Dunguaire Castle

Key Facts: • Built: circa 1520 by the Hynes clan on the site of an ancient fortification of the 7th-century King of Connacht, Guaire Aidne (hence the name Dún Guaire - "Guaire's Fortress"). • Type: 16th-century tower house, typical of Irish chieftains of the time. • Height: approximately 23 meters (75 feet). • Condition: Excellent condition, fully restored. History in Brief: • 16th century - Belonged to the Hynes clan. • 17th century - Passed to the Martyn clan, wealthy merchants from Galway. • 1920s - The castle was purchased by Lady Christabel Amphe, who carried out a complete restoration. • Since 1924, the castle has been a meeting place for figures of the Irish Literary Revival, including W.B. Yeats, J.M. Synge, Seán O'Casey, Lady Gregory, and others. • Since 1954, it has been privately owned but is open to tourists. • Since 1966, it has been managed by Shannon Heritage.

Stopped off on the way down the coast and wasn't dissapointed. There was a free carpark a short walk from the castle with plenty of parking available. The walk to the castle was actually good as it provided a few photo opportunities and survey the surrounding scenery. While it was closed it was still a very interesting walk around and well worth the visit.

Only 4 stars because we couldn't get into the inside as it was locked, apparently it's a seasonal attraction. We were able to walk around the outside, completely around the castle and that was ok. The view of the castle is great,v from the road, from town and from the entrance walkway. There is a car park across the road. There are no public toilets outside as far as I can see and I walked all around it. The view of the bay is gorgeous.

We stopped on a Monday afternoon just to take a peek. Parking is across the street and down the road a little bit, but an easy walk overall. Parking is also free which is nice. The castle itself was not open when we were there, I'm not sure if it ever is anymore? But we could see theres a gift shop inside through the windows. We took some photographs and walked around it and went on our way. There were many others there as well. All in all expect to spend 30 minutes here.

Stopped here in a tour from Galway in April this year. Just a quick visit and we're able to walk around the perimeter. Very picturesque 16th century castle home. Worth a quick picture if your nearby. Also really neat to see how low the tides get nearby.

Dunguaire Castle is absolutely charming and steeped in history. Perched right by the water, the views are stunning, especially around sunset. The castle itself is small compared to others in Ireland, but it’s beautifully preserved and gives you a real sense of what life might have been like in a 16th-century tower house.

Beautiful little castle overlooking the Galway Bay inlet and nearby village. Was unfortunately closed on our visit but we were able to walk around the exterior. It was so picturesque that I proposed to my partner and she said 'YES'!!

Dunguaire Castle is one of the most iconic sights on Galway Bay. Built in the early 1500s by the Ó hEidhin (Hynes) clan, it later passed to the Martyn family — one of the “Tribes of Galway.” In the 20th century, it became a gathering place for Ireland’s Literary Revival, hosting the likes of Yeats, Lady Gregory, and George Bernard Shaw. The car park is a few minutes’ walk away on the opposite side of the road, so be ready for a short stroll. At the moment, the castle itself is closed (major repair works needed, so no tours or banquets), but it’s still worth stopping to walk around and take in the views. Great to see a Palestinian flag flying from the walls here — you’ll notice quite a few of them around Clare. It adds a contemporary layer to a place already steeped in history.

Wow! What a pretty castle!! It's stunning! In person it is such an amazing site. You see the castle on the mountain, and it's really pretty. I didn't have time to go close up to it. I wish we did. But we got to see it still. It's just picturesque with the backdrop. The complete package you could say.

It is beautiful and the quentisential Irish look and feel. Magical at the edge of the sea and we walked to it from our stay in Kinvara. There is a path around the outside with great views. It closes as 1700 so we could see in but not tour.

Driving along the road and we saw this castle, car park across the street and reasonable entry fee of about €8, castle is small and not what I would call a major tourist attraction, there are three floors in the tower up some narrow stairs, nice view from the roof (if you are not afraid of heights) the ledge is very narrow and there is a gap. Takes about 30-45 minutes to tour, small gift shop on the ground floor. While this is a commercial venture it is not overly touristy. Nice place to stop for a bit, stretch your legs and see a small castle.

Part of our EF Go ahead tours excursion. It was a nice evening here. Booked later than I would like. 9 pm dinner and show. The food was good nothing to brag about. Served a smoked salmon for the first tasting and then a potato and leak soup. The main course was steamed potatoes with baked chicken breast served a mushroom gravy sauce and last but not least an apple pie with freshly whipped cream. During our meal the harp was playing in the background. Beautiful music. Then some singing and story telling. It was a nice evening

We were driving from Galway to the Cliff of Moher and passed this castle. We stopped at the parking lot down the road from it and walked around. We loved this castle. It is so picturesque overlooking Galway Bay. It literally is a sight to be seen. To us this exemplified our trip to Ireland. My homescreen is a picture I took of the castle from the N67.

This castle was magical. We were making our way from Galway to Doolin when we made a scheduled stop at Dunguaire Castle. We had purchased tickets to tour the castle before flying over to Ireland for our honeymoon. If you're going to visit the west side of Ireland, specifically in County Galway, you will want to stop to tour some castles -- at least one. Dunguaire Castle is no exception. Located on a picturesque point of Galway Bay, Dunguaire Castle consists of a defensive wall and a 75-foot tower -- the latter you can certainly go up all the steps to each of the floors, including the rooftop with a spectacular view of the area from all points. You don't see many (if any) castles back in the states, and Dunguaire allows you to take a comprehensive look at how people lived in the castle. Going through each room as you feel the history and the majesty like the throne room on the first floor. By going up the spiral stone staircase, you can view the dining room on the second, the galley on the third, and the bedroom and sitting area on the fourth. From the bedroom, you can go up a metal set of steps to access the rooftop with the area's view from all points mentioned earlier. Another fascinating fact about the castle, initially built in the 1500s, is that it has gone through more than one prominent family clan over the centuries. Up until 30 to 40 years ago, it was still a permanent residence for the respective owner before Shannon Heritage purchased the property. My wife and I liked that the castle was once a meeting place for writers such as W.B Yeats. Dunguaire is a fantastic castle to visit. You will want to make sure to plan to go during the months of April through October as that is when it is open to the public to visit. Before you leave, you should stop at the crafts shop that's just above the visitor's shop via another staircase to purchase at least one artifact or gift to commemorate your tour of the castle and grounds.

We were doing a day trip to Galway and saw this castle on the way and decided to stop by. We really enjoyed learning the extensive history of this castle! The stairs heading up the castle are steep and slim, so keep that in mind. It was a couple of euros to tour and definitely worth it.

We were heading to Galway and Kinvara was more or less on the way. A good opportunity to get some pics of the Dunguaire Castle. It's easy to spot and parking is right across the street (free). There are also some nice thatched houses at the parking lot, worth a pic or two. We didn't have time to go inside the castle...and we also have seen many other castles on this Road Trip anyway. So, this here was just a little bonus. The Castle sits on a small hill, depending on the tide almost surrounded by water. We visited on low tide though. It does look pretty impressive and there are some other ruins around (not very accessable, except you climb the small wall and enter private property). Not sure how it looks inside. But it surely is worth a stop for a quick pic or two.

I will let you in on a little secret. This was my first castle experience. I must say it was impressive looking but I am not sure as the n =1. There was a charge 6.60 Euros per person. The dining room level of the castle had a stage and it was set up for a performance. Over all as above.

Oh look a castle! The whole bus in unison "ooohhhh" (like the little martians in Toy Story). I was more like "eh", don't get me wrong castles are cool but this one didn't really amount to much. The scenery surrounding it is pleasant but the castle itself isn't very grand. I would have liked to go inside and get a few from the top but it was something like 8 euro to do so. I understand they have to make money to keep everything up to shape but that was a little ridiculous. We didn't stay long but I did read that they have a banquet style dinner with live music, that might have helped my view of the place. ** Even though I didn't care for the castle that much I got one of my favorite pictures in this location. I also like that someone put this under a category of a zoo.

This was just a quick stop we did, when we saw it on our drive. It's a perfectly situated castle next to Galway Bay. I was a little surprised at how dark it was inside but very quaint. The venue is available for weddings & such, which would make for awesome photos.

The review is of the castle itself, as we did not get a chance to try the medical banquet. The castle is a beautiful structure in a great location. Definitely worth the drive to see it. Dunguaire Castle is a 16th-century tower house on the southeastern shore of Galway Bay in County Galway, Ireland, near Kinvarra. The castle's 75-foot tower and its defensive wall have been restored to excellent condition, and the grounds are open to tourists during the summer. It is thought to be the most photographed castle in Ireland.

This is a pretty cool little castle. You can walk up and look at it for free, take pictures and what not. There is a charge to do the "tour" aka see inside of it. But I didn't have anytime to do it regardless of the price. It's worth a drive to check it out if you haven't seen other tower houses, but there are lots of castles in Ireland so I wouldn't drive across the country just for this. We stopped by on a tour heading to the Cliffs of Moher, which was a great time to catch it.

Nice photo opportunity. Not much more though. Can live without. Only made a quick stopover with the tour bus here. The interior of the castle is usually open for visitors, or so we were told, but was closed for the time we went there unfortunately. The castle is quite small though (more like a tower of sorts), so didn't feel like missing out on much.

Please note this is a review of the banquets held there, not of the castle itself. My husband and I decided to join the tour groups for one night for a medieval castle banquet. We went in with an open mind figuring it would be hokey but fun, and food fair at best. We were pleasantly surprised. First off, this banquet, although plays some homage to the fact it's in a castle, is not all that medieval. Our food was rather modern, as was the entertainment. That said the food was simple, but yummy (especially the potatoe and leak soup). The entertainment was really great - wonderful diverse singing, and great harp playing. I would recommend it to any foreigner looking for a good night out with some authentic Irish music in a castle.

Went here for a medieval night. It was ok but the whole thing felt rushed. They put on two shows in an evening and do try to push you through pretty quickly. Beautiful castle but a mediocre medieval night :-(

Easy to access and with a large car park we enjoyed our side trip to the castle. The admission fee was reasonable and it was nice to be able to see the various floors and imagine previous lives in the tower castle. The ability to get out at the top was also enjoyable. An easy visit