Places to visit

Rushen Abbey

Rushen Abbey

The village of Ballasalla (Balley Sallagh) named from Gaelic 'Place of the Willow Tree' is largely built from the remains of Rushen Abbey which was built in the 1100's. Ballasalla has close ties with Castletown and is near to Ronaldsway Airport, built between Ballasalla and Castletown. Ronaldsway was named after the medieval King Reginald of Mann by the Norse.

Castle Rushen

Castle Rushen

Castletown (Balley Chashtal) was once the capital of the Isle of Man and is dominated by the superb fortress of Castle Rushen home to the Kings and Lords of Mann for many centuries. It is one of Europe's most finely preserved medieval castles.

Hango Hill

Hango Hill

Ancient place of execution. Here, Illiam Dhone, a National hero to Manx people, was shot on the 2nd of January 1663 for his part in the Manx rising of 1651. The ruins are those of a late 17th century summerhouse known as Mount Strange. It is also possibly a prehistoric burial site with an artificial mound. Its name comes from the Norse 'Hanga-Haugr', meaning Gallows Hill.

St Michael's Chapel - Keeill Michael

St Michael's Chapel - Keeill Michael

St Michael's Chapel is a Celtic-Norse twelfth century chapel built on the site of an earlier Celtic Keeill. The remains of the chapel are located on the south of St Michael's Isle (Ellan Noo Mael). The island is connected to Langness Peninsula by a causeway. Langness (Langlish) gets it's name from the Old Norse name Langness meaning long promontory. There is evidence of human activity on St Michael's Isle from the Mesolithic period. It was also the site of two significant battles between the English, Scottish and Manx for control of the island.

Derby Fort

Derby Fort

Derby Fort is a seventeenth century round fort constructed during the English Civil War. It is located on St Michael's Isle to the north of St Michael's Chapel.

Balladoole

Keeill Vael - Balladoole

This site has three monuments, making it a really worthwhile stop off. When we visited, we were also impressed by the great views west across the blue waters of the Bay of Carrickey to Port St Mary in the distance.

The monuments include a Viking Ship Burial, Keeill Vael and Balladoole Hill Fort.

Ballaqueeney Cross

Ballaqueeney Cross

This is the tallest of the Manx Crosses. The cross-slab was once covered with carvings typical of the Viking age and is thought to be the work of the sculptor Gaut about 900-950 A.D. Gaut was a sculptor working in the Isle of Man in the mid tenth century and recorded as being the son of ‘Bjorn from Kolli’. Kolli is thought to be the island of Coll in the Hebrides. His carvings were based on Celtic art traditions also drawing on Scandinavian influences.

Cregneash

Cregneash

Cregneash is a small village set on the Mull Hills above Spanish Head. Until the start of the 1900's, Cregneash had hardly been touched by technology. Manx National Heritage acquired the village over a period of time and made the it into a living museum dedicated to preserving the Manx traditional ways of life. Many of the cottages are thatched and traditional ways of work and life are displayed.

Cronk Karran

Cronk Karran

Cronk Karran is a Neolithical stone circle which is either a burial circle or hut circle. In the far south of the Island near the village of Cregneash.

Calf of Man - Yn Cholloo

Calf of Man - Yn Cholloo

Calf of Man (Yn Cholloo) covers an area of about a square mile and is off the southwest of the Isle of Man from which it is separated by a stretch of water about 700 yards wide called the Calf Sound (Yn Cheyllys). The name ‘calf’ is derived from the Old Norse word ‘kalfr’ which means a small island close to a larger one.

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