The Office of Public Works is responsible for the care, maintenance, and operation of Ireland’s most important heritage sites. The list includes historical houses, gardens, historic battle sites and islands of cultural importance. In total the OPW looks after 780 sites. All the sites are an integral part of Ireland’s cultural heritage. The OPW have a duty to conserve the heritage of buildings and monuments in State care while allowing and encouraging the public to visit them. I’ve been lucky to visit a few of these sites cared for by the OPW and I’m sharing with you 5 of the must see OPW sites.
Brú na Bóinne is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Co. Meath. It’s the largest and one of the most important Megalithic sites in Europe, dating to the Neolithic period. The site consists of three large monuments: Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth and 35 smaller mounds. Newgrange is the best known of the monuments and is thought to be older than the pyramids of Giza, and Stonehenge. Newgrange is significant for the winter solstice, where the winter sun enters a roof box, and illuminates the passage and chamber.
Castletown is the largest and most significant Palladian style country house in Ireland. The house is set amongst beautiful 18th century parklands in Celbridge, Co.Kildare. The house was built c.1722 for the speaker of the Irish House of Commons, William Connolly (1662- 1729). The designs of a number of important architects were used, notably Alessandro Gailiei, Sir Edward Lovett Pearce and later Sir William Chambers. The entire estate was sold by the Connolly-Carew family in 1965 to a property developer and in 1967 the house and some parkland were purchased by the Hon. Desmond Guinness. Both Mr Guinness and subsequently the Castletown Foundation, who acquired the house in 1979, devoted considerable effort and resources to maintaining the house and restoring the principal rooms to a high standard. Castletown was transferred to state care on 1 January 1994.
Clonmacnoise is an Early Christian site founded by St. Ciarán in the mid-6th century, on the eastern bank of the River Shannon. The site includes the ruins of a cathedral, seven churches (10th -13th century), two round towers, three high crosses, and the largest collection of Early Christian graveslabs in Western Europe. The original high crosses and a selection of graveslabs are on display in the visitor centre. The long and varied history of Clonmacnoise is recounted in an audiovisual presentation shown in the visitor centre. There are also exhibitions that deals with the flora, fauna and landscape of the region.
The Loughcrew Cairns, also known as the Hills of the Witch, are a group of Neolithic passage tombs dating to 3000 BCE. The tombs are located on three different hills and Cairn T, one of the largest tombs in the complex, is situated on Cairnbane East. Inside this tomb lies a cruciform chamber, a corbelled roof and some of the most beautiful examples of Neolithic art in Ireland. During the Vernal and Autumn Equinox people gather at dawn in Cairn T to watch sunlight enter the chamber and illuminate the inside of the tomb.
The Casino was designed by Sir William Chambers as a pleasure house for James Caulfeild, the 1st Earl of Charlemont. It is one of the finest 18th century neo-classical buildings in Europe. The Casino, meaning “small house”, surprisingly contains 16 finely decorated rooms, endlessly rich in subtlety and design. It is a remarkable building – both in terms of structure and history.
Please check the links for dates and times when these sites are open as some of these sites are only open during the summer season. Have you visited any of these sites? Which ones would you add to the list?
Marteen Lane 
Great list and good resource. Thanks for putting it together and sharing.
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Great list and good resource. Thanks for putting the information together and sharing.
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It is a very interesting article. We will definitely visit these places on our next trip to Ireland. I did not know about such an ancient site as Loughcrew. Thank you for sharing. Ireland is beautiful!
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On our last visit to Ireland our number one attraction was Dunluce Castle. But it is in Norhtern Ireland. We also liked Kilkenny Castle. Kilkenny is a very pretty little town and has so much history!
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Danlace Castle is probably under the National Trust in the UK. I haven’t been there but it must be good if it was your number attraction. Yes Kilkenny is so pretty with lots of history which I love 😊
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It is such important works that organisations like OPW do to protect and care for these heritage sites. When traveling, it is always a shame to see historical sites that have been damaged by excavation, tourism or natural elements. Castletown House looks gorgeous and very well maintained. I would love to visit it, along with some of these other sites.
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It’s so important the work that they do. Castletown House is amazing. I have pictures of the inside but forgot to take pics of the outside 😊
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This is a really interesting post. I hadn’t heard of any of these places before, and it sounds like the OPW do some really important work in protecting and keeping these places open. I would love to check out Brú na Bóinne and Loughcrew Cairns. The neolithic stuff really fascinates me.
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There’s quite a bit of neolithic history in Ireland.
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I’m glad there is an organization that focuses on preserving these great heritage sites for future generations. I’d absolutely love to visit Ireland (only been to the cliffs on a layover) to see some of these places–especially Newgrange! Great info for prospective visitors!
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It’s very important to preserve this type of heritage. There’s so much of Ireland to see.
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I would love to visit the Castletown House. I love visiting places and seeing how people lived back then. It’s so interesting!
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Castletown House is just exquisite!
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Very informative! Also love your image at the top, very pretty 🙂 I’ve only briefly been to Ireland but i can’t wait to go back!
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Thank you Briana ☺My brother designed it for me.
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Very detailed information to keep in mind for future traveling. Thanks for sharing!
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Thanks for putting together this list! Will be sure to reference it when I take another trip to Ireland!
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great information – thanks for sharing
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How informative. Thanks for sharing this detailed list. I’ve been to Ireland only once before briefly and I guess it is time to go back.
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Yes it is time to go back Rosemary 😊
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Heading to Ireland next year, this post is really helpful 🙂
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Glad it was helpful, hope you’ll enjoy your stay here 😊
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Great tips! Will be using this next time i’m in Ireland!
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Great info gathered together in this article. I really want to go back to Ireland and I’ll definitely keep this list in mind. 🙂
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This is an awesome resource!! Very informative!!
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Thank you Laura 😊
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Awesome article!!! Super informative 🙂
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Thank you 😊
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Fantastic resource list here. I been to Ireland a few times but havent come across any of these sights. Hope to be back on the island soon.
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Thank you Danik 😊 Hope you and Claire get a chance to visit some of these 😊
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I have been contemplating visiting Ireland so it’s good to learn about the OPW. There is so much culture. I didn’t realize that some sites predate Giza. That’s fascinating.
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Yes Newgrange predates the pyramids. It’s a very special place 😊
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Hearing of the OPW for the first time. Glad that there is a full fledged organization functioning on preserving the history and heritage. I am planning to go to Ireland soon and making notes or my plans. Looking forward to your next blog post! Cheers
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Great list! I look forward to seeing all theses things on our next trip to Ireland. Thanks for the info!
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All I know of Ireland are Belfast, Dublin, and the Giant Causeway and I’ve only been to the first. I didn’t know there are Neolithic sites!
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Great list of OPW sites. I know very little about Irland. Will have to visit someday to understand their culture and heritage. It’s good that I came across your post and was introduced to OPW sites.
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I need to go back to Ireland and visit some of these sites!
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I would definitely love to visit the Loughcrew site. I am fascinated by ancient sites so it would be a nice stop. I really think that Ireland gets too few tourists compared to how many beautiful places it has to offer.
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You should if you ever get the chance 😊 I should check out the figures for the number of visitors. We get a lot of Americans and British 😊 I wouldn’t like to see our cities getting overwhelmed with tourists like Barcelona and Dubrovnik.
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We love history and archaeology, hence found this post and the sites fascinating. What is of special interest is Brú na Bóinne. The site that dates back to the Neolithic age looks really intriguing. It is indeed great to see the site as a silent testimony to the intellect of Man so way back in time.
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