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family · Saturday 15 August 2026 · Various 
National Heritage Week - Clare Family Events
At Various venues across Co. Clare · Various, Co. Clare
At Various venues across Co. Clare · Various, Co. Clare
National Heritage Week turns the whole of County Clare into an open classroom for nine days each August, and the 2026 edition runs from Saturday 15 to Sunday 23 August with more than 70 events at sites, parks, libraries, and outdoors across the county. Most events are free. For families with children it is one of the better weeks of the summer - practical, hands-on, and spread across places you might never otherwise visit. It is also a good prompt to get out of the car and into spaces that usually sit quietly in the background.
The programme covers a wide range of activities, but families will find the most to do mid-week. Wild Child Day on Wednesday 20 August is the standout day for children: Happy Out Forest School takes over John O’Sullivan Park in Ennis for scavenger hunts, woodland games, and bushcraft, while Irish Seed Savers runs forest school nature activities connecting children with woodland ecology. Both are free and outdoor. Wild Weaving for families takes place in Ennistymon, a short drive west.
Ennis itself hosts a guided tour of Ennis Friary on the opening Saturday, led by the OPW. The friary on Abbey Street is the oldest surviving building in the town and the burial place of the ancient kings of Clare, with 15th-century stonework carvings inside that reward a close look. Tours run at 12pm and 3pm; no booking is needed and entry is free. Self-guided access is available from 10am to 5pm daily throughout the week.
Further out in the county, Craggaunowen offers Bronze Age cooking demonstrations and bread baking, and the Cliffs of Moher runs guided walks, birdwatching sessions, and children’s biodiversity treasure hunts. Artisan craft demonstrations - pottery, slate work, wool spinning - appear at various South Clare venues across the nine days. The full programme, with times and exact locations, is listed on heritageweek.ie, which is updated as new events are confirmed.
Ennis is about 30 minutes south of Galway city on the M18, and roughly an hour north of Limerick. Bus Éireann operates regular services on both corridors, and the town has a train station on the Ennis - Limerick line. For events in Ennis town itself - the friary, John O’Sullivan Park - the town centre is walkable once you park. Street parking is available in the centre; there is also a multi-storey car park off O’Connell Street. Events further out in the county - Craggaunowen, Ennistymon, the Cliffs of Moher - will need a car.
The friary and the town centre can fill half a day easily, and the Clare Museum on Arthur’s Row is worth a look if you want more background on the county’s history before heading out to the wider programme. There is more to see in Ennis and across Co. Clare.
Heading to Various venues across Co. Clare in Ennis? Clare has plenty more to see. Read the Ennis area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.