Castles of Ireland

Ruined Castles of Ireland Worth Visiting

The best Irish castles are sometimes the ones with no roof, and many of them cost nothing to explore.

Some of the ruined castles of Ireland are better than the restored ones. With no ticket desk between you and the wall, you can see how a castle was actually put together: where the stairs ran, where the arrow loops sit, and where a cannon opened a breach. This guide gathers ruins that are properly worth a detour, and, where we can, says how to get in. Opening seasons change, so confirm on the official site first (Heritage Ireland for the Republic; the Department for Communities for monuments in state care in Northern Ireland).

The dramatic ones

Dunluce Castle, County Antrim. The picture-postcard ruin. It stands on the edge of a basalt outcrop between Portballintrae and Portrush, joined to the mainland by a bridge, with steep drops on either side. Richard Óg de Burgh, 2nd Earl of Ulster, is said to have built the first castle in the 13th century. The McQuillans held it by 1513, and their two drum towers are among the oldest surviving parts. In 1584 Sorley Boy MacDonnell seized it, and guns from the wrecked Armada galleass Girona were set in the gatehouses. The MacDonnells abandoned it after the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. Excavations in 2011 uncovered the remains of the lost town of Dunluce, built around 1608 and razed in 1641. It is a monument in state care and open to the public.

Rock of Dunamase, County Laois. A rock rising 46 metres from the plain near the N80 between Portlaoise and Stradbally, with the Slieve Blooms behind it. People have used the site since at least the 9th century. In 1170 Dermot MacMurrough handed Dunamase and his daughter Aoife to Strongbow, and through Aoife’s daughter it passed to the Marshals and then the Mortimers. It was a ruin by about 1350, and was slighted in 1650. It is a National Monument.

Norman strongholds in ruins and near-ruins

Trim Castle, County Meath. Not a ruin in the sense of roofless rooms, but it is the largest Anglo-Norman fortification in Ireland and stands as an extraordinary shell. Hugh de Lacy and his successors took about thirty years to build it. The three-storey keep has a twenty-sided cruciform plan, and walkways let you look down into it. Guided tours of the keep are offered; check heritageireland.ie for current hours and prices.

Roscommon Castle, County Roscommon. A 13th-century Norman castle in Loughnaneane Park in the town, begun in 1269 by Robert de Ufford. Its quadrangular plan, with D-shaped corner towers and twin gate towers, is still easy to read. The O’Conors held it for nearly two centuries, it was besieged during the Confederate Wars, and Cromwellian forces destroyed its fortifications in 1652. Heritage Ireland lists free admission when open, with a limited summer season of weekends only in 2026.

Abbeys that look like castles

Athassel Priory, County Tipperary. An Augustinian priory near Golden in the Golden Vale, founded under the patronage of William de Burgh, with building from about 1200. It was dissolved in 1537. The nave and the monastic buildings survive, along with a gate-lodge and a bridge approach. Nothing remains of the town that once surrounded it.

Kells Priory, County Kilkenny. About 15 km south of Kilkenny city, founded around 1193 by Geoffrey FitzRobert, a brother-in-law of Strongbow, and dissolved in 1540. In the 15th century an outer enclosure went up, studded with tower houses, which gives the place a fortress look and its local name, the “Seven Castles”. It is a National Monument in the care of the OPW.

Where Ardfinnan sits

Ardfinnan Castle is the opposite case: a Norman castle built by Prince John in 1185 that was slighted after Ireton’s siege in 1650, left partly in ruins, then rebuilt as a country house in the 1840s and again after 1921. It is a private residence, so you cannot go in, but the rock, the bridge over the Suir and the village make a pleasant stop, and it is about 10 km (6 miles) by road south of Cahir. If you are building a route through Tipperary, pair it with Athassel or Cahir.

For ruins that have been fully restored and are easier to visit, see our guide to the best castles in Ireland.

Visiting ruins well

Wear proper shoes: walkways are uneven and handrails few. Do not climb the walls (Heritage Ireland says so at Roscommon), and bear in mind that many ruins sit on farmland or in parks, so close gates behind you. Weather matters too; exposed sites can close at short notice.