The main attraction in Quin, is the ruin of Quin Abbey. The abbey was build on the remains of a Norman Fortress that had stood there in the 13c.  The abbey, which was paid for by local MacNamara clan, took 31 years to be fully constructed, being completed around 1433.

The abbey has a interesting history, having been confiscated by Henry VIII during the English Reformation, who then sold it to a local chieften.  After years of neglect, an attack by a rival chieften, and the subsequent take over by English troops, the abbey was in poor repair.  Eventually the MacNamara clan gained control and a installed new Friars (1641).

However during Cromwell passed though some ten years later he ransacked the building and killed the Friars.  Whilst Friars did return to the abbey they were finally expelled in 1760.  Quin Abbey was finally abandoned in 1820 when the sole guardian of the abbey passed on.

Seisiún na hEireann is an festival of Traditional Irish Music which takes place each year in Quin's four pubs