Kilkenny Arts Festival
6–15 Aug 2027 (dates to be confirmed) · Kilkenny City
Ten August days of music, theatre and visual art in Kilkenny's medieval streets, churches and castle grounds.
Kilkenny City
Kilkenny keeps its medieval core tight enough to walk in an hour: castle, cathedral and the lanes between them, above the River Nore. Give it a day and a night. The pubs are half the point.
Best sites to see in Kilkenny City
Kilkenny Castle
The Butler family castle above the River Nore, founded in the 12th century and remodelled over centuries, with a large park and guided tours of the restored rooms.
St Canice's Cathedral and Round Tower
The medieval cathedral at the northern end of the city, beside a round tower that visitors can climb for views over Kilkenny.
Medieval Mile Museum
A museum housed in the former St Mary's Church, telling the story of medieval Kilkenny with carved tombs and city treasures.
Rothe House
A 17th-century merchant's townhouse on Parliament Street with restored rooms and gardens, built for the Rothe family.
Where to stand, and when
- John's Bridge over the River Nore: The classic view of Kilkenny Castle above the river is best in morning light.
- Top of St Canice's round tower: Climb on a clear day for a panorama of the castle, cathedral and medieval streets.
- The Parade in front of the castle: Late afternoon light warms the castle's stone frontage across the wide Parade.
Kilkenny City through history
Kilkenny takes its name from the Irish Cill Chainnigh, the church of St Canice, around which the settlement grew.
The Statutes of Kilkenny, laws intended to separate the English and Irish populations, were passed by a parliament held here in 1366.
In the 1640s Kilkenny was the capital of Confederate Ireland, where the Catholic Confederation governed much of the country.
Kilkenny Castle was built under the Norman lord William Marshal in the early 13th century and was the Butler family's main seat for centuries.
Practical tips
- Walk the Medieval Mile, the signed route linking the castle and St Canice's Cathedral through the old city streets.
- Castle tours are popular in summer; book online ahead, while the castle park and grounds are free to wander.
- The round tower climb has steep, narrow steps and limited space at the top, so go early in the day.
Where we would stay in Kilkenny City
Hotel in Kilkenny
Butler House, Kilkenny
Butler House is the Georgian dower house of Kilkenny Castle, on Patrick Street in the middle of town, with gardens that run down towards the castle grounds. It is a small, graceful place to stay, all high ceilings and quiet rooms, and the location could hardly be beaten for a first visit. Travellers rate it 4.5 on TripAdvisor from over 950 reviews and 4.6 on Google, with rooms seen from 184 dollars in aggregator listings (as seen 25 Oct 2026). Breakfast in a house like this, then a stroll through the castle yard, is a fine Kilkenny morning.
Best for: Couples and castle-first visitors. It is a small, quiet house, so anyone after a big hotel with a leisure centre should look elsewhere in the city.
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What's on
What we would choose ourselves
Glendalough, County Wicklow
Day trips from Dublin
Kilkenny, Wicklow and Glendalough Sheepdog Trials from Dublin (Wild Rover Tours)
If you have one day to get out of Dublin, this is the day we would spend. The coach leaves the city for Kilkenny first, with a guided walk through the medieval streets and free time around the castle grounds. Then it is up into the Wicklow Mountains, past the Wicklow Gap, to Glendalough and its 6th century monastic settlement between the two lakes. The finish is a working sheep farm, where border collies move a flock on whistle commands. Ten hours, free cancellation, from US$49.15 a head, rated 4.9 from more than 8,700 reviews, and the farm stop is the part people write home about.
Best for: First-time visitors with one spare day in Dublin. It is a full ten hours with an early start, and the walking takes in old town streets and uneven monastic ground, so it is not the pick for a slow morning or for limited mobility.
Some links on this page are partner links. If you buy through one, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It helps keep this site free, and we only list places and trips we would choose ourselves.