Discover Boyle
North Roscommon's abbey town, at the foot of the Curlews and the back door of Lough Key
The abbey on the Boyle river
Boyle, Mainistir na Búille in Irish, the abbey of the Boyle river, takes its name from the Cistercian house that monks from Mellifont founded here in the twelfth century under the patronage of the MacDermotts. The town grew up around the abbey and the river crossing, and later around King House, the mansion the King family built in the eighteenth century in the middle of the town rather than out on a demesne. At the 2022 census it had 2,915 people.
It is a north Roscommon town, not a Leitrim one, and it faces two ways. To the north are the Curlew Mountains, where Red Hugh O'Donnell's army routed an English force in 1599. To the east is Lough Key and the old Rockingham estate, now a forest park the county council and Coillte run as a joint venture. Most visitors come for one or the other. The ones who stay a night find a town with a Saturday market in the King House courtyard, a ten-day arts festival every July, and more old pubs on St Patrick's Street than a town this size has any right to.
What's On
Upcoming events and things happening in Boyle
Boyle Food Festival
A first-edition food festival in the grounds of King House, 12 and 13 December 2026.
Boyle Arts Festival
Ten days of talks, music and exhibitions across the town every July; 15 to 24 July 2027.
The Courtyard Market
RecurringSaturday farmers' and craft market in the King House courtyard, ten to two, all year.
Irish Hot Air Balloon Championships
RecurringA week of championship ballooning over Lough Key every September; the 2026 event ran 19 to 25 September.
Boyle Right Now
Live conditions are not loading at the moment. Boyle is in the north Roscommon lakelands, which means mild, wet and changeable weather rather than extremes: winters are cool rather than cold and summers are rarely hot. Bring a waterproof whatever the month, and if you are cycling out to Lough Key, the woodland sections of the cycleway stay muddy for a day or two after heavy rain.
🚆 InterCity from Boyle
Iarnród Éireann InterCity departures
InterCity service from Boyle. Updates every minute.
Where To Eat
From fine dining to casual favourites
Lovage at the Gate Lodge
Award-winning family bistro and café in a stone lodge on Bridge Street, by the river.
The Tea Rooms at King House
Daytime café in the King House courtyard, for scones, brunch and a lunch special.
Restaurant
Lakeside Café, Lough Key
Lakeside Café, Lough Key
The Lough Key visitor centre café, with a heated terrace looking out to Castle Island.