Ulster, Ireland · Europe
Buncrana works well as a base: 25 minutes from Muff, 12km from Mamore Gap.
Buncrana is in Ulster, Ireland, with about 6,800 people. You drive on the left here. The nearest town is Muff, about 14 km away.
Buncrana ( bun-KRA-NA; Irish: Bun Cranncha, meaning 'foot of the (River) Crana') is a town in Inishowen in the north of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. The town sits on the eastern shores of Lough Swilly, being 23 kilometres (14 mi) northwest of Derry and 43 kilometres (27 mi) north ofRead more
Letterkenny. In the 2022 census, the population was 6,971, making it the second most populous town in County Donegal, after Letterkenny, and the largest in Inishowen.
Buncrana is the historic home of the Ó Dochartaigh (O'Doherty) clan and originally developed as a town around the defensive tower known as O'Doherty's Keep, at the mouth of the River Crana. The town was moved to its present location, just south of the River Crana, when George Vaughan had the current Main Street laid out in 1718.
The town was a major centre for the textile industry in County Donegal from the 19th century until the mid-2000s (decade).
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Discover famous landmarks, scenic roads, and more near Buncrana.
Within an hour or so of Buncrana: Mamore Gap (12 km), Derry City Walls (17 km), Fanad Head Lighthouse (20 km), Five Finger Strand (22 km).
The nearest famous roads are Mamore Gap, Causeway Coastal Route and The Dark Hedges.
Buncrana is in Ulster, Ireland, about 14 km from Muff.
Road trip
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Places within a drive of Buncrana. Keep the ones you like and add them to your trip.
8 notable places within an hour's drive.
mountain pass
Steep, narrow pass climbing to 260m through the Urris Hills of Inishowen, with a holy well and grotto at the summit and a plunging descent to the Atlantic at Urris. Part of the Inishowen 100 drive; low gears essential.
12 km · about 20 min drive
landmark
The only completely intact walled city in Ireland, a 1.5km 17th-century rampart circling historic Derry.
17 km · about 20 min drive
landmark
One of the world's most photographed lighthouses, perched on a rugged Donegal headland between Atlantic and lough.
20 km · about 25 min drive
beach
A wild Inishowen beach backed by some of Europe's highest dunes, named for the finger-like rocks offshore.
22 km · about 25 min drive
scenic viewpoint
The most northerly point of mainland Ireland, with wild Atlantic vistas and a Star Wars filming location.
28 km · about 30 min drive
film location
Ireland's most northerly point stood in for Ahch-To's cliffs, where the Millennium Falcon was parked for filming.
28 km · about 30 min drive
scenic viewpoint
A basalt escarpment above Limavady with a small lake on top, used as the Dothraki grasslands in Game of Thrones.
34 km · about 40 min drive
scenic viewpoint
A quartzite headland north of Dunfanaghy circled by a narrow loop road, with 180m sea cliffs and nesting seabirds.
36 km · about 40 min drive
7 named roads, passes and coastal drives within 100km.
May to September
Far northern latitude: short daylight hours outside summer make long drives harder.
Other places to explore near Buncrana.
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