Things to do in Rathgar
Attractions, heritage sites and walks around Rathgar, drawn from open data. Distances are straight-line from the town centre.
In brief
Rathgar is a town in County Dublin about 4 km from Dublin city centre. Open datasets list 557 Fáilte Ireland visitor attractions within 10 km, eight national monuments open to visitors within 20 km. Everything below comes from published sources, refreshed regularly.
Attractions near Rathgar
Visitor attractions listed by Fáilte Ireland within 10 km (top 12 of 557).
- Rathfarnham Castle located in South Dublin is one of the earliest examples of a fortified house in Ireland. Built in 1583, it was substantially remodelled in the…
- Bushy Park is a peaceful Dublin City park noted for its woodland walks, ornamental ponds and beautiful Dodder Walk as well as catering for football, tennis, skate…
- Eamonn Ceannt Park is located between Sundrive Road and Clogher Road, in the Crumlin area of South Dublin City. It includes numerous mature trees, an athletic track,…
- MART Gallery is an arts organisation founded in 2007 by Matthew Nevin & Ciara Scanlan. The mission is to provide creative art studios and promote contemporary art…
- The Irish Jewish Museum is located in a former synagogue in Dublin City. The museum highlights the place of Jewish influence in Ireland's cultural and historic heritage.
- Gerard Byrne Studio, Art Gallery & Artist Studio is dedicated to showcasing the work of Gerard Byrne, one of Ireland’s leading visual artists renowned for his command…
- The Presbyterian Church on Adelaide Road in Dublin City centre was built in 1840. The church has a rare early 19th century interior in a simple Greek revival style.
- The Copper House Gallery is dedicated to making and exhibiting art. They promote contemporary Irish photography, illustration and art, housing extensive fine art…
- The Iveagh Gardens are located in Dublin City centre and considered a hidden gem. They were designed in 1865 and combine French formal and English landscape styles.
- Brickfield Park in Drimnagh is a Dublin city park with an all-weather pitch, located between the Crumlin Road and Mourne Road. To the north of the well-known Iveagh…
- The Dublin Liberties Distillery, established in 2019, is a whiskey experience in the heart of Dublin City. Please note: The distillery is temporarily closed and tours…
- Experience first hand the sights and sounds of a fully operational distillery. The Teeling Whiskey Distillery is one of Dublin City’s premier destinations for whiskey…
Heritage and monuments
National monuments open to visitors within 20 km.
- The original castle at Rathfarnham dates back to the Elizabethan period and was built for Archbishop Adam Loftus, an ambitious Yorkshire clergyman, who came to Ireland as chaplain to the Lord Deputy and quickly rose to…
- Sited in the heart of the walled medieval city, St Audoen's Church is the only remaining medieval parish church in Dublin. It is dedicated to St Ouen the 7th century bishop of Rouen and patron saint of Normandy.
- St. Mary's Abbey is one of Dublin's best kept secrets. It was once the wealthiest Cistercian Abbey in Ireland. Today only two rooms remain - the Chapter House and the Slype.
- One of the largest unoccupied gaols in Europe, covering some of the most heroic and tragic events in Ireland's emergence as a modern nation from 1780s to the 1920s.
- Today the wedge tomb at Kilmashogue is located in forestry, but originally it would have been situated on an open mountain side overlooking the lowlands now occupied by Dublin city.
- The Casino was designed by Sir William Chambers as a pleasure house for James Caulfeild, 1st Earl of Charlemont.
- Today Monkstown Castle is situated in the suburbs of Dublin. In medieval times the castle here was the centre of a large farm owned by the Cistercian monks of St.
- The old church of Tully near Cabinteely is situated on a low hill overlooking much of south county Dublin and has fine views of the Dublin Mountains.
Walks and nature
Waymarked trails from Sport Ireland's National Trails Register and NPWS parks and nature reserves, starting near Rathgar and across Co. Dublin.
- Ireland's largest national park and the only one in the east, almost 23,000 hectares of blanket bog, heath, oak woodland and upland lakes south of Dublin.
- North Bull Island Nature ReserveA UNESCO biosphere on a sandy island in Dublin Bay, internationally important for wintering wildfowl and waders.
- Rogerstown Estuary Nature ReserveA tidal estuary near Rush that is a key roost for Brent geese and other wintering birds.
- Baldoyle Estuary Nature ReserveA sheltered north Dublin estuary and saltmarsh, important for wintering waterfowl.
Plan around Rathgar
- What's on across Leinster this week, refreshed every Monday.
- Thinking of moving here? Living in Rathgar covers prices, rents and schools. Median sale price €1,075,000.
- See every nationally rated heritage building and monument in our heritage guide to Co. Dublin.
Attraction data from Fáilte Ireland Open Data (CC BY 4.0), last refreshed 13 July 2026. Monuments from the National Monuments Service and heritage buildings from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage (both data.gov.ie, CC BY 4.0). Trails from Sport Ireland's National Trails Register. Parks and reserves from the National Parks and Wildlife Service. Opening hours and admission can change; check the linked site before travelling.