Soaking up the sun in Salthill, Co. Galway
Friday, March 12, 2010 at 3:28PM | 2 Comments 
Salthill is a lovely seaside resort town just west of Galway City in the heart of Western Ireland. It also happens to be the place that I call home right now. My own lovely little beach town where I can sit in my bed, writing articles and blog posts and watch the whales frolic in the ocean. Ok so maybe there aren’t any whales (at least none that I can see), but the rest is true!
I’ve been so blessed with my location. Like I mentioned before, my house is located on a hill, in a row of houses that only lines one side of a street. The other side is open to a park, and eventually, the beach/ocean. I can literally watch the waves crash up on the rocks from my bedroom window (yes, while sitting in my bed) and the sun sets straight out over the water. It’s absolutely beautiful.
Everything here is within near walking distance. I have a small market up the block where I can get nearly everything I need in the form of groceries. At the bottom of my hill is the Salthill Promenade (or the Prom as the locals call it) 
which is a long stretch of bars and restaurants facing the ocean. Across from the Prom is a long walking path that runs all the way from Southpark (near city center Galway) out to Salthill ending at a black rock. Many people use this long stretch of pavement for their morning or evening work out and it’s essential to kick the black rock at the end of the prom (apparently it brings good luck).
In terms of going out, the pubs are a plenty. There’s a great pub down the street that I frequent quite often called the Oslo which is open all day, has free wifi, great food, good coffee and plays most of the good sporting events on a large projection screen in a bruhouse type picnic table setup. Down the street is a great Italian restaurant serving great authentic pasta and pizza next door to a nice Polish restaurant. If you’re in the mood for a bit more traditional Irish food, head to the Cottage where the beer is cold and the chips piping hot (and served with a really great mayo dipping sauce).
My favorite part of living in Salthill is the walk into town. Clocked at between 10 and 20 minutes (depending on how fast you walk, which of the 1000 routes you take and what state of mind you’re in), the walk I take usually winds down the prom along the ocean, then up through some neighborhood streets before popping out and crossing the river onto Quay Street. It’s the perfect amount of time to share a nice conversation with a friend, listen to some pump up music or sober up a bit after a night out.
It’s close proximity to the city make Salthill a perfect place to stay if you’re in town, no matter how long you stay.
Reader Comments (2)
Your post brings back fantastic memories of my time living in Galway - I would love to go back!
You have a picture of the swimming platform. My mates and I all got a bit drunk on Christmas morning, 2007, and jumped off the platform into an icy, cold Galway Bay. It was fantastic! There's a video archived someplace on my blog, check it out! :)
Are you in Ireland on a working holiday?
@Matt - hahahaah I found your video. Hilarious! I'm planning on jumping off at some point but I just keep putting it off. Have seen several older men taking a swim early in the morning. BRR!!! I'm actually not on a working holiday, just spending my 90 days here then heading south for the summer. Thinking of coming back tho and applying for a proper visa so I can spent some more time here. Absolutely love it.