Kilkenny Tours - John Comerford walking Tours

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Kilkenny Tours - John Comerford walking Tours

Discover Kilkenny’s rich history, architecture, and hidden gems on a relaxed, flexible walking tour with John – your knowledgeable guide.

Whether you're a history enthusiast or just looking for a memorable stroll, our tours offers something for everyone

11/06/2026

Hidden in plain sight beside the busy streets of Kilkenny lies one of the city’s most fascinating historic spaces. St. Patrick’s Graveyard is all that remains of the medieval parish of St. Patrick, whose church disappeared centuries ago. While the building is gone, the graveyard continues to tell the story of Kilkenny through its weathered tombs, carved memorials, and the generations of families who were laid to rest here.
Among the monuments are some of the finest surviving memorials in the city, including the impressive Archer family altar tomb dating from 1580.

The graveyard became the burial place of many of Kilkenny’s leading merchant families, whose wealth and influence helped shape the medieval city. As you walk among the headstones, you'll also find connections to local writers, political figures, merchants, and clergy, each leaving behind small clues to Kilkenny's past. The inscriptions offer a remarkable glimpse into the lives, loyalties, and beliefs of earlier generations.

There are stories here that span centuries, from medieval merchants to Irish nationalists and even soldiers commemorated by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission following the First World War. It’s a peaceful corner of the city that many visitors pass without realising its significance. Whenever I bring people through this part of Kilkenny, it often sparks some of the most interesting conversations of the day. If you'd like to discover the stories hidden behind places like this, I'd be delighted to welcome you on one of my walking tours.

04/06/2026

Just a short drive from Kilkenny, the village of Freshford holds one of the most remarkable early Christian sites in the county. St. Lachtain's Church stands on ground associated with a monastic settlement founded in the 7th century by St. Lachtain, an important figure in the early church of Ossory. For well over a thousand years, this site has remained connected to worship, learning and community life.

One of the most striking features of the church is its Hiberno-Romanesque doorway, dating from around 1100 AD. Carved from sandstone with detailed chevrons and geometric decoration, it is considered one of the finest surviving Romanesque doorways in Ireland. The craftsmanship is extraordinary, especially when you consider how much of it has survived intact through centuries of weather and use. In the 19th century, iron gates had to be fitted around the doorway after locals regularly sharpened knives against the stone, slowly wearing away parts of the carvings.

The present church building dates from 1731 and today houses Ionad Lachtain, a small arts and heritage centre that helps tell the story of Freshford and its long cultural history. Visitors exploring north Kilkenny often combine the village with nearby countryside drives and quieter heritage sites away from the busier tourist routes. It’s a good reminder that some of Kilkenny’s richest history lies beyond the city.

I often refer to places like this when explaining the wider story of the county, and you’d be very welcome to come along on one of my daily walking tours of Kilkenny while you’re in the city.

28/05/2026

Stand along the banks of the River Nore for a few minutes, and you’ll begin to understand why Greensbridge has remained such an important part of Kilkenny for centuries. The present bridge, completed in 1766, stretches across the river in five elegant limestone arches, designed in the Palladian style by architect George Smith and built by William Colles of the Kilkenny Marble Works. It’s a near-perfect copy of the Ponte di Tiberio in Rimini, Italy, built in the first century. More than 260 years later, it still carries people into the north side of the city much as it always has.

But the story of this crossing goes back far beyond the 18th century. Before any bridge stood here, there was an early ford crossing the Nore, with traces of its original stonework still visible when the river is low. The first recorded actual bridge on the site dates to the 12th century, built during the early development of Norman Kilkenny. Flooding repeatedly damaged or swept away earlier structures, most notably during the devastating flood of 1763, which destroyed the previous bridge entirely. What replaced it was not only practical, but graceful, a structure that still gives the riverfront much of its character today.

Greensbridge is also one of the quieter places to pause and take in the city. Early morning and late evening light along this stretch of the Nore can be particularly striking, and the nearby riverside paths lead towards some of Kilkenny’s most peaceful walks.

If you or your group like stories like this, my walking tours of Kilkenny can be adapted to suit your interests. Just reach out to me through the link in the bio.

21/05/2026

An unassuming building with connections to some of the most important literary and intellectual figures of the past four centuries can be found hidden within the grounds of St. Canice’s Cathedral. St. Canice’s Library is one of Ireland’s oldest surviving libraries, and was built in 1693 on the site of an earlier grammar school founded by Piers Butler, Earl of Ormond, and his wife Margaret Fitzgerald. Though modest in appearance, the library represents an important chapter in Kilkenny’s educational and cultural history.

When the original school moved across the River Nore in the late 17th century, it became known as Kilkenny College. Among the students educated there were Jonathan Swift, later author of Gulliver’s Travels, and the philosopher George Berkeley, whose name lives on through the University of California, Berkeley and Berkeley College, Yale. The old library building remained at St. Canice’s and gradually became home to a remarkable collection of religious, historical, and literary works gathered over generations.

Today, the library is recognised as the oldest diocesan library in Ireland, with more than 3,000 volumes connected to it, including rare 17th-century editions of Shakespeare, and John Milton’s “Paradise Lost.” Some of these works have been transferred to Maynooth University for conservation and safekeeping, helping preserve them for future generations. It’s one of those places in Kilkenny that rewards anyone willing to look a little closer. If you’d like to explore more corners of the city with stories like this behind them, you’re welcome to walk the streets with me on one of my daily walking tours.

14/05/2026

A few miles outside Kilkenny stands one of the county’s finest surviving tower houses. A castle that still carries the atmosphere of 16th-century Ireland. Ballybur Castle was built by Thomas Comerford in the late 1500s, during a time when families of status needed their homes to serve as both residence and stronghold. Its tall stone walls, narrow stairways, and commanding position reflect a period when security and power shaped the landscape around Kilkenny.

The castle later passed into the hands of Thomas’s son Richard Comerford, who softened parts of the fortress into a more comfortable family home. Larger mullioned windows brought light into the upper rooms, while impressive fireplaces added a touch of refinement to the otherwise defensive structure. Ballybur also became part of a much wider chapter in Irish history when Cardinal Giovanni Battista Rinuccini, Papal Nuncio to the Confederate Catholics of Ireland, stayed there on his way to Kilkenny in 1645. In gratitude for the family’s hospitality, he gifted them a rosary that is now preserved in

Like many Catholic landowners of the period, the Comerfords lost Ballybur during Cromwell’s campaign in Ireland, and the estate never returned to the family. Thankfully, the castle itself survived. Since the 1970s, careful restoration by the Gray family has brought Ballybur back to life, preserving many of its original features while allowing visitors the rare chance to stay overnight in an authentic medieval tower house near the village of Cuffesgrange.

You’re very welcome to join me on one of my walking tours if you’d like to hear more of the stories behind places like this.

07/05/2026

Step through a narrow entrance off High St. and you’ll find yourself in a place where very little seems to have changed in over two centuries. The Hole in the Wall was once one of the city’s best-known supper houses in the late 18th century, set within part of the old Archer mansion dating back to 1582. It was known as a gathering place for conversation, music, and long evenings, drawing in locals and visitors alike - including a young Arthur Wellesley (1st Duke of Wellington, British Prime Minister), who later recalled the easy company and lively discussion that filled the rooms stating - “there is no drunkenness there, just good fellowship and conservation to early in the morning”

The tavern closed its doors after the Famine and slipped into local folklore for many years, its stories carried more by word of mouth than by record. That changed in 1999, when the building was purchased by Michael Conway and carefully restored and brought back into use. Today, it operates once again as a tavern, and while the city around it has moved on, the atmosphere inside remains rooted in that older tradition.

Spend an evening there now and you’ll find storytelling, sing-songs, and music sessions that often gather naturally as the night goes on. Visitors regularly remark on the quality of the Guinness, but more than that, it’s the sense of welcome that stands out. It’s the kind of place where conversations start easily and strangers rarely remain strangers for long.

I often point it out as part of Kilkenny’s living history - if you’d like to hear more about places like this, you’re very welcome to join me on one of my daily walking tours of Kilkenny.

29/04/2026

Not every story in Kilkenny ends the way it was planned - but some leave behind something better. The Canal Walk began as part of an 18th-century effort to improve navigation along the River Nore, with canal cuts and towpaths laid out in the 1750s. While the scheme never fully succeeded, the route it created settled into the city's life as a place for walking, gathering and taking in the city's quieter side.

The path runs beneath the walls of Kilkenny Castle, following the line of the old canal and river edge. Along the way, you’ll notice traces of the city’s working past - stone walls, mill races, and old boundaries that once served industry rather than leisure. These days, it’s the setting that draws people in: the trees arching overhead, the steady movement of the river, and the views back towards the castle. If you continue on, the walk links naturally with the Nore Valley route and the Lacken Boardwalk, offering a longer stretch of riverside that feels a world away from the streets, though it’s only minutes from the centre.

It’s a lovely place to have a morning stroll, rewarded with a coffee at the end. I often include this stretch when talking about how the city has evolved over time. If you’d like to see how it all fits together, you’re very welcome to join me on one of my walking tours.

22/04/2026

There’s a set of steps in Kilkenny that many pass without a second thought - but they’ve been standing their ground since 1614. St. Canice’s Steps rise at the entrance to St Canice’s Cathedral and its round tower. Built in carefully laid limestone with a solid ashlar parapet, they’re a fine early example of 17th-century design, where function and craftsmanship were given equal weight.

The work is associated with Robert Wall, the cathedral's procurator at the time, and reflects the kind of attention to detail that shaped much of Kilkenny’s built heritage. The grouping of the steps, the cut of the stone, and even the iron spike guards all speak to a period when skilled labour was central to the city's development. It’s a small structure in one sense, but it forms part of the wider story of the cathedral grounds and the medieval streets that surround it.

If you take a moment here, you’ll find it’s also a good vantage point - looking out across one of the most historic corners of the city. These are the kind of details that are easy to miss without a bit of context. I pass this way on my daily walks, and you’re welcome to join me on a walking tour to see Kilkenny in a bit more depth.

16/04/2026

Tucked away, off the beaten track, is a quiet spot where history runs deeper than the water itself. Kenny’s Well is a 7th-century well-house linked to St. Canice that has drawn visitors for generations - but its story stretches even further back, into Ireland’s pre-Christian past. Archaeological finds, including a nearby Bronze Age cemetery, suggest this site held spiritual significance long before stone was laid around the spring.

Even today, the well remains active, with locals and curious visitors still drawing water from it by hand. Many say its taste is noticeably fresher than the modern city supply, adding to its enduring charm. Places like this offer a rare glimpse into how ancient traditions and daily life once intertwined in Kilkenny - where sacred sites weren’t just symbolic, but part of the everyday rhythm.

If you’re exploring Kilkenny for the first time, Kenny’s Well is one of those hidden details that brings the city’s layered history to life. Join me on one of my daily walking tours to uncover places like this and experience Kilkenny through the eyes of a local guide.

09/04/2026

St. Kieran’s College is a key landmark in Kilkenny. Founded in 1782, it is Ireland's oldest Catholic college. It was established when the Penal Laws were starting to change. Its motto, Hiems Transit - “the winter has passed” - symbolises this change, marking a new era for Catholic education after years of restrictions.

The college’s current buildings were constructed from 1836 to 1849, a time that overlapped with the Great Famine. The complex features limestone façades, pointed windows, and a central chapel, designed in Tudor Revival and Gothic Revival styles. It also served as a major seminary for the Diocese of Ossory, training priests whose portraits still hang in the corridors. Its high position in the city skyline was chosen deliberately to make it visible, symbolising its importance in the city.

Today, while its religious role has changed, St. Kieran’s remains vital to Kilkenny. It is known for academic excellence and for its strong contribution to hurling, producing many top players. St. Kieran’s is a place where history is alive. If you explore Kilkenny, keep an eye out for it, and consider joining one of the daily tours to hear more stories about the city.

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