Walk, swim and hunt all in the open air

For the days following Christmas, here are a few timely outdoor options to consider for those who are staying in Ireland for the last days of the century.

Head For The Hills: It depends on the weather of course, but you can't beat a brisk walk in the hills. Wherever you are in Ireland, you are unlikely to be further than an hour's drive from hills or mountains.

For those with more serious hill-walking intentions, there is an interesting selection of walking festivals. The annual Connemara Four Seasons Walking Festival runs from December 27th to January 3rd. Last minute participants can call Michael Gibbons on (095) 21379 for details. Guided walks costs from £10 per walk.

The Go Ireland Walking into the Millennium Festival in and around Killorglan, Co Kerry, runs this year from December 29th to January 1st. Contact Grainne Gallen at (066) 9762094. Cost: £179 (includes three nights B&B per person sharing, New Year's Eve dinner, slide show and packed lunches). Daytrippers are also welcome.

An Oige walkers are meeting at the O'Connell's Bridge end of Eden Quay, Dublin, at 10.45 a.m. on St Stephen's Day for a walk in the Robertstown area of Co Kildare.

Go To The Races: The race meetings at Leopardstown which are the busiest of the season, begin on St Stephen's Day with the first race at 12.25 p.m. Racing also begins at 12.25 p.m. on Monday and Tuesday and at 12.45 p.m. on Wednesday. Punters are encouraged to go early and enjoy a hearty big breakfast before the betting begins.

The Limerick Races have been cancelled this year. A new track is being built there, so meetings have been spread around to other racecourses. Races at Mallow, Co Cork, go ahead on St Stephen's Day with the first race at 12.30 p.m. The annual one-day meeting on December 27th at Down Royal, Co Down, begins at 1 p.m. Clonmel Races are also on December 27th, beginning at 12.35 p.m. Last but by no means least, Tramore Racecourse claims to be the only racecourse in Britain and Ireland - if not the whole of Europe - to be hosting a race meeting on January 1st, 2000.

Take A Dip: If you are a newcomer, the places to go in Dublin are the Forty Foot in Sandycove (where a few hundred swimmers and onlookers gather every Christmas morning) and in and around the Clontarf Baths area in Clontarf.

Those west of the Shannon have been known to test the temperature of the Atlantic Ocean at Salthill in Galway Bay.

The Shannon and the Grand Canal in Dublin are other, perhaps slightly less cool, alternatives.

Join The Wran Boys' Hunt: The biggest Wran Boys celebrations of all takes place on Sandymount Green, Dublin, from about midday on St Stephen's Day. There, many a disguised politician mixes and mingles with punters using this ancient ritual as an opportunity for much singing, dancing and general merriment.

The other noteworthy place where the wran is hunted is in Dingle, Co Kerry. There, the locals move from pub to pub, telling tales and singing songs from midday to late in the evening.

The Wran Boys' Hunt: Cathal Holland, Mick Lacey and Michael McAuliffe at Sandymount last Christmas.