A Visit to Blarney Castle, Ireland
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In September 2023, we went on a 3-day road trip across Ireland, making a number of stops along the way. One of the stops we made was at Blarney Castle in County Cork, and here is a guide on what you can expect if you also decide to visit!
Blarney Castle, County Cork, Ireland
Blarney Castle, County Cork, Ireland
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If you’re planning a trip to Ireland, you may or may not have heard of Blarney Castle. Most well-known for it’s experience of kissing the Blarney Stone, Blarney Castle sits in County Cork, and paying this beautiful sight a visit is definitely something you should consider if you’re planning an Ireland road trip.
Blarney Castle is roughly a 3-hour drive from Dublin, making it quite a popular location for a day trip. It’s known for it’s beautiful gardens, over 500 year old medieval castle, and of course, the Blarney Stone.
We made a full video of our Ireland road trip, including our visit to Blarney Castle! You can check it out here!
As of writing this article, entrance to Blarney Castle will set you back 20 euro per person, so it is a little steep, but the grounds are so big you could spend hours exploring. While there are many different sections of the grounds to explore, we’re going to focus on the main attraction, the Blarney Stone.
When you enter the grounds, head straight over to the big castle (it’s hard to miss). Here, you’ll begin to see signs guiding you as to where to line up to kiss the stone. Be prepared to line up, in fact, there are signs of estimated wait times, just like you would see in Disneyland. We went late morning in September, and the line was about a 30-minute wait, so if you are visiting during a more peak period like summer, be prepared to wait even longer.
As you make your way up to kiss the Blarney Stone there are some incredible views of the grounds!
Before we get into the experience itself, you’re probably wondering why anyone would want to kiss a stone that thousands of other people have kissed before you. Whilst there are numerous speculations on the history of the Blarney Stone, the power of the stone is fairly agreed upon - those that kiss the stone will receive the gift of eloquence. In other words, the gift of the gab! It’s basically the ability to talk your way out of anything. But does it actually work? Well, you’ll have to kiss it to find out!
Check out our article on the perfect 3-day Ireland road trip itinerary!
Walking up to the stone is an experience in itself. The staircase consists of 127 steps, and can be extremely narrow at times - it’s a real castle after all, and there are signs of that. You’ll spot thin window holes for archers and… the murder hole. What’s that? Well, it’s a hole where they used to murder people - be it with arrows from above, or pouring boiling liquids or hot tar onto unsuspecting victims below. When you get closer to the top, make sure you check out the amazing views out over the grounds.
Now to the kiss itself. If you have a fear of heights, prepare yourself. Kissing the stone quite an experience. Ever seen Spider-Man? You know the famous scene where he kisses MJ upside down? That’s kind of like how you kiss the stone (except with a lot less passion and tongue, please). This might sound like a super strange thing to do, however, it’s surprisingly popular. Over 400,000 people line up and kiss the stone every year! If you’re thinking that it doesn’t sound like a very hygienic experience, well we should probably also throw in that some have said that the stone used to be part of a deflector of a toilet back in the day! The price you pay for the gift of the gab!
The incredible photo Stace took of Rosh kissing the Blarney Stone and…
…the not so great photo Rosh took of Stace! Turns out filming and taking photos at the same time is quite difficult!
Now that you’ve got the gift of the gab, you can explore the rest of Blarney Castle! Check out the Carnivorous Garden and the Poison Garden, which is literally a garden filled with poisonous plants. For all you Harry Potter fans out there, keep an eye out for some familiar potion ingredients (like Mandrake!).
The Wishing Steps at Blarney Castle
You also have to check out the Witches Kitchen, nestled inside a giant tree. The story goes that a witch, known as the Witch of Blarney, is imprisoned by the nearby Witches Stone. Every night after nightfall, she escapes the stone and lights a fire in her kitchen, to keep herself warm. At dawn, she becomes trapped in the stone once again. Rumour has it, that if you come early enough in the morning, you may still see some embers lit!
Right next door to the Witches Kitchen are the Wishing Steps. Legend has it that if you walk down and back up these steps backwards, with your eyes closed, thinking only of your wish, the Blarney Witch will grant your wish! We’re still waiting for her to get around to ours.
Aside from these popular stops, the Blarney Castle has over 60 acres of grounds for you to explore. Most people will tell you to schedule in 3-4 hours here!
We had a lot of fun exploring Blarney Castle and would recommend adding it in to any Ireland itinerary!
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