Travel Bag: Carlow’s Autumn Walking Festival returns

Glow in the dark

This October, Ireland's first ever multi-sensory outdoor trail will open in Palmerston House Estate, Johnstown, Co Kildare. Wonderlights is set to occupy a 2km trail within the woodlands adjacent to the manor, all of which will be decorated with giant glowing woodland creatures and Irish folklore heroes, a state-of-the-art water feature and captivating light displays. The event will be wheelchair- and pram-friendly and culminates with a funfair and outdoor Woodland Cafe at the end of the track. Tickets start from €18 for adults and €15 for children with infants under two years going free. For booking and more visit wonderlights.ie.

New openings

This month, the Marriot Hotel Group launches its new creative hotel experience in Dublin 8. The Aloft Hotel features 202 urban-inspired rooms and unparalleled views of Dublin and the Wicklow Mountains from a seventh-floor open terrace. With special features including a

front desk WhatsApp chat, so you can order whatever you need directly from your phone to your room, to its 24-hour Re:Fuel snack bar, this new space is made for the techies in town. Visit marriott.com for more.

Blooming gorgeous: The farm that sells flowers you can eat

---

Guys don’t want to be in a relationship with me. What am I doing wrong?

---

‘Ireland at the present crisis specially needs any ties that will bind her to Great Britain’

---

The Carlow Crawl

Carlow's Autumn Walking Festival returns this October 4th-6th, navigating the county's finest features from the Blackstairs Mountains and River Barrow to the villages of Myshall and Rathanna. The festival caters to all abilities, with intense mountain treks to guided strolls on the agenda all weekend long. Friday kicks off with a night hike from Shannon's Lane, while on Saturday the Borris House Tour held in conjunction with the Carlow Big Houses Festival is set to be a highlight. For details on registration, rules of participation and special accommodation packages, see carlowtourism.com.

Eastern promise

If you've been wondering whether to take the plunge and go all-in for Ireland this October, ITC Sports Travel is offering fully-hosted tours to this year's Rugby World Cup in Japan. The travel operator has a selection of packages, including a quarter-finals package, which covers a four-night trip, guaranteed Category D tickets to quarter-finals one and three of the Rugby World Cup, luxury accommodation and a tour host to ensure you travel and enjoy the events with ease, starting from €2,813 per person. For details on this package and more, see itcsports.co.uk.