Heritage Week Talks at Dunmore Cave

Dunmore Cave, one of Ireland’s best known show caves and the site of a recorded Viking-era massacre in 928 AD, opens its Heritage Week programme with free talks running from Thursday 20 to Sunday 23 August 2026. Normally a paid guided-tour site, the cave waives its usual admission charge for these four days as part of National Heritage Week, when heritage sites across the country put on free events under this year’s national programme.

What to expect

Dunmore Cave is a natural limestone cave 10km north of Kilkenny city, known for its calcite formations and for a grim chapter of local history, bones and Viking-era silver coins found inside point to a raid recorded in the Annals of the Four Masters in 928 AD, when a group sheltering in the cave was killed. Guides normally lead visitors down through the show cave on a standard tour explaining its geology and this history; the Heritage Week programme builds on that with additional talks over the four days, free of the usual entry charge. Access to the cave is by guided tour only, tours are limited in size to a maximum of 50 people, and the site can be cool and slippery underfoot, so sturdy shoes are worth wearing. Outside Heritage Week, standard admission is €5 for adults, €4 for groups and seniors, €3 for children and students, and €13 for a family ticket.

Getting there

Dunmore Cave is signposted off the N78 Castlecomer road, about 10km from Kilkenny city and 1km off the main road. The site has its own car park; there is no public transport directly to the cave, so a car is the practical way to reach it.

While you’re in Kilkenny

Dunmore Cave sits between Kilkenny city and Castlecomer, so it works well as a half-day trip out from town during Heritage Week. There is more to see in Kilkenny and across Co. Kilkenny.

Good to know

• Dates: Thursday 20 to Sunday 23 August 2026, National Heritage Week
• Time: guided tours run through the day, last admission normally 4pm, check on the day for the Heritage Week schedule
• Venue: Dunmore Cave, Mothel, Ballyfoyle, Castlecomer Road, Co. Kilkenny
• Price: Free for Heritage Week; standard admission otherwise is €5 adult, €13 family
• Access: Guided tour only, tour groups capped at 50, cave floor can be uneven and cool