Experience the Invention of Irish Coffee at the Flying Boat Museum

The Foynes Flying Boat Museum in Foynes, County Limerick, Ireland keeps getting better. The first time we visited the museum in 1996, we went looking for a Flying Boat. While we did not find one there at the time, we found a wealth of history and original newsreels and memorabilia that made us want to come back for the Irish Coffee Festival later that year. After all, we found out on our visit, Irish Coffee was indeed invented there. We continued to visit the museum every year and some time later, we got our wish, we were able to board a replica of the Pan Am Flying Boat and truly experience what the passengers had on a flight across the Atlantic.

Well, the museum hasn't stopped there. You can now also relive the night Irish Coffee was invented, by entering a room where you will see chef, Joe Sheridan invent the drink. This is a very innovative holographic experience. It was a cold night in 1943 when one of the flying boats had to turn back to Ireland after several hours of flight towards Botwood, Newfoundland. The staff returns to the terminal to be ready for the arrival of the passengers. Joe Sheridan is approached to make a special drink to warm them. You are there, like a fly on the wall, to witness the invention of Irish Coffee! And after you view history in the making, you can experience it, in a recreation of the original airport restaurant where Irish Coffee is now served everyday.

So if you are visiting Ireland, make this a must see stop. I'm told that the museum is has more surprised in store for the future. Work is now being done on the original tower and there will be more to see in the years ahead. So if you have been there before, it's time to revisit. If you have never been, what are you waiting for?