Where can Irish people go to see the solar eclipse this summer? 

An eclipse is a highly unusual astronomical event when the moon passes between the sun and the earth, briefly casting the planet into darkness. 

Some eclipses are total, meaning the daytime appears as dark as the night sky. 

Whereas others are partial, meaning the sun is only a little bit obscured. 

This year, parts of Europe will experience a total eclipse on 12th August, meaning two minutes of darkness instead of summer sun. 

On The Claire Byrne Show, travel expert Ed Finn said there are a number of locations Irish people should travelling to if they want to experience the eclipse. 

“We have the path of totality coming down from Greenland,” he explained. 

“Right over Iceland, all across Spain - Bilbao, over to Ibiza, Menorca and Mallorca. 

“It's so close to us.”

A solar eclipse in the United States. Picture by: Alamy.com.

While Greenland is perhaps slightly too far and too cold for most Irish people looking for a summer holiday, Mr Finn said there is a similar alternative only a direct flight away from Dublin. 

“Reykjavik, for example, in Iceland,” Mr Finn said. 

“That's the island with two tectonic plates where you've got like two continents pulling apart. 

“In August, the sun doesn't really set. 

“So, when the eclipse will happen there, it's going to be really dramatic.”

People watch a total solar eclipse at Huntington Beach, on the shore of Lake Erie in the US. Picture by: Alamy.com. 

Alternatively, for those conscious of their carbon footprint, northern Spain can be reached by a direct ferry to Bilbao from Rosslare. 

“La Coruña, which is absolutely a stunning place,” he said. 

“It has a famous 2,000 year old tower there, the Tower of Hercules, which is going back eons. 

“But again, it's on the Atlantic, famous for seafood, La Coruña.” 

Further east, in Spain’s traditional tourist hotspots or the big cities, such as Barcelona and Spain, a partial eclipse will be visible. 

“You won't get the total, full eclipse when you go there,” Mr Finn added. 

“So, you know, a lot of people are hiring cars and driving into the eclipse as well.

“If you flew to Madrid, you could get a train up, you could hire a car, which would be a great one - like the chasing of tornadoes. 

“A lot of people are going to do that.”

One notable advantage to the eclipse, unlike many other holiday activities is that, once you get to where it takes place, watching it won’t cost you a single cent. 

“Wherever you are, you don't have to pay any entrance, you know, wherever you're going to be, it's going to be free,” Mr Finn said. 

“So people camp out, they go camping. 

“There's a lot of things you can do, but the specialist tours, if you want, there'll be a lot of that happening as well.”

Main image: A solar eclipse in the South Pacific in 2009. Picture by: Alamy.com.