Cahir Castle
One Of Ireland'S Largest And Best Preserved Castles, Built On A Rock Island In The River Suir From The Thirteenth Century; National Monument In OPW Care, With The Swiss Cottage Nearby · Cahir, Tipperary
Cahir Castle stands on a rock island in the River Suir in the middle of Cahir, a small town in south Tipperary just off the M8 Dublin-Cork motorway. Begun in the thirteenth century and largely rebuilt by the Butlers, Barons of Cahir, in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, it is one of the largest and best-preserved castles in Ireland: a great keep, three wards, high curtain walls and towers, and a portcullis in its original position. It was besieged by the Earl of Essex in 1599, when artillery took it in a few days, and surrendered to Cromwell in 1650 without a fight, which is partly why it survived. It is now an OPW National Monument, and its complete look has made it a film location. People come for the towers, the view from the walls, the short guided tour and the riverside walk to the Swiss Cottage, an ornate thatched cottage of the early 1800s. The honest caveat: the rooms are mostly bare stone rather than furnished, the visit takes about an hour, and many pair it with the Rock of Cashel 20 minutes away.
Castle Street, Cahir, County Tipperary, on an island in the River Suir, just off the M8 Dublin-Cork motorway, Cahir, Tipperary, Ireland
Open all year, daily in most seasons, roughly 09:30 to 17:30-18:30 in summer and about 09:30-16:30 in winter, with last admission about 45 minutes before closing and a few days closed at Christmas (confirm). The Swiss Cottage is open only by guided tour, roughly spring to autumn (confirm season). Cahir is just off the M8, about 2 hours from Dublin and 1 hour 15 minutes from Cork; Expressway coaches on the Dublin-Cork road and a limited train service stop in the town (confirm). No advance booking is usually needed.