Cloondara

united kingdom

Cloondara is a small County Longford village where the Royal Canal meets the River Shannon, making it a handy stop for boaters and road travellers alike. You'll find it off the R392, about 15 kilometres north of Longford town and the N4 Dublin-Sligo route, so it's roughly 90 minutes from Dublin via the M4. The village is home to Ireland's last manually operated swing bridge on the Royal Canal, a cast-iron beauty from 1845 that locals still open by hand for passing boats.