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Birr Castle

📍 County Offaly, Ireland

4.5 ★★★★½ 3,200 reviews

About

Birr Castle is a castle in the town of Birr in County Offaly, Ireland. It is the home of the 7th Earl of Rosse and his family, and as such the castle is generally not open to the public, though the grounds and gardens of the demesne are publicly accessible, and include a science museum and a café, a reflecting telescope which was the largest in the world for decades and a modern radio telescope.

Getting There

🚌 Bus Éireann

Routes from Dublin and Limerick stop in Birr town

🅿️ Castle Car Park

Free parking inside the demesne gates

🚗 By Car

On the N52, roughly equidistant from Dublin and Limerick (1.5 hrs)

Terrain & Accessibility

♿ Gardens Accessible🌳 120 Acres Gardens🔭 Science Centre

Home to the Parsons family since 1620. The gardens are renowned for rare plants and the Great Telescope (1845). Castle interior not open but the demesne, Science Centre, and treehouse trail are excellent. Mostly flat paths.