Sights and landmarks in Kilkenny

Sights and landmarks in Kilkenny

1. See

   National Reptile Zoo

   Crocodiles, snakes and giant lizards lick their lips as they await visiting youngsters.

   Daily 10AM-6PM·Adult €16, child €13.50

2. See

   St Canice's Church

   This Roman Catholic church has a fine facade and was built by 1827.

3. See Not mapped

   Black Abbey

   Founded in 1225, this impressive Dominican Abbey became a courthouse after the Dissolution then was wrecked by Cromwell. It was rebuilt from 1866 and remains an active Roman Catholic church, with beautiful stained glass windows. It was built just outside the city walls so it could serve both the Anglo-Norman and the Irish districts. Some 200 m east along Abbey St / Sráid Na Mainistreach is Black Freren Gate, the last surviving gate of those walls.

   Free

4. See Not mapped

   Church of St John the Evangelist

   Ornate Roman Catholic church in Gothic Revival style, completed in 1908. It has a soaring interior but the frontage is curiously stubby, as the tower never acquired its intended second stage and spire.

   Daily 8AM-6PM

5. See Not mapped

   County Hall

   This seven-bay, three-storey Georgian building was built in 1782 as a school. It suffered a fire in 1980, so the school moved away and since 1994 this has been the county admin offices. Just admire the exterior unless you're here to lodge a planning application or complain about the rubbish bin collections.

6. See Not mapped

   Dunmore Cave

   Show cave in an outcrop of Lower Carboniferous limestone, about 400 m in extent and descending 46 m. It's richly decorated with calcite formations, the most ornate being the 6 m "Market Cross". By guided tour only. The cave was the site of a massacre by the Vikings in 928 AD, according to The Annals of the Four Masters written 700 years later. Many human remains have indeed been found here, mostly women and children, plus a hoard of silver and bronze dated to 970 AD.

   Wed-Sun 9:30AM-5PM·Adult €5, conc €4, child €3

7. See Not mapped

   Jenkinstown Park

   The forested park is a nice place for a walk or a picnic; it's muddy after wet weather and the deer expect to be fed. In April the forest is carpeted by bluebells. It was laid out in the 1870s as the grounds of the Bryan-Bellew Estate, and some original trees survive. Most of the castle has been demolished, but a few scraps remain, with some remnants incorporated into a modern mansion. Thomas Moore (1779-1852) wrote the poem The Last Rose of Summer while staying at Jenkinstown House in 1805. This was the forerunner of a wave of traditional Irish melodies given English lyrics, as popular as it was maudlin, with dozens of settings, literary references and translations. Japanese schoolchildren dutifully learned it as Niwa-no-Chigusa (庭の千草), "The Plants in the Garden".

   Car park daily 9:30AM-5PM·Free

8. See Not mapped

   Kells Priory

   This Augustinian Priory founded in 1193 is one of the most intact in Ireland, not least because it was fortified with stout walls and towers after two or three destructions. Most of the remains are within the inner monastic precinct; beyond, Burgess Court is the walled field which today holds sheep, as it probably did back then. There's parking right by the priory but it's more attractive to approach along the riverside from Mullin's Mills. This isn't the place with the beautifully decorated Book of Kells — that's in County Meath and the Book is in TCD Library, Dublin. "Kells" or "Kil-" indicates the cell or abode of a monk, which would later become the site of a church and settlement, so it's a common placename.

   24 hours·Free

9. See Not mapped

   Kilkenny Castle

   Splendid Norman castle, built from 1195 to control the river ford, and the powerbase of the Butler dynasty. It was restored in the 19th century so the interiors are mostly Victorian. You can self-tour or join the guided tour.

   Daily 9:30AM-5PM·Self-tour adult €8, conc €6, child €4

10. See Not mapped

    Maudlin Tower

    This tall tower was built in the early 16th century to guard a hospital, founded circa 1327 a little distance from the city. There were high walls and gated access to keep patients in and the hoi-polloi out, because this was a leper-hospital. Leprosy, now called Hansen's disease, did (and still does) occur in Ireland but the term was a catch-all for any disfiguring and potentially contagious chronic disease. The biggest threat was Black Death (plague) but that killed swiftly. So you might find yourself cooped up here with a bad bout of scabies, psoriasis or syphilis. Some inmates enjoyed rich furnishings and diet, and perhaps were members of important families who'd become embarrassing in their dotage. The hospital had its own farm, and was associated with St John's Priory, but abandoned at the Dissolution. The tower is well-preserved but there's no interior access, and the rest of the hospital has gone.

11. See Not mapped

    Medieval Mile Museum

    Modern museum within the former St Mary's Church, built 1205, displaying medieval / Renaissance sculpture and tombs.

    Daily 9:30AM-5PM·Adult €7, conc €6, child €3

12. See Not mapped

    National Design & Craft Centre

    DCCI Gallery

    Craft gallery within the elegant former stables of the castle, built 1800. Rotating exhibitions, they don't have a permanent collection. The stables block also houses a food hall and restaurant.

    Tue-Sat 10AM-5:30PM·Free

13. See Not mapped

    Rothe House

    Tudor merchant's home built between 1594 and 1610. It comprises three houses, three cobbled courtyards and a half-acre restored Tudor garden. It stands on a "burgage plot," a long narrow strip of rented land, and houses Kilkenny Archaeological Society's history museum and archive library.

    May-Sep daily, Oct-Apr Tue-Sun 10AM-6PM·Self tour adult €8.50, conc €7.50, child €4

14. See Not mapped

    Smithwick's Experience

    Guided tour of the former brewery. It may have been Ireland's first, as Franciscan monks brewed here from 1221 to 1537 when the monastery was dissolved (no, not in the beer). John Smithwick founded his brewery here in 1705, but his ownership had to be kept quiet until 1782 when Catholics were again allowed to own property. It remained a family firm until 1964 then was taken over by Guinness, now part of Diageo, and other beers in their range were for a time brewed here. The brewery closed in 2013 and became the council offices and courtrooms, but a small part of it has been turned into this visitor centre. Smithwick's Ales are nowadays brewed in Dublin.

    Daily Mar-Oct 10AM-6PM, Nov-Feb 11AM-5PM·Adult €20, child €10

15. See Not mapped

    St Canice's Cathedral & Round Tower

    This was built as a catholic cathedral, caved in and was rebuilt in the 13th century, but the 9th-century Round Tower indicates its much longer history. It's Ireland's second-largest church, surpassed only by Dublin's St Patrick's, of similar date and style. Cromwell trashed it through force of habit and used it as stables for his horses, but it was rebuilt from the 19th century, retaining many medieval features, and is nowadays Anglican. The tower, outside in the graveyard, can be ascended by adults up steep ladders.

    Mon-Sat 10AM-5PM plus May-Sep Sun 1-6PM·Tower adult €16

16. See Not mapped

    St John's Priory

    The abbey or priory was founded in 1220 by the Augustinians, with the Lady Chapel added in 1290. They must have been a colourful bunch, experiencing jail, excommunication and structural collapse long before the Dissolution. The priory fell derelict in the 18th century, and much of it was demolished in 1780, with the stone re-cycled into a barracks. The Church of Ireland (Protestant) took over the site in 1817, re-roofed the Lady Chapel and created a parish church, which remains active. In the grounds are the ruins of the 13th century former chapel, with tombs and carvings.

17. See Not mapped

    St Mary's Cathedral

    This is the Roman Catholic cathedral for the city, built 1842-57 in limestone in English Gothic style. It's at the highest point in the city so its tower is a prominent landmark.

18. See Not mapped

    Tholsel

    This arcaded structure built in 1761 is the town hall. Look out for the city's coat of arms over the lowest arch. A tholsel was a tolls hall, a mix of tax collection, courtroom, guildhall and city chambers. They're almost unique to Ireland and only a handful are intact.

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Kilkenny (CC BY-SA 4.0).