As some of the last of the big music festivals of the summer take place this weekend, more than half a million people are expected to enjoy top-class live entertainment in its various forms.
Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann has continued all week in Letterkenny, Co Donegal, amid heavy rains. But Met Éireann predicts an improvement in the weather for today and tomorrow. The population of the town is set to quadruple with thousands coming from all over the country and beyond.
Performers and music lovers will be encouraged out on to the streets, into the bars and other venues for a celebration of Irish music and culture.
Nearly 20,000 musicians will compete in the fleadh this year. From large céilí bands to solo recitals, the various competition venues in schools, theatres and GAA clubs will be filled with the sounds of flutes, fiddles, uilleann pipes and other instruments.
It is the first time that Letterkenny has hosted the fleadh since it was started in 1951. "We are expecting between 50,000 and 60,000 each day over the weekend which is a lot in a town with a population of 15,000," a spokeswoman said.
"But we have been preparing for a long time and I think we have it right. We would just appeal to everyone to be patient and follow the directions of gardaí and the stewards.
"We have pedestrianised the main street, so we want everyone out enjoying the music in the open air. We are praying for the rain to stop," she said.
Gardaí have a traffic plan with road blocks in place since yesterday evening. The Main Street will remain closed to vehicular traffic until 6am on Monday.
Official campsites have been set up in O'Donnell Park for tents and at the rear of the Clanree Hotel for caravans.
Meanwhile, in Co Dublin, the fifth annual Festival of World Cultures is expecting to attract 160,000 people to Dún Laoghaire.
The festival features 160 acts from 50 countries in 40 venues, with most events free to the public.
Chinese opera, African hip-hop, Latin-American bossa nova, Hollywood pop and much more will be on show, alongside the best in Irish music and song through the likes of John Spillane, Kila and sean-nós singer Iarla Ó Lionaird. Iarnród Éireann has suspended its upgrading work on the Dart line for the weekend to provide a full service for people attending the festival.
The Saw Doctors headline the free O2 concert in the Phoenix Park, which will attract in the region of 100,000 people today.
Also taking the stage will be Charlotte Church, Lemar and 12-year-old Dublin rap artist Krisma.
She will perform her debut single It Ain't Right (For The Kids), which highlights the injustice suffered by children.
Gates open at noon and, while there will be no parking in the Phoenix Park itself, a bus shuttle service will operate from the city centre to the park all day.
It is thought that a big screen will give live updates from Croke Park, where Dublin will be taking on Tyrone in the 82,000 ticket sell-out All-Ireland Football Championship quarter-final replay, starting at 2.30pm today.
With Cork and Kerry playing in the semi-final at GAA headquarters tomorrow, expect big crowds in the capital this weekend.
The Electric Picnic music festival takes place in Stradbally, Co Laois, next weekend.