Get in
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1 Shannon Airport (SNN IATA) and town are 13 km west of Bunratty and have accommodation and other facilities. There's more car hire at the airport than elsewhere in County Clare. A taxi might be €50, see below for the bus.
Dublin Coach 300 / M7 runs hourly from Dublin Burgh Quay via Dublin Heuston Station, Kildare, Limerick and Bunratty to Ennis, taking 3 hr 30 min. It doesn't call at Shannon Airport. Direct buses from Dublin Airport also run to Limerick.
Expressway Bus 51 runs hourly from Cork via Mallow and Limerick to Bunratty, continuing to the airport, Ennis and Galway. Don't take X51, which runs nonstop from Limerick to Shannon Airport then Galway.
Bus Éireann 343 meanders hourly from Limerick via Cratloe, Bunratty (30 min) and Sixmilebridge to Shannon town and airport. It no longer continues to Newmarket-on-Fergus and Ennis, change at the airport for Bus 330. The last bus out of Limerick is around 11PM, and from the airport towards Bunratty and Limerick at midnight.
In Bunratty the bus stop is by The Creamery Bar.
The nearest railway station is Sixmilebridge 6 km north of Bunratty, linked by Bus 343, see Irish Rail for timetables, fares and online tickets. It's only worth it to reach Gort, Athenry and Galway: for Ennis or Limerick use the bus.
By road take M7 west from Dublin, which bypasses Limerick to become N18 / M18, with slip roads at Bunratty and Shannon before it turns north towards Galway. You'll know you're in the right place when you see all the tour buses parked next to the castle.
See Limerick for other connections, including the direct bus from Dublin Airport.
Get around
[edit]Bunratty is a small village along the old road to Ennis, now bypassed to the south by N18. The castle, hotel and restaurant strip are all within a short walk along the old road. B&Bs are strung along L3040 the lane north, called "Lower Road". There's no bus along there so you'll want wheels to stay, and to explore the countryside.
No taxi firm is based in Bunratty, but there are several at Shannon Airport and at Sixmilebridge.
See
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- 1 Bunratty Castle and Folk Park, Bunratty West V95 TY02, ☏ +353 61 711222. Daily 9AM-5PM. The castle, built 1425, is the most complete medieval fortress in Ireland. It became derelict in the 19th century but was restored in 1954. There's an extensive collection of 15th and 16th-century furnishings, tapestries and artwork. The Folk Park (same ticket) is an outdoor museum or skansen, with over 30 buildings collected from around the country - the church was hauled here from Ardcroney in County Tipperary. Costumed docents illustrate various crafts and daily activities of the 19th century. There's also a walled garden recreated to the same period. Castle and park are often used as event spaces, see below for the banquets. Adult €19.80, conc €15.80, child €14.25.
Do
[edit]- Medieval Banquets are a sort of O'Cabaret. They're held year-round within the castle at 5:30PM and 8:45PM, a four-course meal with drinks and themed entertainment, with the "Earl of Thomond's Butler" acting as MC. The guests don't themselves put on medieval drag, though on corporate nights who knows. Adult €80, child €50, reservations essential.
- Irish Nights are held in the Corn Barn of the Folk Park, Apr-Oct nightly at 7PM. Three-course meal (simpler fare than the Banquet) with traditional music and song. The shows suit those for whom real Irish pub entertainment, which only gets buzzing from 9PM, would be way past their bedtime.
- Golf: Shannon GC is the closest, next to the airport.
Buy
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- For touristy stuff, Blarney Woollen Mills and Meadows & Byrne are just opposite the castle.
- Fuel and top-up shopping for the road are at Daybreak on Old Bunratty Road (M-Sa 6AM-11PM, Su 7AM-11PM).
Eat
[edit]- JP Clarke's gets mixed reviews. It's off Hill Rd, open daily from noon, last orders 9PM.
- 1 The Creamery Bar, Old Bunratty Road V95 CC85, ☏ +353 61 364114, [email protected]. Daily 10AM-11:30PM. Gets mostly good reviews for traditional fare.
- Jilly & Joe's is just south of The Creamery Bar, open daily 9AM-5:30PM.
- Noel's within Bunratty Manor Hotel gets great reviews. They're open Tu-Sa 6-9:30PM and Su 12:30-4PM.
- Cratloe Hill Sheep's Cheese is made at Brickhill Farm 2 km east across the little Raite River.
Drink
[edit]- Durty Nelly's, Lower Road V95 Y521, ☏ +353 61 364861, [email protected]. Daily 12:30-11:30PM. 400 year-old pub in a thatched cottage next to the castle. Good pub grub and ambiance, but it's very much on the tourist circuit, so you'll be sharing it with vast fire chiefs from Milwaukee.
- Bunratty Mead & Liqueurs, Lower Road V95 RR96 (just north of Folk Park), ☏ +353 61 362222. M-F 9:30AM-5PM. Producers of Bunratty Mead and Poitín (or Potcheen), Irish moonshine - the name refers to the pot-still and there's industrial-strength mythology around it, but it's now a legal product, protected as an EU "Geographical Indication" name.
Sleep
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- 1 Bunratty Manor Hotel, Old Bunratty Road V95 N2D7, ☏ +353 61 707984, [email protected]. Modern comfortable hotel, and the restaurant draws rave reviews. Double (room only) €140.
- The Courtyard, Old Bunratty Road V95 W275 (opposite Manor Hotel), ☏ +353 866 038497. Pleasant B&B. B&B double €120.
- Bunratty Castle Hotel, Old Bunratty Road, ☏ +353 61 478700. This suffered a fire in 2021, struggled thereafter, and is temporarily closed.
- 2 Tudor Lodge, Hill Road V95 AH77, ☏ +353 868 893150. Great reviews for this small B&B, just the one triple room. No pets.
- 3 Bunratty Castle Mews, Lower Road V95 FY84, ☏ +353 61 369766. Small B&B with an outstanding hostess. No pets. B&B double €150.
- Park House, Lower Road V95 HH68 (opposite Castle Mews), ☏ +353 61 369902. Comfy welcoming B&B with six rooms en suite. B&B double €150.
- 4 Bunratty Meadows, Clonmoney West V14 VW60 (No access from N18), ☏ +353 877 980034. Relaxing place near airport. B&B double €130.
- 5 Bunratty Haven, Clonmoney North V95 RK29, ☏ +353 61 708362. Friendly B&B, spotlessly clean. B&B double €140.
Connect
[edit]As of March 2025, Bunratty and its approach roads have 4G from Three and Vodafone, and 5G from Eir.
Go next
[edit]- Bunratty is at the east edge of County Clare, so head west for its main sights. Along the coast are Mizzen Head, Cliffs of Moher and the Burren.
- Just east is Limerick, an interesting Georgian city like a miniature Dublin, and many sights in County Limerick to its south.
- Wild Atlantic Way is a tour route along the entire west coast. Northbound head for Mizzen Head then up the coast. Southbound is quickest via Limerick, but you could take the ferry across the Shannon estuary from Killimer to Tarbert.
- New York or Boston: say you need to drop the rental car back at Shannon and be on the midday homeward flight to the US, you want to check in by 9AM, so you need a nearby stopover the night before. Bunratty might be a more agreeable spot than an anonymous chain airport hotel.