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Kilkenny Castle
Preserving more than eight centuries of history within its walls, Kilkenny Castle rises over the Nore River and marks an intersection of several major medieval routes. Although the castle underwent a series of modifications over the ages, it contains three of its original four stone towers, built in 1192 by a Norman invader known to history as "Strongbow." Once a symbol of Norman occupation and a key part of the region's defenses, the castle now attracts thousands of visitors with its extensive gardens and basement art gallery. Also in the basement, the castle kitchen houses a popular tearoom, complete with a Victorian cooking range and rows of pots and plates. To visit Kilkenny Castle on your trip to Kilkenny, use our Kilkenny trip planner.
Tours to Kilkenny Castle
Kilkenny Castle reviews
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Killkenny Castle is quite large and will take some time to see all of the rooms. We could not find and parking close to the castle. However, we did find a garage about 10 minutes away by foot that...
Killkenny Castle is quite large and will take some time to see all of the rooms. We could not find and parking close to the castle. However, we did find a garage about 10 minutes away by foot that... more »
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It was fine but probably not quite worth paying for the inside self-guided tour. Been inside one castle you’ve been inside them all I suppose. But we loved walking around the outside area and some of.... more
It was fine but probably not quite worth paying for the inside self-guided tour. Been inside one castle you’ve been inside them all I suppose. But we loved walking around the outside area and some of.... more »
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Absolutely beautiful castle. We did a guided tour and the guide was phenomenal. Extremely kind, patient, and intelligent. She was fabulous. I highly recommend taking a tour with her as we never would have gotten as much out of it if we didn't go with her. Best decision we made.
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Beautiful castle and grounds. We bought tickets in advance online which is recommended, though there was no line when we arrived anyway (about 11am on a Sunday). We did the self tour and although I’m sure we missed out on a lot of information that a guided tour would provide, I felt we got enough out of the self tour to make it more than worth it. Especially enjoyed the art gallery. Be sure to take the extra time to explore the castle grounds before or after your visit.
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