Active Pursuits

Bicycling

Kinsale Harbour is perfectly designed for biking. To rent a bike, drop by Kinsale Angling, Pearse Street (tel. 021/477-2703; www.kinsale-angling.com).

Fishing

Kinsale is one of the southern Irish coast's sea-angling centers. There are numerous shipwrecks in the area for wreck fishing (not the least of them the Lusitania, near the Old Head of Kinsale). Try Kinsale Angling. Also the similarly named Kinsale Deep Sea Angling, Pier Head (tel. 021/477-8944 or 087/988-2839), arranges sea fishing from Kinsale Harbor, as well as whale-watching expeditions. Prices vary widely, so call or e-mail (willemvandijk@eircom.net) for more information.

Golf

Embraced by the sea on three sides, the nothing-short-of-spectacular Old Head Golf Links (tel. 021/477-8444; www.oldhead.com) is Tiger Woods's favorite Irish course. Named one of Golf Magazine's "Top 100 Courses in the World," it is hauntingly beautiful, rain or shine. The course retains a resident environmentalist to ensure that crucial wildlife habitats are not disturbed. But golfing here costs big money: Greens fees are currently a whopping €295 for one 18-hole round, and €350 for 36 holes. If you really want to experience it but can't quite swing the price, come after 3pm, when rates go down to €150 for 18 holes. Caddy fees run €30 for a junior caddy or €50 for a senior caddy, and golf carts can be rented for €60.

If that's still too rich for your blood, there's a fine par-72 championship course at the Fota Island Golf Club, Carrigtwohill (tel. 021/488-3700; www.fotaisland.ie), with greens fees of €90 to €120 in high season, and €75 to €105 in low season. Less expensive is the Kinsale Golf Club, Kinsale (tel. 021/477-4722; www.kinsalegolf.com), which has two courses, about 5km (3 miles) north of town. The 18-hole, par-71 Farrangalway course has greens fees of €35 Monday to Thursday, and €40 Friday to Sunday, while the smaller course at Ringenane charges €25 daily.

Sailing

Yacht charters are available from Kinsale Yacht Charters, Castlepark Marina Centre, Kinsale, County Cork (tel. 087/271-0371; www.kinsaleyachtcharter.com). From Kinsale it is possible to sail to Bantry Bay and back on a 1-week charter, or to the Dingle Peninsula on a 2-week charter. Prices run from about€1,885 to €3,540 per week, not including outboard or skipper, up to a heady €5,000 per day, for those to whom money is really no object.

Sovereign Sailing (tel. 021/477-4145; www.sovereignsailing.com) offers a full range of yacht sailing options for all ages and levels of experience. Between March and November, day- or half-day sails from Kinsale head out every day. Rates vary widely based on the kind of sailing you try. They also offer racing charter packages, but again, these don't come cheap.

Walking

The Scilly Walk is a signposted pedestrian path along the sea that runs from Scilly, the community across the harbor from Kinsale, all the way to Charles Fort. If you continue to walk south along the sea from Charles Fort, you'll find another path that follows the headland to the tip of Frower Point, which offers great views across the harbor to the Old Head of Kinsale. The complete walk from Kinsale to Frower Point is 8km (5 miles) each way, and every part of it is quite rewarding. Drop in at the tourism office to pick up their leaflet about the walk, which includes a short but comprehensive guide and map.

One of the most pleasant ways to spend an hour in these parts is to take local resident Don Herily's excellent walking tour -- or Historic Stroll, as he prefers to call it -- of Kinsale town. Don and his fellow guide, Barry Moloney, have been leading visitors around the main sights since the mid-1990s, and their local knowledge is second to none. Highlights include the 12th-century St. Multose Church; a walk past Desmond Castle; and the harbor, where the 17th-century Battle of Kinsale is recounted with an enthusiasm only found in people who really love their subject. The tour starts outside the tourist office at 11:15am every day from April to October and costs €7 adults, €1 children. For details, call tel. 021/477-2873 or 087/250-0731, or check out www.historicstrollkinsale.com.

Watersports

The Oysterhaven Activity Centre (tel. 021/477-0738), 8km (5 miles) from Kinsale, rents windsurfers, dinghies, and kayaks. The cost averages €30 for a windsurfer, €38 for a dinghy and €15 for a kayak. They get pretty busy over summer, so call ahead to confirm opening times, and the hours during which equipment may be hired. If you fancy hitting the waves a bit harder stop by Jet Ski Hire on New Bridge (tel. 088/278-2430).

Whale-Watching

Whale-watching is a popular activity in summer, and one of the best companies is Whale of a Time (tel. 086/328-3250; www.whaleofatime.ie), which uses rigid inflatable boats to cause less disruption to the creatures of the deep. Prices start from €35 to €70 per person. They also offer dolphin watching trips in Cork Harbour for €35 per person. Kinsale Deep Sea Angling also offers dolphin-, whale-, and seal-watching trips, as does Angling Kinsale (tel. 021/477-8054; www.anglingkinsale.com).