Kilkenny Famine Experience Heritage Tours

The Kilkenny Famine Experience is one of the most affecting free attractions in Ireland - a 50-minute self-guided audio-visual tour through the restored Kilkenny Union Workhouse, now incorporated into MacDonagh Junction Shopping Centre beside the train station. It suits anyone with an interest in Irish history, from curious visitors passing through Kilkenny to families wanting something more than a castle walk. The subject matter is heavy by nature, and it handles it with real care rather than spectacle.

What to expect

The tour begins at the Customer Service Desk inside MacDonagh Junction and takes you around what was once the fifth workhouse in Ireland. Nine stops trace the experience of those who entered during the worst years of the Great Hunger, drawing on heartbreaking firsthand accounts from local newspapers and the minute books of the Board of Guardians. The voices of both inmates and workhouse staff come through, and the human stories hit harder for being so specific - among them two brothers, John and Patrick Saul, who made their way to Kilkenny after being abandoned on the Dublin docks.

The tour ends at the Memorial Garden, where a bronze sculpture marks the final resting place of over 970 famine victims whose remains were uncovered here during construction work in 2005. That discovery - the most significant famine-related find in the world - gives the whole place a quiet weight that stays with you. The audio-visual format is self-paced, so you can take your time at the stops that matter most to you. Multiple tour start times run each day: 10:00am, 12:00pm and 3:00pm.

Getting there

Kilkenny is well connected by rail and road. Irish Rail runs regular services from Dublin Heuston (about 90 minutes) and from Waterford, and the venue sits directly beside Kilkenny train station - you can step off the train and walk straight in. By road, Kilkenny is on the M9 motorway corridor from Dublin; the journey takes around 90 minutes in normal traffic. MacDonagh Junction has paid car parking on site, so driving families will have no trouble.

While you’re in Kilkenny

Kilkenny city rewards an easy few hours around the tour - the castle, the medieval mile, and the lanes off High Street all hold up well on a summer visit. There is more to see in Kilkenny and across Co. Kilkenny.

Good to know

• Date: Monday 3 August 2026; tour times available at 10:00am, 12:00pm and 3:00pm
• Price: Free
• Duration: approximately 50 minutes
• Start point: Customer Service Desk, MacDonagh Junction Shopping Centre (opposite Next), Kilkenny Train Station
• Pre-booking is recommended; check kilkennyfamineexperience.com for availability
• Family-friendly, though parental discretion is advised given the subject matter
• Suitable for rainy days; the tour is indoors
• Paid parking available at MacDonagh Junction