Why Ireland Makes the Perfect Romance Setting

When I was writing my debut novel, The Half of It, I knew I wanted it to be set in Ireland. Not only did it suit the storyline (a lot of US citizens have Irish heritage, so it made sense that Juniper found long-lost family there), but I loved the location, too.

Ireland was the last place I visited before the world shut down due to Covid. I was actually in Ireland when the US travel ban was announced, and I feared I might not get home (luckily, I made it home without issues or delays). So as I sat at home, no longer doing any travel journalism due to the pandemic, the trip that was fresh in my mind was Ireland.

I’m not the only person in the world who finds Ireland to be a deeply romantic place. The country is just irresistible—cozy countryside cottages, a thriving live music scene of talented musicians, moody coastlines that make you feel like you’re on the edge of the world…and, yes, the Irish accent. 😮‍💨 It’s no surprise there are plenty of romance books set in Ireland, and Leap Year is a fan favorite of a film. Ireland is everything you could want in a romance book setting.

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I feel like Ireland inspires such a sense of adventure. The cities offer so much to explore—little alleyways and lively neighborhoods are just around the corner, if you’re willing to wander without a destination in mind. In the countryside, you will drive around and find scenery that doesn’t even look real. Dramatic valleys, winding roads, windswept cliffs, babbling brooks running under stone bridges, adorable sheep, and breathtaking outcroppings to take it all in. Of course, there are incredible sights to see—Cliffs of Moher, anyone? But some of my favorite memories from Ireland were when my husband and I left the hotel, hopped in the car, and only had a vague idea of where we were going.

That room for serendipity is what makes a place romantic. The thought that “anything can happen” means that you might not know what will come next, and that’s part of the fun. Maybe you’re walking down the street and hear some live music, so you pop into the pub and listen. Maybe a server in a restaurant recommends a particular route to you for your travels the next day, and you do it—and it ends up being your favorite part of the trip. Maybe you get caught in a rainstorm and your car blows a tire, so you stay at a countryside B&B with your half sister’s best guy friend. (okay, I’ll admit that one’s oddly specific 😂)

Ireland was made for yearning. Think of dark, gray clouds, drizzly rain coming down, waves crashing against jagged cliffs, and wide stretches of green—there’s something melancholic yet beautiful about it. It’s not always cheery and bright; instead, it is varied and fresh, and you will find yourself falling in love with every version of it that you encounter.

As much as I love the landscape, though, Ireland is also such a cozy place that makes time inside so enticing. The weather isn’t always sunny and nice there, and it just begs for you to sit down in a pub and have a pint, go to a mom-and-pop restaurant for some local food, or wander the halls of a library. The grand romance of the country is paired with these intimate, indoor moments as rain drips down the windows and a fire roars in the fireplace.

And we just have to take a moment to appreciate Irish men. Yes, the accent is swoony. But as someone who likes writing men who are down bad—deep down wondering if they’re even worthy of the woman they desire, almost to the point that it’s pathetic—there’s something about the Irish romantic hero that really nails that vibe (and I promise, I mean that in the most loving way!). I suspect it’s the combination of charm, self-deprecating humor, and a bit of emotional earnestness. Give me an Irish MMC quietly pining for a woman while making jokes at his own expense, and I am all in.

I would return to Ireland again in a heartbeat—in fact, I hope to someday soon. Who knows? Maybe I’ll even return to Ballygrá in the pages of a new book (!). Because, ultimately, writing about that gorgeous, wonderful, awe-inspiring country got me through a challenging time. At a moment when the world had shut down and travel suddenly felt impossibly far away, I got to return to the last place I’d visited. I went back to Ireland, a place I love dearly, the only way I could: through the pages of my own book.