The Skellig Experience
Visitor centre on Valentia Island about the Skellig Michael monks, the lighthouses and the birds of the Skellig islands, with a film and a restaurant.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The Skellig Experience is a visitor centre on the Valentia Island waterfront, facing the fishing village of Portmagee. It is dedicated to the Skellig islands, which lie some 12 km off the Kerry coast, and especially to Skellig Michael, a UNESCO World Heritage Site where early Christian monks built a monastery on a steep offshore rock. According to the centre, that community lasted around six hundred years.
The centre is housed in a purpose-built, award-winning building and has been a local landmark for more than 25 years. Its exhibition uses models, re-creations and graphics to show how the monks lived and worked, and how lighthouse keepers and their families lived on the island after the lighthouses were built in the 1820s. Another display looks at the underwater world around the Skelligs through diver photographs and video, and at the seabirds, including the large gannet colony on Little Skellig.
An 80-seat auditorium shows a short film that follows the monks' footsteps and the architecture they left behind. The centre also has a gift shop and a licensed sea-view restaurant. From spring to autumn it runs boat trips from the same site: sea cruises around the islands and, weather permitting, landing tours to Skellig Michael.
Highlights
- Models and re-creations of the Skellig monks' monastery and daily life
- Display on the Skellig lighthouse and its keepers
- 14-minute film shown in an 80-seat auditorium
- Photographs and video of the underwater life around the Skelligs
- Boat cruises around the islands and landing tours from the same site
Permanent exhibition
- Skellig Michael exhibition – Models, graphics and re-creations on the early Christian monks of Skellig Michael, the lighthouse and its keepers, and the seabirds and marine life of the islands, together with a short documentary film.
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €6 |
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| Reduced | €5Seniors and students |
| Children & teens | €3.50Children aged 12 and under. |
| Seniors | €5 |
| Students & apprentices | €5 |
| Families | €172 adults and up to 4 children under 12. |
The prices are for the exhibition only. Boat trips are booked separately: sea cruises around the Skellig islands start from €42 per person and landing tours to Skellig Michael from €115 per person, and combined exhibition and cruise tickets are sold on the website.
Accessibility
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Kids & families
| Family ticket | €17 · 2 adults and up to 4 children under 12. |
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A family ticket is available for the exhibition.
Getting there & parking
The centre is on the Valentia Island waterfront directly across from the village of Portmagee, just over the bridge from the mainland.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
- Café
- Restaurant
- Museum shop
The licensed sea-view restaurant holds up to 100 people, serves coffee and meals, has outdoor seating and is open daily from 09:00 to 17:00 in the summer months. Packed lunches are available for boat-trip passengers.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| Good to know | The 14-minute film is shown in the centre's 80-seat auditorium. Boat trips leave from the centre daily from March to October, weather permitting; landing tours should be booked in advance because places are limited, and a trip can be cancelled when the sea is rough. |
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