Ilnacullin Gardens

Reached by a 10-min ferry ride, the island was originally a military outpost, with a barracks and Martello Tower built against Napoleonic invasion. In 1910 it was sold to Annan Bryce, who commissioned English architect Harold Peto to design a house and garden. Thousands of tons of topsoil were imported to this bare, rocky island and shelter belts were planted, creating a micro-climate in which a number of tender plants thrive. The house was never built, and the Casita and Italian garden remain the centrepiece. There are also fine herbaceous borders. The ferry fare doesn't include admission fee.