Dennis Chu and his family take a side trip to seaside Kinsale to soak up Irish hospitality and discover this seaside outpost is the country's culinary capital.

Amy Laughinghouse visits Belfast and finds Northern Ireland's once troubled city has become the talk of Europe, with colourful festivals, street art and a vibrant nightlife.

CONG, IRELAND - When the car in which we are passengers reaches a point on the winding country road where fairytale Ashford Castle and its Lough Corrib backdrop come into view, the breathtaking panorama prompts us to simultaneously blurt out: “Oh my God!”

DUBLIN - There are many colourful stories and tales about when and why the doors of this city’s lovely Georgian townhomes began to be painted a myriad of vibrant colours, but the one I like most involves two of Dublin’s eccentric writers, George Moore and Oliver St John Gogarty.

DUBLIN - My long held suspicions are now confirmed after a recent trip to Northwest Ireland — it’s my favourite golf destination in the world.

BUSHMILLS, NORTHERN IRELAND - On a cold, blustery October day, with a raw wind whipping off the North Atlantic, I arrive at the entrance to the famed Giant’s Causeway.

GALWAY, IRELAND - An old man flashed a toothless smile and offered to help solve my dilemma - what to order from the luncheon menu at McDonagh's fish and chip shop.

KILLYBEGS, IRELAND - The people we met while eating lunch in this neat little seaport town, where the fish we were enjoying came off one of the trawlers tied up at the busy dock just a few hours earlier, told us the history of Killybegs.

GLENDALOUGH, IRELAND - You don’t have to go far in Ireland to see ancient ruins

ENNISKERRY, IRELAND - A little West Highland Terrier greeted us at the entrance of Powerscourt with a chorus of barks. “Don’t mind Muffy,” said a lady chasing after the little white terror. “She won’t hurt you – she’ll just bark you to death.”