Ireland: Destinations to watch in 2013

Here's a great New Year's resolution: Travel more. We've looked into the 2013 crystal ball and found destinations to dazzle in the year ahead. Find out why you're invited to the Emerald Isle, how the City by the Bay is making the most of its waterfront, and which country is set to make a dramatic solo debut into the European Union next year.
These 10 picks will inspire your travel adventures and finally give you a New Year's resolution you can stick to. Irish by ancestry or simply in spirit? Then you're invited home for The Gathering Ireland 2013. This yearlong celebration of Ireland and its people includes festivals, concerts, clan gatherings, and special sporting events. With more than 70 million people around the world claiming Irish descent (including 44 million Americans), this is shaping up to be the ultimate family reunion.
An entire year devoted to welcoming travelers is clearly an ideal time to visit. Want to go big? Join the revelry on St. Patrick's Day in Dublin. Ready to sing and dance the night away? Head to the Temple Bar TradFest. Take a more introspective journey and explore the ghost towns that remain as legacies of the diaspora, or trace your own family roots across the rolling hills of the island. Still sporting an Irish name, say, McKenna, Fitzgerald, or Gallagher? Then you can even join one of the clan gatherings that will take place all over the country next year.