People have a lot of good reasons for visiting Ireland. They go there to study history, to immerse themselves in dramatic scenery, and to explore their family roots. They travel there to experience craggy sea coasts, winding rivers, ancient castles, sprawling green farmlands and fascinating cities. But whatever draws travelers to Ireland in the first place, it is almost always the warm-hearted people and the rich and lively culture that most reward their visit and inspire them to return.

Ireland's long legacy of literature, music and folklore threads its way through every aspect of contemporary life's a heritage that is celebrated in festivals, artwork and song practically every day of the year. And who better to introduce visitors to this colorful cultural landscape than the fun-loving locals!

In every city and village across Ireland's green expanse, pubs are the heartbeat of tradition. Much more than a place to have a drink (though, rest assured, the finest Irish libations are on tap!), the local pub is the place to hear music, meet friends and neighbors, share a meal and a pint, argue over favorite sports teams and honor the spirit of famous residents past and present. 

Whether their taste runs to Mary Black or U2, Guinness or Bailey's, Jonathan Swift or W. B. Yeats, hurling or football, visitors soon find themselves listening, laughing, cheering and even dancing alongside the regulars. A few musicians in the house? Bring out the fiddles, the tin whistles, the harp and the bodhran (a traditional drum) and let the jam session begin! A quiet moment? Suddenly all attention is turned to a storyteller unwinding Celtic yarns or a poet reciting Samus Heaney. 

The local pub may have stood in the same spot on a city street for a hundred years or it may be little more than a few small tables and chairs gathered round the fireplace in someone's living room. In Ireland, visitors are more than welcome they are part of the experience. 

But the celebration of Irish culture extends beyond the walls of the nation's public houses. In addition to a dazzling number of music and drama performance spaces and the nation's awe-inspiring collections of art and artifacts in museums, cathedrals, castles and administrative buildings, Ireland is a land of festivals. 

Known locally as fleadhs, festivals honor every aspect of Irish life, including holidays, food, film, music, history, theatre, livestock and literature. Whatever the occasion, festivals are simply an expanded opportunity to share the friendly affections and rivalries that take place in the local pubs. From the annual Londonderry celebration of the Celtic New Year to the crowning of a goat as King Puck at the 400-year-old Puck Fair in Killorglin, there's a festival for every taste and every age. 

Fortunate visitors can tune in to the living sounds of opera (Wexford), jazz (Cork) and of course traditional Irish music at festivals throughout the year. Drama unfolds at venues city-wide during the Dublin Theatre Festival and Fringe Festival. The literary lights shine at the Aspects Literature Festival (Bangor) and the Bloomsday Festival (Dublin). In between the staged performances and the fireworks, festival streets are enlivened by minstrels, impromptu recitals and spontaneous jams in the local pubs. 

The unexpected pleasure of Irish culture is that it's waiting for visitors everywhere they travel. This is where the travel experience becomes personal: not just seeing the Dromoland Castle, but stopping in a local pub and hearing the tales of a farmer whose family has lived nearby for nearly 500 years, or gazing at the fierce Atlantic Ocean crashing against the Cliffs of Moher and then hearing a lilting love song about the place. It's the true color of the green isle: welcome expressed through enduring traditions of friendship, music and storytelling.