Blarney Castle in Summer

The first time that I visited Blarney Castle was in winter. The second time I visited was during a glorious heat wave (the weather insisted on short sleeves and the sky was a beautiful blue late into the evenings). Summer sun filtered through the bright new season leaves, rhododendrons bloomed in all shades and the Golden Rain Tree in the Poison Garden was a sight to behold.

After a self-guided tour of the castle (keeping an eye out for interesting graffiti on the walls), we spent the rest of the day in the gardens. Blarney Manor (pictured above as a large house with turrets) is open to visitors in summer (no children allowed) at extra charge, but we decided to soak in the beauty of the sunshine this time instead.

You can get a small discount off the adults tickets if you buy them on-line (€12.50 for adults, €5.00 for kids, €32.00 for a family of 2 kids and 2 adults and €11.00 for students and seniors).  For June and August the gardens will be open from 9:00 until 19:00 (last chance to go in is at 18:30). They then start closing earlier (18:30 in September, 18:00 in October and 17:00 for November to February. March and April see the garden staying open until 18:00 again and in May it closes at 18:30).