Three of the sixteen sites here sit inside the medieval city and can be walked between in an afternoon. St Canice’s Cathedral gave Kilkenny its name and keeps Butler tombs, Harry Clarke glass and a 30m round tower that is one of only three in Ireland you can climb. The Black Abbey has been Dominican since 1225 and is still a working parish church, so the Rosary Window is free to see but off limits to visitors during Mass. Rothe House on Parliament Street runs three linked merchant townhouses back towards the old town wall.
The rest follow the river valleys. Jerpoint Abbey lies 2.5 km south-west of Thomastown, its carved cloister a short drive from Belmore House and the grassy plots of lost Newtown Jerpoint. Kells Priory, with seven tower houses around a three-acre riverside enclosure, is free and open at any hour; Kilree’s round tower stands in a farm field across the road, reached over private land. East on the Barrow, Duiske Abbey anchors Graiguenamanagh.
The prehistoric sites are scattered and each needs its own drive: Kilmogue’s 60-tonne capstone near Mullinavat, the twin-solstice tomb at Knockroe above the Lingaun, the Ballyboodan ogham slab south of Knocktopher. These are field monuments with stiles and wet grass, so boots earn their keep outside high summer.
Ireland's second-largest medieval cathedral, holding Butler tombs and Harry Clarke glass, beside one of only three round towers in the country you can climb.
A Cistercian ruin in the Nore valley whose 15th-century cloister carries carved knights and grotesques where the order's own rules called for plain stone.
Seven stone tower houses ring three riverside acres, one of the largest medieval monastic enclosures in Ireland, free to enter and open around the clock.
A Dominican priory of 1225 still serving as a parish church, with the largest stained-glass window in Ireland filling its south transept.
The only complete burgage plot left in Ireland, three merchant townhouses of 1594 to 1610 with a museum and a restored half-acre garden.
16 of 16 shown — tap a pin for the place.
Kilkenny City, kilkenny
Ireland's second-largest medieval cathedral after St Patrick's in Dublin, and the building that gave Kilkenny its name. Beside it stands a 30m round tower – one of only three you can climb in the country – and inside are Butler dynasty tombs, Harry Clarke glass and a scale model of the city as it stood in 1642.
2.5 km south-west of Thomastown, kilkenny
Jerpoint is one of Ireland’s best-preserved Cistercian abbeys, and its 15th-century cloister breaks the order’s own rules – the pillars are crowded with carved knights, grotesques and courtly figures where austere plain stone was the norm. Set in the River Nore valley outside Thomastown, it comes with a free guided tour and a treasure hunt for children.
Kells, kilkenny
An Augustinian foundation of 1193 that grew battlements after being burned three times, Kells Priory ranks among the largest medieval monastic enclosures in Ireland. Seven stone tower houses ring a three-acre riverside site, free to enter and open around the clock, with a self-guided QR audio tour.
Kilkenny, kilkenny
The Black Abbey has been a Dominican priory in Kilkenny since 1225, and unlike most medieval Irish abbeys it is still a working parish church. Its south transept holds the Rosary Window, the largest stained-glass window in Ireland at roughly 45 square metres, made in Munich in 1892. Entry is free, but it closes to tourists during Mass.
Kilkenny, kilkenny
Rothe House on Parliament Street is the only complete burgage plot left in Ireland – three linked townhouses that a merchant family built between 1594 and 1610, running back from the street to the old town wall. Inside are a 2,500-object museum and a restored half-acre garden.
Thomastown, kilkenny
Belmore House is a 1790s hunting lodge by the architect Sir Richard Morrison, but the draw is what lies beyond it. Newtown Jerpoint is a medieval town reduced to grassy burgage plots and a ruined church, whose graveyard holds a 14th-century effigy that local lore claims marks the grave of St Nicholas.
Graiguenamanagh, kilkenny
Duiske Abbey, the largest Cistercian monastery church in Ireland, has anchored Graiguenamanagh since 1204. The town wraps around it on the River Barrow, with a flat towpath south to St Mullins and the steep pull up Brandon Hill for anyone who wants the legs stretched.
kilkenny
Kilmogue Portal Tomb, also known as Leac an Scail, is one of the largest and most impressive megalithic monuments in Ireland. The massive capstone weighs an estimated 60 tonnes and sits atop three upright stones, dating back to the Neolithic period. Located in a field near Mullinavat, it's a short walk from the road but requires crossing a stile – worth the detour for anyone interested in Ireland's prehistoric past.
Knockroe, kilkenny
One of the few Irish tombs aligned to both the winter-solstice sunrise and sunset, Knockroe – locally The Caiseal – sits on a ridge above the Lingaun River near Carrick-on-Suir. Its eastern chamber catches the dawn on 21 December and the western the setting sun, and around thirty of its stones carry Neolithic spirals and cup-marks.
Aghaviller, kilkenny
South of Knocktopher, kilkenny
Graiguenamanagh, kilkenny
Grangefertagh, kilkenny
Kells, kilkenny
Kilmoganny, kilkenny
Tullaherin, kilkenny
← All things to do in County Kilkenny
Book tours & tickets
We may earn a commission if you book through this link, at no extra cost to you.
Book tours, skip-the-line tickets and day trips with GetYourGuide. Free cancellation on most experiences.
See tours & tickets in County Kilkenny →