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family · Tuesday 18 August 2026 · 11:00am 
Victorian Walled Gardens Tour at Strokestown Park
At Strokestown Park · Strokestown, Co. Roscommon
At Strokestown Park · Strokestown, Co. Roscommon
Strokestown Park runs a guided walking tour of its Victorian walled gardens on Tuesday, 18 August 2026, led by general manager John O’Driscoll. The gardens are among the largest of their kind in Ireland and cover roughly six acres behind high stone walls, restored over three decades from a near-derelict state to their current herbaceous borders, glasshouses and clipped box hedging. The tour runs from 11am to 12pm and suits anyone with an interest in garden history, planting design or the working life of a big estate garden, families included.
The walk takes in the herbaceous borders, the restored glasshouses and the estate’s working kitchen garden traditions, with the guide explaining how the gardens were laid out for the Pakenham Mahon family and how the current planting scheme was rebuilt after decades of neglect. Strokestown Park’s gardens team keeps a rolling seasonal programme, so August brings the borders at their fullest before the late summer cutback. The tour is paced for a general audience rather than specialist horticulturists, with stops to explain individual features rather than a fast walk-through. It runs as part of a busier than usual August and September at Strokestown Park, alongside a classic car day, National Heritage Week openings and heritage talks, so it works well combined with a wider visit to the house and Famine Museum.
Strokestown sits on the N5, about 25km north of Roscommon town. Strokestown Park is signposted in the town centre, with on-site parking. Bus Éireann’s N5 services connect Strokestown to Roscommon town, Athlone and Longford, though check times in advance as Tuesday services are limited.
The walled gardens are one part of a much bigger estate. The Georgian house and the National Famine Museum are both on site, and the wider grounds reward a slow afternoon. There is more to see in Strokestown and across Co. Roscommon.
Heading to Strokestown Park in Strokestown? Roscommon has plenty more to see. Read the Strokestown area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.