Fanad House
+2 photosAbout Fanad House
Fanad House is a Fáilte Ireland approved 3-star guest house in Kilkenny, on the Kilkenny coast, listed on Fáilte Ireland’s official register of quality-assured accommodation. It is a smaller, owner-run house of 12 rooms, the kind of place where you deal with the people who actually run it.
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Claim this listingStaying in Kilkenny
One of Ireland’s best-preserved medieval cities, built along the River Nore and threaded together by the Medieval Mile.
Kilkenny grew up around a Norman stronghold on the River Nore, and it still reads that way today: a compact hilltop city of narrow lanes, limestone townhouses and church spires, anchored at one end by Kilkenny Castle and at the other by St Canice’s Cathedral. Strongbow’s son-in-law William Marshal built the first stone castle here in the early 13th century, and the Butler family, later Marquesses and Dukes of Ormonde, held it as their seat for the best part of 600 years, right up until 1967.
A B&B in Kilkenny puts you inside all of that. The Medieval Mile, the old route connecting the castle to the cathedral, links Rothe House, the Black Abbey, the Butter Slip and a run of pubs and restaurants that make the most of buildings older than the state itself. It is a genuinely walkable city, so most guesthouses sit within easy reach of the castle parklands, the river walks and the shopping streets around High Street and Kieran Street.
Kilkenny has also carried a reputation as Ireland’s craft and design capital since the Kilkenny Design Workshops were set up in the 1960s to raise the standard of Irish craft production. That legacy lives on in the Kilkenny Design Centre across from the castle and in the National Craft Gallery, and it gives the city a different texture to the average Irish county town, more workshops and studios than souvenir shops.
It is also a natural base for exploring the southeast. Kilkenny sits within striking distance of the Rock of Cashel, Waterford city and the Hook Peninsula, and the city’s own calendar, from the Kilkenny Arts Festival to the Cat Laughs comedy festival, gives plenty of reasons to make a night of it rather than just passing through.
Things to do near Fanad House
Kilkenny Castle and Parklands
Begun by William Marshal in the early 1200s on the site of Strongbow’s original fort, Kilkenny Castle was remodelled by the Butler family into the Victorian-Gothic house visitors see today. The state rooms and Long Gallery are open for tours, and the surrounding parklands along the Nore are open to the public year-round and free to walk.
St Canice’s Cathedral and round tower
This 13th-century cathedral gives the city its name (Cill Chainnigh, the church of Canice) and sits beside a 9th-century round tower, one of the few in Ireland that visitors can still climb for a view over the city and the surrounding countryside.
The Medieval Mile
The old route between the castle and the cathedral takes in Rothe House, a rare surviving Tudor merchant’s house, the Black Abbey, and the Butter Slip, a narrow medieval laneway that once housed the city’s butter market. It is the best way to see how much of medieval Kilkenny survives at street level.
The Smithwick’s Experience
Brewing on this site goes back to Franciscan monks in the 13th century and was formalised by John Smithwick in 1710, making it one of the oldest brewing sites in Ireland. The guided tour runs through that history along the Medieval Mile and finishes with a tasting.
Kilkenny Design Centre and the National Craft Gallery
Set up in the old castle stableyard as part of the state’s push to professionalise Irish craft in the 1960s, this cluster of studios and shops, along with the National Craft Gallery next door, is why Kilkenny is still known as a design and craft city rather than just a heritage one.
Kyteler’s Inn
One of the city’s oldest pubs, associated with Alice Kyteler, who was tried for witchcraft in Kilkenny in 1324 in one of the earliest such cases recorded in Ireland or Britain. It is a working pub today, but the building carries that history openly.
Day trips around the southeast
Kilkenny’s location makes it an easy base for the Rock of Cashel, Waterford city and its Viking Triangle, or the beaches and Hook Head Lighthouse on the Hook Peninsula, all within roughly an hour’s drive.
Getting to Kilkenny
Kilkenny sits on the M9, a little over an hour from Dublin and around forty minutes from Waterford, which makes it an easy self-drive stop in the southeast. Kilkenny MacDonagh Station carries Iarnród Éireann trains on the Dublin to Waterford line, and Bus Éireann services connect the city to Dublin, Cork and Waterford. The centre is compact and largely walkable once you arrive, though some of the older streets can confuse sat-nav, so it is worth having your B&B’s Eircode to hand.
Booking Fanad House direct, and what the rating means
A real, assessed guest house
Fanad House holds a 3-star guest house rating under Fáilte Ireland's National Quality Assurance Framework, assessed against the bedrooms, bathrooms, breakfast and welcome rather than self-declared. It's an independent signal you can trust before you book, separate from any platform's own review score.
No fees, no middleman
Ring the owner, or use the contact details on this page, and arrange the stay with the house rather than through an app. No booking fee added to your bill and no commission taken from the owner, so the room rate you agree is the room rate you pay.
A better stay, direct
Owners answer the questions a booking platform never will: whether the room at the front is quieter, how early breakfast can be served, or where to park for a few days. Speaking to the house directly is how B&Bs in Ireland were booked for decades.
Still deciding where to base yourself? Browse more B&Bs in Kilkenny.
Check availability at Fanad House
Send the owner the details of your stay and they will come back to you directly. No booking fee, no platform in between, just Kilkenny on the other end.
Fanad House, common questions
Where is Fanad House?
Fanad House is at Castle Road, Kilkenny, Co. Kilkenny (Eircode R95 YF98). Give the Eircode to your sat-nav to find the door.
How do I book Fanad House?
You contact the owner directly, by phone or the enquiry form on this page. DirectBnB adds no booking fee and takes no commission, so you arrange the stay with the house itself and pay the room rate with nothing on top.
What star rating does Fanad House have?
Fanad House is a Fáilte Ireland approved 3-star guest house under Fáilte Ireland's National Quality Assurance Framework, and guests rate it 4.3 out of 5 across 295 Google reviews.
Is Fanad House suitable for families?
Yes, Fanad House is listed as family friendly. Ask the owner directly about room configurations and cots when you book.
How many rooms does Fanad House have?
Fanad House has 12 rooms. As a smaller, owner-run house it is worth booking ahead, particularly in summer and over weekends.
More in Kilkenny
See more B&Bs in Kilkenny
Browse every checked B&B and guesthouse in County Kilkenny, and book each one direct with the owner.