Skellig Michael
Several films and documentaries have used the island as a filming location. The island was used as a location for Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019). It also served as a location for the final scene in Heart of Glass by Werner Herzog. In the first episode of the 1969 BBC documentary Civilisation: A Personal View by Kenneth Clark, the art historian Kenneth Clark described the island's buildings and pathways as "an extraordinary achievement of courage and tenacity". He observed that "Looking back from the great civilizations of twelfth-century France or seventeenth-century Rome, it is hard to believe, that for quite a long time – almost a hundred years – western Christianity survived by clinging to places like Skellig Michael, a pinnacle of rock eighteen miles from the Irish coast, rising 700 feet [210 m] out of the sea."
Skellig Michael contains three landing points variously used by monks depending on the weather conditions. Today the island receives an average of 11,000 visitors per year. To protect the site, the Office of Public Works limits the number of visitors to 180 per day. The local climate and exposed terrain makes crossing from the mainland to Skellig Michael difficult. Once landed, the island's terrain is steep, unprotected and dangerous. The rock is ascended via 600 medieval stone steps leading towards the main island peak.
Your notes (private)
What's on your mind? (you can type here notes just for you and they will show on your dashboard)
Information for getting there
When someday comes you'll need to get in.
Information for getting around
When someday comes you'll need to be able to get around.
Your tips and questions
Let us know your best tips about Skellig Michael.
