera and Belvelly for smoked products.
  
  ENGLISH MARKET
  Entrances on Princes Street, Patrick Street and the Grand Parade, Cork, County Cork. The English Market is a covered market for fish, meat and fruit and vegetables, plus lots more beside - there is a beautiful trip stall, as well as bakers, traditional Irish produce and organic and ethnic foods.
  
  MIDLETON FARMERS' MARKET
  Hospital Road, Midleton, County Cork (00 353 21 4646 785;www.midletonfarmersmarket.com). County Cork is blessed with around two dozen farmers' markets, one of the best of which is at Midleton, just to the east of Cork and well worth a visit on Saturdays, when it is open from 10-2 pm.

• HOW TO GET THERE

  AIRPORT Cork Airport (www.corkairport.com) is five miles (or eight kilometres) from Cork's city centre on the south end of the N27.
  
  AIRLINES FROM THE UK
  
  Aer Arann (00 353 818 210210; www.aerarann.ie)
  Aer Lingus (0870 876 5000; www.aerlingus.com)
  bmi (0870 607 0555; www.flybmi.com)
  British Airways (0870 850 9 850; www.ba.com)
  Jet2.com (00353 0818 200017; www.jet2.com)

  TOURIST INFO

  FAILTE IRELAND SOUTH WEST
  Áras Fáilte, Grand Parade, Cork, County Cork (00 353 21 4255 100; www.corkkerry.ie).

  WHEN TO GO

  May and June are the sunniest months with six-seven hours of sunshine per day. July August are the warmest, with mean temperatures of 14-15 degrees. April and June are the driest, with 65-70mm monthly rainfall.
  
  The festival season starts in the spring, and continues right through to October. Themes include story telling, early music, jazz, international food, drama and arts.

• TRAVEL INFORMATION

  Visas: For citizens of most Western countries no visa is required. UK nationals born in Great Britain or Northern Ireland do not require a passport to visit the Republic.
  
  Public holidays: New Year's Day; St Patrick's Day (17 March); Good Friday; Easter Monday; June Holiday, August Holiday; October Holiday; Christmas Holiday.
  
  Good buys: Traditional crafts such as cut crystal, woolens (particularly Aran jumpers and Donegal teed) and pottery.
  
  Local dishes: Potato dishes are popular - try boxty, champ or colcannon, all variations on mashed potato, together with some Irish stew. The seafood, especially oysters and mussels, is excellent. Guinness is ubiquitous and Irish coffee (black coffee, sugar, whiskey and cream) is also popular.
  
  Interesting fact: Ireland adopted the harp after the English banned bagpipes from being played during the occupation of Ireland. This is why the Irish have the harp as a symbol of the country. It appears on bank notes, flags, and on the famous stout drink Guinness.
  
  Good reading: Good reading includes James Joyce's Ulysses, Ireland's most famous piece of literature, and Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt, a sad and affectionate description of the author's childhood years spent between New York and Ireland.