Kilmainham Gaol. Co. Dublin
COVID-19 update: Re-opening and Your Visit
We are delighted to announce that Kilmainham Gaol Museum will re-open to visitors on Friday 30 July.
As restrictions on indoor guided tours remain in place, we are offering an alternative experience for our visitors. Ticket holders will be able to view the interior of the ground floor of the Gaol, while your guide will provide some interpretation of the Gaol’s vast history in the outdoor spaces. Your ticket also includes access to the Stonebreaker’s Yard and entrance to the Museum and “The Forgotten Ten” exhibition.
Admission is free for 2021, but all visitors including children and Heritage Card users require a ticket. It is essential to pre-book tickets online. Please do not arrive without booking in advance, as you will not gain entry.
To ensure the safety of our visitors & staff, Kilmainham Gaol is reopening at a reduced capacity. If you are unable to attend your scheduled visit for any reason, please let us know so we can release your tickets. Any cancellation or additional tickets for the day will be released online between 9:15am – 9:30am.
Visitors over the age of 13 are required to wear a face covering during their visit.
Wheelchair users and visitors with additional needs should not book tickets on-line. Please contact us in advance to arrange your visit: [email protected]
Please see our Covid-19 Visitor Guidelines. The guidelines will also answer many of your FAQs.
Tours
Entrance to Kilmainham Gaol is by escorted tour and is managed through timed tickets. Online booking is required. Please do not travel to Kilmainham Gaol if you have not booked tickets. Cancellation tickets for the day will be released online between 9:15am – 9:30am.
Please note that the online system is for use by individuals and not for group bookings. Please refer to our terms and conditions. .
Kilmainham Gaol
Kilmainham Gaol is one of the largest unoccupied gaols in Europe. It opened in 1796 as the new county gaol for Dublin and finally shut its doors as such in 1924. During that period it witnessed some of the most heroic and tragic events in Ireland’s emergence as a modern nation.
Among those detained – and in some cases executed – here were leaders of the rebellions of 1798, 1803, 1848, 1867 and 1916, as well as members of the Irish republican movement during the War of Independence and Civil War.
Names like Henry Joy McCracken, Robert Emmet, Anne Devlin and Charles Stewart Parnell will always be associated with the building. Not to be forgotten, however, are the thousands of men, women and children that Kilmainham held in its capacity as county gaol.
Kilmainham Gaol is now a major museum. The tour of the prison includes an audio-visual presentation.
Kilmainham Gaol opened in 1796 as the new County Gaol for Dublin. It closed its doors in 1924.
Today the building symbolises the tradition of militant and constitutional nationalism from the rebellion of 1798 to the Irish Civil War of 1922-23. Leaders of the rebellions of 1798, 1803, 1848,1867 and 1916 were detained and in some cases executed here. Many members of the Irish Republican movement during the Anglo-Irish War (1919-21) were also detained in Kilmainham Gaol, guarded by British troops. Names such as Henry Joy McCracken, Robert Emmet, Anne Devlin, Charles Stewart Parnell and the leaders of 1916 will always be associated with the building. It should not be forgotten however that, as a county gaol, Kilmainham held thousands of ordinary men, women and children. Their crimes ranged from petty offences such as stealing food to more serious crimes such as murder or rape. Convicts from many parts of Ireland were held here for long periods waiting to be transported to Australia. Kilmainham Gaol Museum is operated and managed by the Office of Public Works.
Notice
Please note that this is a very busy site all year round and visitors may experience delays at certain times. During winter months the interior of the Gaol is very cold — please dress appropriately.
Closed 24th, 25th and 26th of December.
- Baby Changing
- Bicycle Parking
- Bookshop
- Cafe
- Exhibition.
Restrictions.
- Access by Guided Tour Only
- Hold hand rail
- Uneven walkways.
Inchicore Road,
Kilmainham,
Dublin 8
D08 T2X5.
Getting Here
3.5km from centre of Dublin.
