Hotels in Killarney, Ireland

A little about Killarney...

Killarney is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is located north of the MacGillicuddy Reeks, on the northeastern shore of the Lough Lein which are part of Killarney National Park. The town is home to St. Mary's Cathedral, Ross Castle, Muckross Abbey, Torc Waterfall and Gap of Dunlœ.

Killarney was awarded the "Best Kept Town" award for 2007 in a cross-border competition jointly organised by the Department of the Environment and the Northern Ireland Amenity Council. Owing to its natural heritage, history and proximity to the Dingle Peninsula, Skellig Michael island and its location on the Ring of Kerry, Killarney is a popular tourist destination.

Killarney is busy with tourists perusing the town's numerous shops and tourist attractions. Many shops are tourist oriented with many gift shops around the town. The town centre also offers a wide range of hotels, pubs and restaurants to cater for every requirement. Killarney is also famous for its jaunting cars (horse drawn carts) operated by local jarvies. Tourists can avail of jaunting car rides and a guided tour of the town's attractions offered by the jarvies.

Transport: Killarney is served by National Primary Route N22 (north to Tralee and Castleisland, south to Cork) and National Secondary Route N72 (west to Killorglin, east to Waterford).

There are train services to Tralee, Limerick, Cork and Dublin operated by Iarnród Éireann. Bus Éireann provides bus services to Limerick (and onwards to Dublin), Tralee, Cork, Kenmare and Skibbereen. Killarney railway station opened on 15 July 1853.

Kerry Airport, in Farranfore between Tralee and Killarney, provides an increasing number of air services. Cork Airport, easily accessible by bus or rail, also serves the Kerry region.

Killarney SummerFest is a highlight of the year in the town, featuring outdoor and indoor concerts from major Irish and international acts. Previous acts include Snow Patrol, The Cranberries, Bryan Adams, The Corrs, Westlife, Tom Jones, Kris Kristofferson and David Gray. SummerFest 2007 saw Pink headline the festival, supported by Director. Other events in this year's SummerFest included a Fringe Festival, performances of the Broadway musical FAME, parades, workshops, charity events including a Pink Tie Ball, a busking competition and a hot air balloon meet.
See Killarney SummerFest for dates and times of events.

Attractions:
Lakes of Killarney
Killarney National Park
Muckross House
The Black Valley, and Aghadœ
Ross Castle - this square medieval tower was built by the O'Donoghues on the shores of Lough Lein in the 15th century. Now restored, the castle houses a collection of 16th and 17th century oak furniture. Ross Castle is the departure point for boat tours on Lough Lein.

Killarney is a popular destination for partygœrs. Killarney's nightspots are often busy seven days a week during the summer months, when the population of the town and the surrounding area increases significantly. The places most commonly visited are Mustang Sallys, McSorleys, Scruffys, Scotts, Charlie Foleys and the Grand Hotel, which is particularly popular with American tourists during the summer.