20 Attractions to Explore Near Shankill Castle

This church is a wonderful building, which was built in the late thirteenth century as a collegiate church and was served by a college - clerics who lived in a community but did not submit to the rule of a monastery. This rectangular church has undergone many changes over the years. The original chancel was removed and replaced by a 19th century Parish Church, the superb central tower was vastly modified in the 14th or 15th century and the crenellations were added to the church.

Ballymoon Castle is a National Monument situated 2 miles east of Muine Bheag, County Carlow, Ireland. The castle is thought to date from the 13th century. It comprises a courtyard about 80 feet square, surrounded by granite walls, 8 feet thick and 20 feet high. Square towers project from three sides while a formidable gatehouse is the feature of the fourth.

Ballyloughan Castle was probably built in the 13th century and consisted of a large open courtyard with a curtain wall and a moat outside. Only a small square tower at one corner survives, as well as the entrance gate, flanked by two large rounded towers. The tower in the north-eastern corner was abandoned in the 14th century, and the whole castle may even have been abandoned at this time.

Clara Castle is a tower house located in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It was built in the sixteenth century by the Shorthall family. It is five storeys tall with a vault above the third floor. The building retains many of its original oak doors and floor beams. There is a murder-hole above the entrance, which is also protected by a yett and drawbar.

Milford Mills is an 18th-century watermill which sits on the banks of the River Barrow at Milford, County Carlow. Originally built as a flour mill and malting house, it was later employed as a hydroelectric power station. Originally the mill consisted of three large buildings, two for grinding wheat and corn and the third for malting barley. The fire in the 1860s left just the malting house extant. The main mill is an eleven-bay 7 storey structure, and has a crenellated parapet.

The Nore Valley Way is a long-distance trail under development in County Kilkenny. It is designated as a National Waymarked Trail by the National Trails Office of the Irish Sports Council and is managed by Trail Kilkenny. Two stages are open at present: the first from Kilkenny to Bennettsbridge and the second from Thomastown to Inistioge.

Slievebawn is a Hill in County Roscommon, Ireland. It lies between Strokestown and Ballyleague. It is the third-highest point in the county, after Kilronan Mountain and Seltannasaggart. A good viewpoint and also a nice trekking destination.

Famine Memorial Garden is a garden in Kilkenny. It is situated northwest of Sionhermitage, close to John and Patrick Saul Memorial. It has has four parts: the potato field, the Famine kitchen, the workhouse door and the emigrant ship.The memorial builds on work done by a local cross-community group in restoring a Famine graveyard nearby and followed the earlier creation in 2010 of a Garden of the Celtic Saints at the church.

This 16th century tower house stands on Maudlin Street, was part of a leper hospital that may have existed here as early as the 12th century. The four storey tower house is 25 metres high with a stair turret on the south side. The hospital also served as a "retirement home" for rich families like the Rothes, Langtons and Shees. Archaeological digs on the street indicate a diet of beef, mutton, bacon and wildfowl.

This beautiful Kilkenny Castle Parkland boasts both formal and informal gardens. Set in Kilkenny City, the estate overlooks the Nore River and includes mature trees and shrubs as well as an ornamental lake. It includes all the walled demesne parkland to the south of Kilkenny Castle and the formal terraced gardens to the north comprising a total of 50 acres. Today it is open to visitors all year round and is largely a Victorian remodelling of the thirteenth century defensive Castle.

A beautiful example of a romantic era garden dating from the 1790s. Untouched for 200 years, it is a picturesque paradise with a waterfall tumbling its way to a rushing stream and woodland paths leading to a cottage orné. Tiny bridges sit among ancient trees, wild fox-gloves, ferns and other historically correct 18th century planting.The garden is listed as an Irish Heritage garden and was awarded assistance in 1993 by the European Union Cultural Commission.

The River Dinan, is a river in Ireland, flowing through County Kilkenny and County Laois. It rises in the southeast corner of County Laois, flowing westwards under the N78 at Ormond Bridge. It is also home to many white trout, as recorded by Tim Pat Coogan in his memoir.

This is a medieval Augustinian abbey and National Monument located in Kilkenny City, Ireland. The Lady Chapel of the Abbey is now used as a parish church of the Church of Ireland. The roofless remains of the chancel of the old priory church with a seven-light east window. Inside the ruins are late mediaeval tombs including the altar tomb of a Purcell couple with carvings of the Crucifixion and the Apostles.

The Butler Gallery’s new home is in the Evans Home, a former Almshouse. It is a dynamic cultural hub in the middle of Kilkenny, providing a variety of spaces for art, installations & sculpture both inside and out. The gallery, previously based in the basement of Kilkenny Castle, is located in the redeveloped Evans' Home, a former almshouse built in the 19th century for impoverished domestic servants.

Kilkenny Castle is located in Kilkenny City at a strategic location that commands a crossing on the River Nore. The site had previously been the chief residence of the local Gaelic Kings of Osraige before the Norman invasion. It was a symbol of Norman occupation and in its original thirteenth-century condition it would have formed an important element of the defences of the town with four large circular corner towers and a massive ditch, part of which can still be seen today on the Parade.

This is a medieval Franciscan abbey and National Monument. Founded in the 13th century by Richard Marshal, 3rd Earl of Pembroke. It is located in the northeast of Kilkenny's historic Hightown district, behind the old Smithwick's brewery site, immediately south of the point where the Breagagh River enters the Nore.

The Dunmore cave is a limestone cave and it's located at Ballyfoyle, County Kilkenny. It is comprised of a quarter of a mile of passages. At its deepest point, the cave is 150 feet below the ground. The caves are now accessible via stairs and walkways and extensive lighting makes for dramatic and easy viewing of the calcite deposits, plants and animal life.

The former St Mary’s Church has been converted into a modern museum, and is a venue for select events and exhibitions. Designed to enrich the cultural life of the city and provide a new international standard attraction for visitors the museum has several functions: as the starting point for understanding Kilkenny’s medieval history, to display Kilkenny’s Civic Treasures and replicas of some of Ossory High Crosses and to provide a space for temporary exhibitions and cultural events.

The Tholsel in Kilkenny is known as a tax office and was built in 1761. The building consisted of 5 arched arcades which served as a covered marketplace. Originally built to collect taxes, the place was used for many purposes including as a custom office and as a court house.Today the Tholsel is a platform for many exhibitions, street theatre and other cultural activities for which the centre is nicknamed as ‘Kilkenny’s Times Square’.