Strandhill People's Christmas market the Wild Way

It is that time of the year again, the Strandhill People's Christmas Market (SPM) is on again during the weekends.
There is the night market on Friday evenings (December 16th : 6pm to 10pm) and the day markets (December 17th & 18th : 11am to 4pm).

You can drive up to Strandhill airport and park at the large terminal carpark or you can go the scenic route.

We opted for the scenic route. Park the car along the promenade in Strandhill village and walk towards the Strandhill surf school. 
This is the start of the Killaspugbrone loop, a scenic walk in Strandhill.
Follow the path through the dunes following the signposts with purple arrows guiding you in the right direction.
The views across the Atlantic are amazing this time of year and the kids will love this route through the dunes where they can go wild and run around.

Ones you reach the treatment plant, turn right and follow the traffic free road towards the airport. The only thing missing on the day was a star above the SPM guiding us towards it, just like the three kings.
Ones we arrived, the atmosphere was electric. The market has expanded again and there are now little wooden chalets outside the hangar, also selling all sorts of Christmas goodies.

First things first, a hot gluhwein from Cyril & Paula's Catering got us warmed up, hot chocolate drinks for the kids from Driftwood Coffee Cart.

Inside the hangar, there is a real Christmas atmosphere. A large Christmas tree is hanging from the ceiling, there are loads of lights, decorations,...
Inside, you can find food stalls, stalls selling toys, crafts, dog/cat pressies , honey, .... . The market is a must visit to sample the Christmas atmosphere, the local products, sand just bump into old friends.... 

 Afterwards, we headed back through the dunes towards Strandhill village with views towards the Ox Mountains. 
If you decide to travel from further away, there are plenty of options to make your visit to Strandhill into a day trip. Start off the day with breakfast at Shells Cafe, head afterwards for a relaxing seaweed bath in Voya Seaweed baths ( http://www.voyaseaweedbaths.com/ ) followed by your walk/visit to the Strandhill people's Christmas market.
To tired to drive back, check into Strandhill lodge and suites (  http://strandhilllodgeandsuites.ie/  ) or book your own place ( https://www.airbnb.ie/rooms/20080230​ ) and have a great nights sleep.