Discover Carrick-on-Shannon
Leitrim's county town, where the upper Shannon turns into a marina
What's On
Upcoming events and things happening in Carrick-on-Shannon
Carrick-on-Shannon Farmers' Market
RecurringThursday morning market in the Market Yard, ten to two, and the town's best food hour of the week.
Culture Night at The Dock
RecurringThe national free arts night, anchored in Leitrim at The Dock in the old courthouse.
Carrick Carnival
Returns annuallyThe town's volunteer-run June bank holiday festival: parades, music, amusements and fireworks over the Shannon.
Carrick-on-Shannon Sprints Regatta
Returns annuallySprint regatta on the river in front of the town, run by a club rowing here since 1836.
Carrick-on-Shannon Right Now
Live conditions are not loading at the moment. Carrick sits in the inland Shannon valley, which means mild, damp and changeable rather than extreme: January averages around 7°C and July around 16°C, and rain is spread evenly across the year rather than saved up for the winter. Bring a waterproof whatever the month, and check the wind before you commit to the river.
🚆 InterCity from Carrick-on-Shannon
Iarnród Éireann InterCity departures
InterCity service from Carrick-on-Shannon. Updates every minute.
One town, two counties, one river
Carrick-on-Shannon, Cora Droma Rúisc, is the county town of Leitrim and the largest town in it, with 4,743 people at the 2022 census. The name means the weir of the marshy ridge, and the town exists because of a fording point on the upper Shannon that became a bridge in 1846 and a set of quays alongside it. The county boundary runs down the middle of the water: Main Street, Bridge Street and the marina are in Co. Leitrim, while Cortober on the west bank, which holds the railway station and the cinema, is in Co. Roscommon. Locals treat it as one town and find the question faintly funny.
When the commercial river traffic stopped with the Grand Canal Company in 1960, the quays stayed and the hire-cruiser trade grew into the space. Two self-drive fleets are tied up there now, and the town around them carries more bars and restaurants than a place this size normally supports. The other half of Carrick is quieter: The Dock arts centre in William Farrell's restored county courthouse, the Costello Memorial Chapel with both of its founders in glass-topped vaults, and a line of bronze plaques set into the Main Street footpath marking the way famine-era families walked up to the workhouse at Summerhill.
Where To Eat
From fine dining seafood to fish and chips by the harbour
The Oarsman
Bridge Street's benchmark kitchen, in a bar that looks like any other until the plates land.
Vittos
Long-running Italian off Main Street, open seven evenings and the fallback for a big table.
Cryan's Teach Ceoil
Bridge Street trad pub since 1956, with sessions three nights and bluegrass on Fridays.