Discover Drumcliffe

We hope you will download our Discover Drumcliffe App and listen to the amazing stories contained in the audio tour. Please note that the church building will remain closed during the current restrictions here in Ireland, we hope that you can still enjoy the sounds and pictures of this beautiful place even from the comfort of your own home. We would ask if you visit the churchyard that you would adhere to the social distancing guidelines and be respectful of others visiting graves.

Drumcliffe Church and Churchyard is the most visited Tourist Destination in County Sligo, Ireland. Over 180,000 people come here every year, many to see the grave of Nobel Prize winning Poet, William Butler Yeats. However, what most don’t know is that Drumcliffe was long established prior to W.B. Yeats falling in love with the place; Drumcliffe was a strategic location on a routeway from Connaught into Ulster, a place where many battles took place in the past.

Drumcliffe became a major centre in Early Christian times, as evidenced by the large Monastery established in 574AD by St. Columba. Elements of the Monastery including the Round Tower and High Cross are still visible today. The spirit of Christian community has continued unbroken since the monastic times.

Discover Drumcliffe is a brand new Mobile Application which hosts a 30 minute Audio Guide tour of Drumcliffe Church and the Churchyard. Hear the amazing stories of Discovery and Loss as you journey through time. The local parishioners will take you back to the founding of the Monastery right up to the present day living, working Church. Hear why W.B. Yeats may have chosen to be buried at Drumcliffe and todays burial traditions. Malcolm, Tourist Chaplain of the Church will bid you farewell with a Prayer of Blessing.

The Audio is currently available in five languages: English, French, German, Italian and Spanish. We hope you enjoy the tour.

This Mobile Application has been part-funded by the Rural Development Leader Programme.