Discover County Laois

County Laois brings together historic buildings and museums with gardens, walking trails and the Grand Canal. If you are looking for a hotel for a trip here, you can begin by choosing according to your interests: early Christian history, architecture, crafts, or excursions on foot and by boat. The area’s different places offer specific points of interest for each.

Round towers, monastic sites and fortifications

In Timahoe, the Round Tower dates from the late 12th century. Its elaborately carved doorway makes it a distinctive architectural feature. The tower is also part of the Ireland’s Ancient East visitor trail. The Timahoe Heritage Centre is housed in a preserved 19th-century church and explores the history of the early Christian monastic settlement of Tigh Mochua. Timahoe thus brings together a medieval building and an account of an older monastic history.

Dunamase developed into one of Ireland’s most significant Anglo-Norman fortifications. It therefore represents a different historical period from early Christian Timahoe. Aghaboe Abbey marks the site where St. Canice founded an abbey in 576. These three examples highlight different historical themes: an early monastic tradition, the founding of an abbey, and the development of an Anglo-Norman fortification.

Manor houses, gardens and landscape

Emo Court is a neoclassical manor house designed by James Gandon in 1790. Walking is also part of the visitor experience: visitors can stroll by the lake and through the woodland. Heywood Gardens near Ballinakill offer a different perspective on designed landscapes. The 18th-century estate includes gardens, lakes and woodland. Sir Edwin Lutyens designed its formal gardens. The comparison highlights two distinct approaches: at Emo Court, the focus is a neoclassical manor house, while at Heywood it is the landscaped estate with its formal garden areas.

The surroundings of Ballinakill also offer ways to explore nature and gardens, without conflating the different features: lakes and woodland are part of the described Heywood Gardens estate, while the walks at Emo Court specifically follow the lakeside and pass through woodland. When choosing where to visit, it may help to consider whether you are most interested in architecture, garden design, or walks through a designed landscape.

Museums, crafts and the history of technology

The Donaghmore Workhouse & Agricultural Museum preserves an original 19th-century workhouse and an agricultural collection. The Mountmellick Embroidery and Heritage Museum offers personal tours about Mountmellick Work and the town’s Quaker heritage. Mountmellick Work is a white embroidery technique developed by Johanna Carter in the early 19th century. This craft connects a specific textile technique with the story of its origins.

In Stradbally, the Steam Museum displays steam-powered machinery associated with Ireland’s railways, roadworks and agriculture. A narrow-gauge railway about one kilometre long also operates as a heritage railway on the grounds of Stradbally Hall. Check current operating dates before your trip. Visitors interested in technology will find two distinct perspectives here: the machinery on display and the heritage railway.

Another way to explore local history is the Mountmellick Heritage Trail. It is 2.8 miles, or 4.5 kilometres, long. Combined with a visit to the museum, it lets you extend an interest in Mountmellick Work and Quaker heritage with a walk around the town; the tour and the trail are separate offerings.

On foot and on the water

The Slieve Bloom Way has five key starting points with information boards, walking maps and car parks. As facilities can change, check for current information about the starting points before setting out on a walk. At Emo Court, walks by the lake and through the woodland are another designated way to spend time outdoors. The information about the Slieve Bloom Way and Emo Court describes separate visitor options.

At the Grand Canal in Vicarstown, Barrowline Cruisers offers Narrowboat and barge rentals. Visitors can explore the Grand Canal and River Barrow by boat. Unlike the museums and walking trails mentioned above, the boat is the way to access the waterways here; rental availability should be confirmed for your desired dates.

First decide which of these interests matter most for your trip, then look for a suitable hotel in County Laois.

Discover more destinations

Discover more destinations: Portlaoise, Killenard, Stradbally, Abbeyleix, Rathsallagh, Arles, Rathdowney, Mountmellick, Curragh, Ballickmoyler, Ballyhenry, Durrow, Donaghmore, Emo, Mountrath, Whitewell.

For the regional travel overview: Leinster.