The longest night/shortest day is celebrated at the famous prehistoric site, but there are many other atmospheric locations to welcome the returning of the light on 21 December

From the outside it looks like a grass-covered UFO, its curved, chalk-white walls gleaming amid the green countryside. Yet inside is one of the most impressive prehistoric constructions in Europe. Rediscovered in 1699, but only excavated in the 1960s, Newgrange in the Boyne Valley is a Neolithic passage tomb that has been dated to about 3,200BC (older than the Egyptian pyramids) and is so well made it’s never once sprung a leak. But that’s not its most impressive feature – the builders created an elaborate roof box that once a year, on winter solstice (shortly after sunrise on 21 December 2024), allows light to creep into the main passageway and illuminate the tomb chamber for 17 minutes. An annual lottery decides who gets to witness it, but visitors can wait outside and cheer the arrival of the sunlight. If you miss it, they artificially recreate the phenomenon on every tour.
Tickets €18 per adult, or watch it live online