Overview
Hag’s Head is where you see the Cliffs of Moher for free, and usually almost alone. It’s the cliffs’ southernmost point, the headland where the rock weathers into a profile like a woman’s head staring out to sea – the ‘witch’s head’ that gives the place its name. The cliffs here are about 120m high, lower than the 214m wall up at O’Brien’s Tower, but the payoff is the view back: from the tip you look north along the entire 14km run of the cliffs.
This is the antidote to the visitor centre. No turnstile, no coach park, no railings between you and the drop – which is exactly the appeal and exactly the danger. If you want the cliffs without the crowds and you’re sure-footed, this is the end to come to. Just know before you set off that getting here has become genuinely awkward (see below).
The honest bit: access and parking
Two things have changed and the old guides haven’t caught up.
First, the cliff-edge path between Hag’s Head and the visitor centre has been closed since August 2024 for safety works – roughly the 5km southern section. You can still walk out to the headland and Moher Tower from the Liscannor side, but you generally can’t walk the cliff path through to the Cliffs of Moher Experience from here at the moment. The longer northern Coastal Walk towards Doolin stays open. Check the current status on cliffsofmoher.ie before you bank on a through-walk.
Second, parking is a problem. The car park that used to serve the trailhead is closed. Some locals still charge €3–5 to park on private ground near the last house, and reviews are mixed – one visitor reported being locked in for hours. The Moher Sports Field is signed against parking, with towing threatened, and farmers won’t thank you for blocking a gateway or a boreen with a tractor behind it. If you can, skip the car entirely.
The simplest fix: take the bus. Bus Éireann route 350 stops at the Liscannor coach car park, and the free Burren & Cliffs Explorer shuttle runs from 21 May to 20 September 2026 with a Liscannor stop. From there it’s roughly a 1km walk out to the tower.
What’s there
- Moher Tower – a squat Napoleonic-era signal tower, built around 1808 on the site of an older promontory fort called Mothar (the fort the whole cliff range is named after). It’s a roofless stone ruin now, but it’s the focal point of the walk and the best place to take in the cliffs and the sea below.
- The witch’s head and the arch – walk around the point to catch the head-shaped profile from the right angle; there’s a natural sea arch in the headland too.
- The long view – on a clear day you’ll see the Aran Islands out in Galway Bay, the Connemara mountains beyond them, and Loop Head away to the south.
The big seabird colonies – the puffins, guillemots and razorbills the cliffs are known for – are mostly further north on the higher faces near the visitor centre, not here, so come to Hag’s Head for the solitude and the view rather than the birds.
The legend
The headland is named for Mal, a sea-witch (or hag) who, the story goes, fell for the warrior Cú Chulainn and chased him the length of Ireland. He escaped by leaping across the sea stacks like stepping stones; Mal, less nimble, missed her footing and was dashed on the rocks here, leaving her likeness fixed in the cliff. The cliffs’ name, Moher, comes from the old fort; the hag gave her name to its southern point.
Geology
The cliffs are not limestone – that’s the Burren, inland. These are layers of sandstone, siltstone and shale laid down around 320 million years ago at the mouth of an ancient river delta, then cut into sheer faces by the Atlantic. The horizontal banding you can see in the cliff is those river and sea sediments, stacked and exposed.
Practical information
- Cost: Free – there’s no gate or charge to reach the headland. (The Cliffs of Moher Experience to the north charges per person, included in its car-park fee.)
- Getting there: From Liscannor, about a 1km walk to Moher Tower. Bus 350 and the summer Explorer shuttle both stop in Liscannor – the safest bet given the parking situation.
- Underfoot: Uneven ground, loose stone, no barriers and big unguarded drops. Not wheelchair-accessible, and not a place for small children near the edge. Wear proper shoes and stay well back, especially in wind or rain.
- Facilities: None on the headland. The nearest toilets and café are at the Cliffs of Moher Experience; Liscannor village has pubs and places to eat.
Nearby
- Liscannor – the closest village, for food and the trailhead.
- Cliffs of Moher – the main visitor centre and O’Brien’s Tower, 6km north.
- Doolin – trad music and the northern end of the Coastal Walk.
- Loop Head – a quieter cliff-and-lighthouse peninsula south down the coast.
If you’ve a fine evening and a sturdy pair of boots, walk out to Moher Tower for sunset – the light comes from the west, straight onto the cliff faces, and you’ll likely have the place to yourself.