@JugglingWithEggs @aaron limk is grand, and the hinterland is lovely. Theres thomond park for the sports fans. Ye can go up shannon and see ard na crusha and lough derg. There's bunratty castle as well as king John's. It's lovely out the listowel Road to glin. Adare is worth a visit too, very close by.
Cork has blarney, which is an afternoon out. It's a shame the Crawford gallery is under refurbishment, but glucksman and ucc itself are pretty too and the city has a better buzz than limk imo...