National Botanic Gardens Halloween Harvest display
Enjoy this popular annual celebration at Glasnevin from mid-October. Marvel at the range of colourful pumpkins, snake gourds, squashes and other harvest riches. Check out the Ghoulish Gourd Trail which runs daily until Sunday 2nd November. Follow the route on the self-guided trail and receive your very own magical packet of pumpkin and sunflower seeds ready for planting in spring.
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Kilmainham Gaol Musuem
Still one of the largest unoccupied gaols in Europe, Dublin’s Kilmainham dates back to 1796, and finally shut its doors in 1924. During that period it witnessed some of the most heroic and tragic events in Ireland’s emergence as a modern nation. See where some of our historic leaders spent their final days or take the audiovisual tour and bring the fascinating history to life.
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Trim Castle
Explore the grounds of Co Meath’s Trim Castle, the largest Anglo-Norman castle in Ireland, and one of the most popular historical sites in the country. For those brave enough to visit during the Halloween festival, dress up as your favourite witch or knight and join in some special seasonal activities.Timed entry (booking is essential) is from 10am-5pm with last entry at 4.30pm until 4th November. Entry is free until the end of 2020.
National Gallery of Ireland at Home: Mainie’s Mares
Discover a step-by-step video teaching kids to create a drawing inspired by Mainie Jellett’s Achill Horses, painted in 1941. A famous Irish cubist painter, Jellett has received renewed acclaim as one of the foremost modernists thanks to her distinctive geometric style. This activity, which would normally have taken place in the Maples Group Creative Space, is now brought to families online, while the painting itself can be viewed in the virtual exhibition, Irish Horse.
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Ilnacullin on Garinish Island
A visit to this beautiful and rare island garden is a joy for all the family. Nestled within the sheltered coastal harbour at Glengarriff in Bantry Bay, Co Cork, the short crossing usually includes an extra treat – a visit to the nearby seal colony and an opportunity to glimpse majestic sea eagles.
€2.50 per person, October and November 10am-4.30pm, for a 90 minute visit. The ferry crossing is a separate fee, arranged through a local boat operator.
Castletown House
Experience the fairy trail and enjoy a visit to Castletown House and parklands where you will be regaled with tales of the time the devil was rumoured to have come to dinner at the house. Choose a pre-booked self-guiding tour of the ground floor. Free entry until 2021, timed entry every 15 minutes with first entry at 10.15am and last entry at 4.45pm.
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Phoenix Park visitor centre
A good option for an outdoor and indoor experience, the visitor centre has a beautiful walled kitchen garden full of seasonal produce, as well as a maze and bustling cafe. The permanent exhibition gives a great insight into the history of the park, from its beginnings under Lord Wellington to the Pope’s visit in 1979, all delivered in a family-friendly, accessible way.
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Dublin Castle
Explore the current exhibition, Splendour and Scandal, which details the history of the Office Arms, located at Dublin Castle from 1831 until 1981. Highlights include the glamorous world of the office superintendent at the Viceregal Court and the theft of the Irish Crown Jewels. Free to access the grounds, paid entry to State Apartments, €8, exhibition only, €3.
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Ceide Fields
Complete with an award-winning interpretive centre, the Ceide Fields in Co Mayo is a great way to make heritage and history fun for all the family. Learn about the ancient community which once farmed these lands, the tools they worked with and the houses they lived in. Enjoy a walk across the bog to see this fossilised landscape at its most dramatic as it is shaped by the Atlantic’s westerly winds, creating a wild beauty all of its own.
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Lullymore Heritage and Discovery Park
From 24th October every day to 1st November, Lullymore Heritage and Discovery Park in Co Kildare will be running Halloween Happenings. Aimed at families with children under 14, tickets can be booked for morning and afternoon slots. Famous for its Terror Train Trip which involves numerous zombie attacks in a wooded and bog land setting, this is best for children over six who aren’t easily spooked. Other activities include prizes for fancy dress, a scary treasure hunt and a coven of witches who can pop up almost anywhere. For younger children, there are outdoor play areas, a mini-golf course and pet farm. The Park itself is located on 60 acres of lake, bog and woodland. Normal family rates apply.
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Brú na Bóinne visitor centre
At Brú na Bóinne in the Boyne Valley, go back in time and see how our Stone Age ancestors lived and died. A visit to the new visitor experience is a fully immersive treat. And while Newgrange chamber is closed due to Covid-19, families can visit the exteriors of Knowth and Newgrange on a two-and-a-half hour Stone Age trail. Pre-booking essential. A family ticket costs €28, and under 12s go free.
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Rathfarnham Castle
For more of Dublin’s history visit Rathfarnham Castle, which dates from Elizabethan times and is probably the earliest example of what is termed a ‘fortified house’ built in Ireland. Containing many important archaeological artefacts discovered during restoration, there is plenty to delight all the family. Open Wednesday to Sunday and Bank Holiday Mondays from 10.30am–5pm. Booking is advisable and admission is free.
Farmleigh Estate
The grounds of Farmleigh House in the Phoenix Park will be open throughout Halloween for outdoor tours. Pop into the gallery to see Land/Marks by Ceramics Ireland, an exhibition celebrating the diverse range and breadth of contemporary ceramic work being created by makers of and from Ireland. It’s open until 31st October with paid tours hourly from 10.30am-5.30pm. A family ticket costs €13 and under 12s go free.
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National Botanic Gardens Halloween Harvest display
Enjoy this popular annual celebration at Dublin’s Glasnevin, happening now. Marvel at the range of colourful pumpkins, snake gourds, squashes and other harvest riches. Check out the Ghoulish Gourd Trail which runs daily until Sunday 2nd November. Follow the route on the self-guided trail and receive your very own magical packet of pumpkin and sunflower seeds, ready for planting in spring.
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Kilkenny Castle
Self-guided tours can be booked online for a spooky trip around Kilkenny Castle during Halloween, but watch out for its many ghoulish residents. Otherwise, enjoy a petrifying walk in the castle’s parklands which are open year-round. A family ticket costs €20 and under 12s go free.
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Derrynane House and Gardens
The ancestral home of lawyer, politician and statesman, Daniel O’Connell, it is worth a trip to Co Kerry’s Derrynane just to see the elaborate chariot O’Connell once rode through the streets of Dublin. With extensive gardens, walking trails, a café and a beautiful crescent beach, there is plenty of distraction for all ages. Open daily from 10.30am-4.30pm.
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Please consult current public health advice before planning your visit to any of the sites included in this feature.