Electric Picnic, indoor pubs and crowds at Croke Park could all be back this summer with trial gigs on the cards as early as June.
Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said he has not ruled out the return of major music festivals in 2021, citing that it will ultimately depend on the vaccine rollout.
He added that he would like to think fans could get back to GAA matches at the All Ireland final in the autumn.
He said he is hopeful that certain sectors that are higher risk may return once variants aren't of concern and there is a high uptake of vaccines.
Electric Picnic
Electric Picnic bosses are hopeful that the festival could go ahead as normal later this summer.
The festival is due to take place from September 3rd to 5th, and hope is emerging that the outdoor event could return for the first time since 2019.
Organiser Melvin Benn told Morning Ireland on RTE Radio One that he can see "no reason" why it couldn't be a normal festival.
Mr Benn noted that Ireland is "four or five weeks behind the UK in terms of planning", but he added: "I can see no reason why the government won't say you can be back to normal by August."
Dr Tony Holohan on Monday shared an encouraging summer update as he suggested more restrictions could be eased in the coming months.
On whether Electric Picnic could go ahead in September, Dr Holohan told Bryan Dobson on RTE Radio One: "We're getting ahead to be making an absolute prediction about that.
"But I'd like to think that if we found ourselves in a situation where we had really good progress with the vaccine, where we didn't run into any difficulties in relation to variants and so on, that some of the things that are not now possible, including outdoor events [like Electric Picnic], might be things we can think about."
Indoor dining at pubs
Outdoor dining at pubs and restaurants is currently targeted for June 7, but no decisions on larger events and indoor dining have been made.
The Chief Medical Officer said there were reasons to be hopeful as the pace of the vaccine rollout continues to accelerate.
And he hinted that further changes could be on the way later this summer, including decision on outdoor events and festivals.
Fans back at GAA games
Fans could get back to GAA matches by autumn.
Minister of State for Sport Jack Chambers said trials to bring spectators back to sports venues will begin as soon as the start of July with special public health provisions including possible antigen testing and/or PCR testing for match goers.
Personalised ticketing, mask-wearing and staggered entry and exit for all fans are being considered to make it as safe as possible.
The Minister confirmed that these test events would be in "early July" and that if they worked out well capacity could be expanded upwards over the summer.
Travel abroad
The EU is also set to confirm details on its Covid-19 vaccination certificate by the end of June this year, which will provide people with proof that they are fully vaccinated or have recently had a negative Covid-19 test or recently recovered from the disease.
The Certificate will be required to travel within the EU.
