We have a lovely second home in County Wexford which is on the south east coast of Ireland. It is a beautiful spot; 60min drive from Dublin suburbs and about 90 min drive from Dublin airport. We are five mins walk from the beach (there is a shop by the beach). We are also five minutes' walk from our local pub! There are lots of scenic walks, hill walks for the more active and golf in the area. It is a very peaceful area, although the nearest towns, Arklow and Gorey, 10/15 mins away, have many pubs, restaurants, shopping centres (malls), markets, boutiques and the occasional theatre. The local supermarket is five mins by car.

The area also has cultural and historical interests to suit all tastes. Our house is an excellent base for visiting the many beauty spots in Wicklow : Glendalough (renowned for its Early Medieval monastic settlement founded in the 6th century by St Kevin, a hermit priest), the scenic vale of Avoca, (where the meeting of the two rivers was immortalised in 1808 by the poet Thomas Moore in his song ‘The Meeting of the Waters’,“There is not in the wide world a valley so sweet As the vale in whose bosom the bright waters meet”), many pretty villages, particularly Enniskerry and the nearby Powerscourt Estate, waterfall and Gardens, Mount Usher Gardens.

Travelling south, Wexford county has a lot to offer: The Hook lighthouse, a 13th Century Norman structure, Ferrigcarrig (The Irish National Heritage Park, brings to life the history of life in Ireland since the stone Age. Occupying 25 acres it has 16 archaeological and hisorical reconstructions of prehistoric houses), Johnstown Castle and Irish Agricultural Museum (With one of the most comprehensive displays of farming and rural life in the country), Wexford town itself, founded by the Vikings in 800, the town of New Ross (Dunbrody Famine Ship and Irish Emigration Experience AND Ros Tapestry,Europe's Largest Embroidered Tapestry), Kilmore Quay (a beautiful small fishing village 20km from Wexford town noted for it's white washed thatched cottages and relaxed and friendly atmosphere. from there you can take a ferry to the Saltee Islands,home to hundreds of gannets, puffins, seals, etc)

The house itself: On the ground floor, we have an open-plan kitchen, dining-room and lounge, with an open fireplace and piano. The lounge contains a large screen television (with a huge choice of stations) and DVD player. Also, on the ground floor is the main bathroom with shower and bath and a bedroom with double bed. Upstairs, the large master bedroom, which has a king-size bed, has a great view of the Irish sea, as does the second bedroom, which has three single beds, ideal for kids. The second bathroom is upstairs. The house also has central heating. The patio outside the kitchen is south facing - ideal for eating and enjoying a glass of wine or a beer on a sunny evening.

We have had fifteen exchanges since we joined Intervac in 2007, we have made some good friends - some have come back for more! It has been a great way to see North America, Europe and we have even been as far as Australia.

We have had seven exchanges in Florida and are once again looking for three weeks there next Feb/March (our house is available from late May onwards).