Wander around the town of Letterkenny in Donegal, Ireland, for a while, and you’ll soon spot a painting of a bee. You might even find five. Here’s what’s going on – and where to see all of the Letterkenny bee-themed murals.
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The mural trail, entitled ‘Flight of the Bee,’ spans approximately one kilometre through town. The murals are the work of two artists – Karl Porter (who also painted the famous Derry Girls mural in nearby Derry) and Cairan Dunleavy, an artist who is also a beekeeper!
Why bees, you might ask? I know I did. I was expecting a fantastic Irish yarn about magic bees, or something, but sadly, it wasn’t to be (bee). There’s no local apiarian legend associated with Letterkenny that sparked the theme; instead, the murals aim to highlight the general importance of bees in keeping our world healthy and promoting the protection of bees in Ireland.
Speaking to the Donegal Daily in a 2022 article on the murals, the co-chair of the Letterkenny Tidy Towns committee, Gerard McCormick, said: “The bee trail started with a lady called Maura Kelly who had this vision back in 2020 to promote biodiversity and sustainability. At the heart of biodiversity are bees and flowers. To take bees into public awareness, Maura came up with the idea of a range of murals on a trail. Maura has now moved to Tipperary. She and her husband did a huge amount of work here in Letterkenny and it is great to get this project over the line.”
So, where are the five Letterkenny Bee Murals?
1. Port Road, close to No. 42.
Karl Porter and the team at UV Arts C.I.C. painted this. It was actually the third mural in the series, but the first one I spotted – and if you want to do the murals in a row, it’s a good place to start, so you don’t need to double back on yourself.
If it’s open, stop off for lunch at Nonna’s Italian restaurant, which is nearby. It’s the one place I didn’t manage to get to on my trip that I really wanted to, but it looks so good.
2. Next to McGettigans Hotel
I stayed at McGettigans during my Letterkenny trip and was greeted by this bee in glorious close-up every time
I came down the stairs to the reception. It’s on the side of the Quiet Moment Cafe.
Cairan Dunleavy painted this one, the fourth design to be completed on the Flight of the Bee trail – and it shows the critical role bees have in pollination – note that the bee’s leg is heavy with pollen.
Oh, and by the way, I definitely recommend the McGettigan’s hotel as a place to base yourself in Letterkenny. The staff were absolutely lovely, the rooms are nice and modern, and the shower is fantastic. It’s also steps away from everything in town. Check rooms and rates here.
If they are fully booked, friends I met in Letterkenny stayed at Dillon’s Hotel, a little further south down the main high street, and also highly recommended it. That one doesn’t have a bee on the side though.
The breakfast in the Quiet Moment Cafe isn’t a bad way to start your day, either!
3. On the Corner of Church Lane and Upper Main Street
Church Lane is the entry to the part of Letterkenny called the Cathedral Quarter, and it’s a very pretty little area, with two other murals for you to seek out just a few flaps of a bee’s wings away.
This bee is another Cairan Dunleavy painting, and for this one, he has said he wanted to go in close on the bee and really show the details of how they look.
It’s faded a bit since it was initially painted, when the flower was a much brighter pink.
4. Lower Main Street Near Larkin Street
This was the mural I really wanted to see, as I loved the cow, but I couldn’t find the location listed anywhere, so I decided just to walk around and see if I could find it.
Even then, I nearly missed it. I almost crossed the road just before it – and if that had happened, this post may never have seen the light of day.
It’s painted on the wall by the old Devlin Hall dance hall, which kept the people of Letterkenny entertained (and helped them find husbands and wives!) for many years. The building now houses the Letterkenny Youth Club.
It’s another one of Karl Porter’s three murals.
5. Jim McCormick Memorial Garden
Jim McCormick was a former president of Letterkenny’s Tidy Town committee. He died in 2011, and this garden, opened in his honour in 2015, now features a pretty bee mural on the wall.
The garden isn’t marked on Google maps, so, instead, look for the Century Cinema complex in the south of the town near the river – it’s slightly east of the Station Hotel. The mural is located on the wall just before you reach the cinemas.
This is also by Karl Porter.
The Interlopers
Obviously, a few other street artists in Letterkenny have taken the bee theme and run with it, as you’ll find a few bee murals on the walls of an unoccupied house close to 54 Lower Main Street.
There are a few murals on the empty houses in Letterkenny – I also saw a swan painted on a boarded-up window and a few others around town.
And, although they’re not technically street art, I particularly liked the fake window images added to other empty houses, which show how the house could look inside if someone restored it. I saw these in both Letterkenny and Derry.
Where to Find the Watering Can Man Mural in Letterkenny?
If the bee murals are the most fun and unusual paintings in Letterkenny, the most photographed is probably this fabulous design, which you’ll find on Church Lane in Letterkenny Cathedral Quarter, almost opposite the bee.
Sadly, I couldn’t find the artist’s name online, but if you know, please let me know in the comments so I can give them full credit.
Where to Find the Derry Girls Mural in Derry
As I mentioned, Karl Porter is also the artist behind the large mural of the Derry Girls in Derry, approximately a 45-minute bus ride from Letterkenny.
I stopped off there on my way to Letterkenny to visit this mural – and also the murals related to the Troubles in Ireland, which, as someone who grew up in England in the 1970s, was a fascinating area to explore and made me rethink many things I thought were true.
You’ll find the Derry Girls Mural at 18 Orchard Street in the town. It’s clearly marked on Google Maps. You can also take a Derry Girls tour if you’re a big fan.
And there you have it. My guide to the bee murals of Letterkenny, but definitely keep your eyes peeled for other, less aparian-themed murals around the town.