Kilkenny is ninety minutes from Dublin on the M9 and it is the best-preserved medieval city in Ireland — a proper walkable one, with the castle at the southern end of the high street and the cathedral at the northern, and everything of interest in the kilometre between them.
The Medieval Mile
Kilkenny Castle. Norman, twelfth century, Butler family seat for nearly six hundred years, sold to the city in 1967 for £50. The parkland behind it is free and enormous.
Rothe House. A Tudor merchant's townhouse from 1594, with three courtyards running back from the street — the standard burgage plot layout, and almost the only surviving example.
The Black Abbey. Dominican, 1225, still in use, with a fourteenth-century stained-glass rose window.
St Canice's Cathedral and Round Tower. The cathedral is thirteenth century. The round tower beside it is ninth, thirty metres tall, and you can climb it — steep ladders, small opening at the top, and the best view in Leinster. Not for anyone uneasy about heights or confined spaces.
Smithwick's Experience. On the site of the brewery that operated there from 1710 until 2013. Ends with a pint, as these things should.
Eating and drinking
Kilkenny punches far above its weight. Kyteler's Inn dates to 1324 and was owned by Alice Kyteler, tried for witchcraft in 1324 and escaped; her servant was burned in her place. Left Bank and Matt the Millers for the evening. For food, the Kilkenny Design Centre courtyard opposite the castle, or any of the restaurants on Patrick Street.
Combining it
Kilkenny pairs naturally with the Rock of Cashel and Cahir Castle, both under an hour west — the three of them make the best inland heritage day in Ireland. We run it as a private day tour from Dublin, and it also works as a scenic routing on a transfer south-west rather than as a return loop.
