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Elizabethan fortified house · Rathfarnham, County Dublin

Rathfarnham Castle, near Castleknock

For the contrast between a defensive exterior and elegant later rooms.

Elizabethan fortified house

The story behind Rathfarnham Castle

Adam Loftus built the house in the late sixteenth century. Its flankers and defensive openings survive alongside interiors reshaped in the eighteenth century. The result is a useful reminder that castles were altered to follow fashion as well as withstand attack.

What you will see

Explore the decorated rooms, portraits and exhibitions. The Ballroom and Gilt Room show the later domestic ambition particularly well. This is a house visit with substantial historic interiors, rather than an outdoor ruin or a rooftop climb.

Rathfarnham Castle, Rathfarnham, County Dublin
Rathfarnham Castle, Rathfarnham, County Dublin·AndrewH at English Wikipedia, public domain via Wikimedia Commons
Rathfarnham Castle, Rathfarnham, County Dublin·AndrewH at English Wikipedia, public domain via Wikimedia Commons

Resized and converted to WebP. Display may be cropped; the full photograph is linked.

Plan your visit

Ticketed admission

Adult admission is €5. May to September opening is daily 09:30 to 17:30, last entry 16:45. October to April, opening is Wednesday to Sunday and bank holiday Mondays, 10:30 to 17:00, last entry 16:15. OPW lists parking, a café, toilets and a lift. Check temporary notices and holiday closures.

Check the official visitor information ↗
Sources and checks
Kind
Castles
Address
Rathfarnham Road
From Castleknock
9.9 km south-east, in a straight line
Phone
+353 1 493 9462
Website
heritageireland.ie/places-to-visit/rathfarnham-castle
Run by
Office of Public Works

Getting to Rathfarnham Castle

Your journey, your way

Let’s get you to Rathfarnham Castle.

Choose where you are starting. We’ll work out the rest.

Going toRathfarnham CastleDestination: the mapped location
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3 When are you going?

All times are local to Ireland. Scheduled services, without live delay updates.

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About these directions

Public transport times come from National Transport Authority. Timetables cover 2026-09-18 to 2027-09-19. These are scheduled services; check with the operator for cancellations and changes before travelling.

Walking and driving times are estimates. A town search starts at its centre; choose your location or a point on the map for a more precise starting point. Eircode search is not available.

How journey planning works
Destination, access and nearby stops

Rathfarnham Castle is in Castleknock, County Dublin. Routes here end at the point the map records for this place. No entrance has been verified, so the last few metres are for you to judge.

It is 9.9 km south-east of the centre of Castleknock in a straight line, on Rathfarnham Road. The map records no stop within walking distance.
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Stops near it

The nearest scheduled stop is Rathfarnham Cstl (1304), 70 m away in a straight line. Use the planner to check walking connections for your journey.

  • Rathfarnham Cstl 70 m
    buses 16, 16D and 49n
    Scheduled departures from this stop
  • Rathfarnham 140 m
    buses 16, 15B, 74, 16D, 49n and 15D
    Scheduled departures from this stop
  • Butterfield Avenue 160 m
    buses S6, 15B and 15D
    Scheduled departures from this stop
  • Owendore Avenue 210 m
    buses S6, 15B, UM08 and 15D
    Scheduled departures from this stop
  • Grange Rd N 220 m
    buses S6 and 16
    Scheduled departures from this stop

Getting to Castleknock covers the journeys into the town itself.

Other castles in Castleknock

Nearest to Rathfarnham Castle first, and the figure beside each one is how far it is from Rathfarnham Castle, in a straight line. Same point, same measure.

All 15 castles in Castleknock

Questions people ask

Where is Rathfarnham Castle?
Rathfarnham Castle is in Rathfarnham, County Dublin. Distances on this page are measured from Castleknock in a straight line.
How do you contact Rathfarnham Castle?
Contact Rathfarnham Castle on +353 1 493 9462. Visit heritageireland.ie/places-to-visit/rathfarnham-castle.
How far is Rathfarnham Castle from the centre of Castleknock?
9.9 km south-east of the centre, measured in a straight line. The map above can work out the walk along the footpaths from wherever you are.
Are there other castles near Rathfarnham Castle?
15 in Castleknock altogether. The nearest are Clonskeagh Castle on Whitebeam Road, Knocklyon Castle and Drimnagh Castle.
How do you get to Rathfarnham Castle without a car?
The nearest stop in the national timetable is Rathfarnham Cstl, 70 m away in a straight line, and buses 16, 16D and 49n call there, run by Bus Átha Cliath – Dublin Bus and Nitelink, Dublin Bus. The planner on this page works out the walk from that stop over real footways and the whole journey from wherever you are starting, for the day and time you choose.

Where this comes from

From the map
The name, the kind of place, the address where the record carries one, and any website, phone or opening hours shown as recorded on the map are tags on OpenStreetMap way/23380072, and can be corrected there.
Worked out here
Every distance, the nearest road where the record has no address, which car park and which stop are nearest, and the order of the lists are this site’s own calculations from those records. Distances are straight lines between two points, not walks along the footpaths, and the map will route the real walk on request. A mistake in any of this is a mistake here rather than on the map.

Back to Castleknock·Getting to Castleknock·Castles in Castleknock