Cavan is the county town of County Cavan, set right in the heart of Ireland's drumlin belt — a quietly beautiful landscape of small rounded hills, boggy hollows, and more lakes than you will find in any other county in the country. The town itself is modest and won't detain you long, but the countryside around it is the real draw. Anglers have been coming here for generations, and if you like walking or cycling through gentle, lake-dotted terrain with very few other people around, this is your kind of place.
The source of the River Shannon, Ireland's longest river, rises at the Shannon Pot just south of the Cuilcagh Mountains in the northwest of the county — a short but worthwhile trip. The Cuilcagh Mountain Trail, often called the Stairway to Heaven, climbs to the highest point in the county and rewards the effort with sweeping views over the midland lakes. County Cavan borders Northern Ireland to the north, and the border area has its own quiet, end-of-the-road character. Cavan Crystal, once the town's main visitor attraction, has closed its doors, and there is not much to replace it. But that is part of the appeal: this is not a place that tries to sell itself. Come for the lakes, the fishing, and the unhurried pace of rural Ireland.
Lough Oughter — a labyrinthine spread of water and wooded islets west of town — is the county's most atmospheric corner, with a ruined medieval castle rising from a small island. Bronze Age relics are scattered across the hills: Finn McCool's Fingers on Shantemon mountain are worth the short climb, and Lisnagowan Ringfort is one of the best-preserved earthworks in the county. The Cavan County Museum in Ballyjamesduff pulls the threads together.