20 Attractions to Explore Near Clara Castle

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Nore Valley Walk Trailhead

Nore Valley Walk Trailhead

5.91km from Clara Castle

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.

Famine Memorial Garden

Famine Memorial Garden

6.4km from Clara Castle

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.

Maudlin Castle

Maudlin Castle

6.44km from Clara Castle

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.

Kilkenny Castle Park

Kilkenny Castle Park

6.48km from Clara Castle

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.

St. John's Church of Ireland

St. John's Church of Ireland

6.66km from Clara Castle

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.

Butler Gallery

Butler Gallery

6.74km from Clara Castle

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

Kilkenny Castle

6.81km from Clara Castle

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.

St. Francis Abbey

St. Francis Abbey

6.94km from Clara Castle

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.

St. Mary’s Medieval Mile Museum

St. Mary’s Medieval Mile Museum

6.97km from Clara Castle

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.

Grace's Old Castle

Grace's Old Castle

6.99km from Clara Castle

The Tholsel, Kilkenny

The Tholsel, Kilkenny

7km from Clara Castle

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’.

Rothe House & Garden

Rothe House & Garden

7.05km from Clara Castle

Located in the heart of Kilkenny City and situated at the mid point of the Medieval Mile is one of Irelands true hidden gems. The complex was built by John Rothe Fitz-Piers between 1594–1610 and is made up of three houses, three enclosed courtyards, and a large reconstructed garden with orchard. As a museum, it is accessible to the public. The garden to the rear of the house has been reconstructed to reflect a typical 17th-century garden.

Talbot's Tower

Talbot's Tower

7.12km from Clara Castle

Talbot's Tower is a ruins in Kilkenny, situated west of Sionhermitage. An architectural marvel located in the heart of the Kilkenny and it is now attracted by many tourists.

Black Freren Gate

Black Freren Gate

7.15km from Clara Castle

This is the last remaining gate from the medieval stone walls of Kilkenny, Ireland. This is the only gate from the old Norman city walls still standing, albeit with the help of metal bracing these days. Crumbling sections of the old walls remain throughout the city centre.

Cathedral Church of St Canice & Round Tower

This is an impressive structure that dates back to 1285. Explore the cathedral and climb to the top of the magnificent 30 metre high round tower. The present building dates from the 13th century and is the second longest cathedral in Ireland. The cathedral contains some 16th-century monuments. The architectural style of the cathedral is Early Gothic and is built of limestone.

THE BLACK ABBEY

THE BLACK ABBEY

7.26km from Clara Castle

The Black Abbey of Kilkenny, Ireland, is a Catholic priory of the Dominican Order, dedicated to the Holy and Undivided Trinity. Black Abbey was established in 1225 as one of the first houses of the Dominican Order in Ireland.The history of the Black Abbey is marked by several reversals of fortune under different governments.

Saint Mary's Roman Catholic Cathedral

St Mary's Cathedral is the seat of the Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh. The cathedral has a cruciform plan and its style is described as ‘Early English Gothic’. The design is believed to have been based on Gloucester Cathedral in Gloucester, England. It is situated on the highest point in Kilkenny City and is a significant local landmark.

St. Mary's Collegiate Church Gowran

St. Mary's Collegiate Church Gowran

7.29km from Clara 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.

Shankill Castle

Shankill Castle

9.15km from Clara Castle

An Irish historic house, gardens, café, organic farm and artist's studio in Co. Kilkenny. Take a stroll through the gardens which are deeply soaked in Victorian history. It started as a Butler tower-house near the ruins of an old church.There are remnants of 18th-century lime alles and 19th-century laurel lawns which give you an idea how long the land dates back.

Dunmore Cave

Dunmore Cave

9.77km from Clara Castle

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.

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Clara Castle

Clara Castle

Clara Upper, Clara Castle, Co. Kilkenny, Ireland

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.