Some destinations have a way of making you feel at home while keeping you constantly surprised. Waterford, Ireland, is one of those destinations. Each turn around the corner, every sip, every bite, and comedically told story kept me on my toes, ready for more views, more stories, hungry for more bites, thirsty for more drams.
Ireland’s oldest city, Waterford, turned 1111 this year. Founded in 914 AD by Vikings, it is the country’s oldest urban centre and while Dublin has outgrown it vastly since, Waterford is an important heritage stop in Ireland’s history.
Stretching along the Atlantic coast, County Waterford encompasses scenic coastal villages, notable historic cities, and breathtaking rocky beaches. The wine capital of Ireland and the birthplace of St Patrick’s Parade, Waterford’s deep history serves as a backdrop for everything in the region, but the personality of the city is found in its people, gathering in its many pubs over hearty food and (mostly) cold pints.
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The trip was hosted by Visit Waterford; the DMO did not review or approve this story.
All images by Kateryna Topol.
Waterford Marina Hotel, Waterford, Ireland.
The Viking beginnings and the tall tales of Waterford
Waterford is set on the shore of River Suir, connecting the two river banks by an arched bridge. The river flows through 185 kilometres of County Tipperary and County Waterford before entering the Celtic Sea section of the Atlantic Ocean (Muir Cheilteach in Irish). Despite the distance, on a nice weather day, you might be lucky enough to see dolphins from the terrace of the Waterford Marina Hotel, a newly renovated boutique hotel we called home during this visit.
The historic centre is just a block away from the river, made up of a museum cluster, The Viking Triangle, and cobblestone side streets dotted with beautiful pubs, storefronts, and restaurants. We meet our Epic Walking Tour guide on the steps of the Cathedral Square, joined by couples and families from around the world. Pivoting through the city streets, we walk through a thousand years of history, passing through the old city gates, pausing in the Viking Triangle, and hearing often comedic stories behind other monuments, dating back to 1190 AD.
Epic Guided Walking Tour
Tour times: 12 PM, 2 PM and 4 PM daily
Duration: 45 minutes
Tickets: Adults: €10 | Children under 16: Free
The tour is included in the Freedom of Waterford Pass
Book on waterfordtreasures.com or Get Your Guide
A fun alternative is The Bridgerton Tour, focused on the history and scandalous affairs of the Bishop’s Palace.
On the left: Our Epic Tour guide standing next to the 23-meter-long Dragon Slayer Sword, hand-carved from a giant Douglas fir tree, depicting the Viking history of the city. On the right, Strongbow and Aoife sculpture, a tale of an epic love story from the days when no woman can be forced into a marriage she didn’t want to be a part of.
For many years, Waterford was the trading centre of Ireland, and much of this history is shared through its museum cluster: Medieval Museum (aka Waterford Treasures Museum), Bishop’s Palace, The Irish Museum of Time, and The Irish Silver Museum – all included in the Freedom of Waterford Pass.
The epicentre of Irish wine trade
Many of the museums and city buildings include a portion of the old city wall. The Medieval Museum, which contains perhaps the biggest piece, is where we step into a dim wine cellar to learn about the city’s wine trade. This bit of history I was not expecting, and was abruptly stumped by the wine trade displays, we are on an island, after all. My mind haze was interrupted by Donnchadh O Ceallachain, the museum keeper, who summarised the important bits of it all, guiding me through the building, sharing stories, pointing out artefacts, and architectural quirks.
While no wine was produced on the island, tons of it were imported by ships from Rome, Greece, France, and other European regions. For a time, wine was used as currency by Vikings to pay off their Irish overlord, King Brian Boru. As the city grew, the business of wine became synonymous with its politics. Gascony wine merchant Eymar de Godard, for example, held the mayoral role four times, starting in 1304. A century later, another wine merchant, Peter Rice, became a three-time mayor, passing the leadership torch to his son James, who held on to that position for eleven terms.
At the time, water quality was incredibly unhealthy, making wine a safe hydration choice and Waterford the greatest importer of wine in Ireland. Remnants of wine history are on display at the Medieval Museum in Peter Rice’s wine cellar, while a 13th-century stone-vaulted wine vault was recently found completely intact under the Bishop’s Palace.
Medieval Museum, Waterford, Ireland, is seen above and below. In the middle is one of the remaning city gates.
History through artefacts
The remaining two floors of the Medieval Museum show the dark and joyful centuries of Waterford’s history, the false kings, religious prosecutions, and civil war rebels. The rest of the museums are much smaller, each with its own niche focus. The Irish Museum of Time, for example, houses an impressive collection of clocks and watches, with 600+ timepieces on display and in the vaults. This visit can be a short stroll or hours spent examining the intricate ticking creations.
Reginald’s Tower and the Viking boat at its foot are the most popular attractions in the city. The tower was built in three stages and had many lives begining as a Viking fort, the strongest point of the medieval defensive walls. Over the years, it served as a mint, a storage facility for instruments of war, and for about 50 years operated a women’s prison on the top floor. Nicknamed “the ballroom” because of the less-than-ideal temperature conditions (women would dance to stay warm), the prison has many unique stories, including one of Meg Collender, who frequented the Ballroom 150 times for drunk and disorderly.
At the foot of the tower is a replica Viking Long Boat, called Vadrafjordr, the Viking name for Waterford. The longboat is modelled after the famous Viking ships found at Roskilde, in Denmark, one of which was built in Ireland using Irish oak. The boat was not built for use on water, merely for skills training and decorative purposes. But according to our tour guide, Vadrafjordr had its moment at sea during a Winter Festival a few years back, carrying Santa across the river, slowly sinking en route.
Whether you choose a walking tour or to explore the city on your own, the promise is 1,000 years of history in 1,000 paces, leaving you enough time in the day to take a leisurely lunch break and a lengthy dinner.
Freedom of Waterford Pass
Includes five attractions and the walking tour
Adults: €18 | Children under 16: Free
Purchase on waterfordtreasuresbookings.com.
Reginald’s Tower and the Vadrafjordr Viking boat, Waterford, Ireland.
Displays and a window at The Irish Museum of Time, Waterford, Ireland.
The Reg, Waterford. Below on the right is an example of one of the Sallyports boots.
Everything happens in the pub
Upon arrival in Dublin, I was met by a local travel community friend who naturally recommended a gathering at the pub. As a novice to Irish pubs, I followed him through the busy streets past many pubs until we reached the acceptable, less-touristy option. In County Waterford, there are no touristy pubs.
Irish pubs are generationally family-owned community hubs offering live music, fantastic food, and uniquely maximalist decor. Stunning from inside out, similar in feel yet uniquely different from one another, each pub is a reflection of the community it serves.
Tucked away behind the Reginald’s Tower is The Reg, built around the 900-year-old medieval City Wall. This pub is an institution, split into multiple areas across two floors. The main dining room is respectfully designed to include two Sallyports – stone arches previously used as passages, now converted into dining booths, bringing guests literally inside the City Wall.
Taking a brief break from examining the historic decor and robust whisky selection, I locked my eyes on the menu. Salads, seafood, chicken wings, duck, and Katsu chicken curry … I felt my eyes grow bigger than my stomach, finally landing on Prawns, Pimentro, and Chorizo as a starter and Dunmore Seafood Pie as the main. This was going to be a meal to beat, we both agreed, ending dinner with local whisky.
The prawn starter at The Reg was an immediate hit, flavourful, fresh, and with a hint of spice, it’s a dish I could eat weekly. And then there was the fluffy mashed potato pie with gratinated cheese, blanketing the decadent seafood mix, the thought of which still makes me salivate.
The Reg offers live music nightly, and in the summer, they host The Churchyard Sessions in the nearby square every Saturday and a few select Fridays, bringing the pub and live music outside. Up until recently, Waterford was also home to Waterford Distillery, which unfortunately had to close recently, but a few bottles of it are still available on the shelves at local pubs. If you spot one, definitely give it a try.
On the opposite end of the city is a cluster of smaller pubs: Tully’s Bar Waterford, Thomas Maher Bar, and J. & K. Walsh Victorian Spirit Grocer. Establishments in Ireland close earlier than those in Canada and closing hours found on Google might not match the real hours. On this particular weeknight, J. & K. Walsh Victorian Spirit Grocer was shut by 10 PM, and the rest followed within the hour. “But then, there is the lock-in,” locals kept insisting in mixed conversations, a term for when the closing time comes, but you get to stay back with the barkeep behind closed doors.
Our nightcap route led to the Thomas Maher Bar, an 1886 long pub with an enclosed terrace out back. A few small wooden chairs and tables lined against the wall face the traditional wood bar stocked top to bottom with whisky, top shelf lined with dusty vintage Guinness bottles.
Before Guinness was served on draft in the 80s, each pub did their own bottling. Barrels of Guinness were shipped across the country to be poured, bottled, labelled, and stored for 28 days before service in each pub. Thomas Maher has a longstanding Guinness relationship and still offer small batch pours at the pub, most of which, according to the barkeep, is preferred at room temperature by local Guinness drinkers.
Having made friends with a regular pub patron, neither of us quite noticed when the doors locked. “Every drunken pub conversation will end with a discussion of its turbulent history,” I read somewhere days after, and that is exactly what happened today. From small talk to travel talk, to beer talk and tasting, we covered a lot of ground with our new Irish friends. “Have you done the Copper Coast Drive?” he asked, “Tomorrow!” I couldn’t hide the excitement. “Oh, well, happy days then,” he commented.
Traditional bottled Guinness, served at room temperature at Thomas Maher Bar, Waterford. Thomas Maher Bar interior decor and backbar.
An afternoon garden break
With a new day comes a new adventure, and this is a short drive from the city, at Mount Congreve Gardens and Country Estate. Mount Congreve House, built in 1760, is home to six generations of the Congreve family. A project of Ambrose Congreve, the garden works began in the 1950s and were inspired by Exbury Gardens in Southampton (UK). Today, the Mount Congreve Gardens is the largest private collection of plants in the world, often described as the “Great Garden of the World”. The garden collection has plants from every continent, weaving through the property in intricate walking paths, occasionally mimicking a rainforest. The feel and scent of the gardens change seasonally with flowering plants making an annual membership worthy of serious consideration.
The Stables Café at Mount Congreve Gardens is tucked away behind the gift shop with a sunny terrace looking out at the greenery. Open daily for breakfast and lunch The Stables is an award-winning cafe offering meals prepared with fresh, local produce (including some grown on the property) by Chef Jean-Baptiste (JB) Dubois. Seated by a round window, sun streaming through the webbed glass, our expectations were met and exceeded by the decadent Stables Quiche (with a side of a tomato basil soup) and the chicken and bacon sandwich served on a house-baked bun.
Guests can now stay on the property at the self-catering Gate Lodge one of the other rental properties on the garden grounds.
Mount Congreve Gardens and Country Estate
Adults: €11.50 | Senior & student €10 | Children under 16: Free
Included in the Waterford Weekend Pass
Adults: €23.60 | Children under 16: Free
Purchase on mountcongrevebookings.com
White port spritz and a few interior images of the The Stables Café at Mount Congreve Gardens, Waterford.
Taking the slow route to Dungarvan
While there are many quaint towns and villages you can add to this road trip, one that fits perfectly is Dungarvan. Connected to Waterford by a scenic coastal route and Waterford Greenway the two cities are deeply interconnected.
Copper Coast Drive begins from a nearby town of Tramore and runs the 25km stretch to Dungarvan. If time permits, one could spend multiple days travelling along the coast, staying overnight in various small towns and spending slow afternoons at the beach. At the top of the route is a UNESCO Global Geopark where interactive displays and installations can provide context for the magnificent beauty about to unfold.
Being a bit restricted on such luxuries we made a few strategic stops in search of that epic Irish scenery you see on Pinterest boards and travel brochures. A quick stop with a short walk around Tankardstown Engine House offered a preview of the view but it is the beach stops that really take your breath away. With ten beach and cove stops to choose from, decisions had to be made quickly. Accommodating brisk walks and mini hikes along the shore, taking a moment to soak in the smell of fresh salty water, we stopped at Ballydwan Beach, Stradbally Cove, and perhaps the most secluded of them all, Clonea Beach. The coast is shaped by undersea volcanoes and shifting deserts, carving caves in black rock and giving root to lush greenery, setting contrast to the deep blue water in the distance. Each stop has something unique to offer, be it a wide rocky beach or a picturesque viewpoint.
The Park Hotel, Leisure Centre & Holiday Homes, Dungarvan, Ireland.
A leisurely stay in Dungarvan
On first glance, Dungarvan felt immediately smaller but as time past, the city showed us its many layers. For the night, we settled in at The Park Hotel, Leisure Centre & Holiday Homes, located on the outer perimeter of the city. Owned and operated by the Flynn family, Park Hotel is an elegant Georgian estate with a mix of hotel rooms and holiday rentals. On the property, guests have access to Meladon Bar & Brasserie (open quite late), The Garden Bar & Terrace, and Riverside Health Club, open to members and hotel residents.
A short walk into the city centre revealed to us another selection of colourful pubs. With a few minutes to spare before dinner, my partner insisted on grabbing a pint of Guinness at Merrys Gastro Pub. Yet another cosy pub with beautiful decor, friendly service, and delicious food, this easily could have been the stop for the night.
360 Cookhouse, just across the street, is a popular fine dining and celebration destination. The restaurant has a homey atmosphere with family-friendly decor, mixed sitting areas, and an airy garden room out back. The menu is seasonal and accompanied by cask wine options (in addition to the standard bar selections). In no time our mains hit the table: Aged Prime Hereford Sirloin Steak and shrimp tomato pasta. Neatly plated, both dishes were flavourful and perfectly cooked, giving us just a teaser of Dungarvan flavours. 360 Cookhouse is also home to The Dungarvan Comedy Club, something we’ll have to experience on the next visit.
This culinary corner of Dungarvan is only a couple of blocks away from the city centre. To the side of it is the Dungarvan Harbour, with its own set of establishments, a perfect spot to watch the sunset. In the main city square, locals split their budgets between Nagle’s Bar and The Local, both of which have spacious outdoor terraces. The walls in The Locals longbar are decorated edge to edge with old posters, Guinness advertisements, street signs, and other vintage memorabilia. The band take the booth by the bar, gathering friends and neighbours for a nightly performance.
The energy changes significantly in the morning, especially on market days with vendors from across the county setting up shops in the square. Along the perimeter, people gather for coffee at X35 and Cass & Co., which fronts a large home and housewares shop. Tucked away on a narrow street is Dún Artisan Bakery, which by 11 AM was already feeling sparse on pastries. Croissant and Foccacia sandwich in hand, we took one last loop around Dungarvan, taking in its vibrant energy, knowing that the next time we visit, the city will be bigger and even more vibrant than it feels today.
Getting to Waterford
The closest international airport is Dublin Airport (DUB). After that, renting a car is your best option to see the scenic Ireland. Driving the M9 highway from Dublin, you will cut through the island in about two hours, depending on the traffic. The M11 coastal route is more scenic and, without stops, can take about two-and-a-half hours. However, if you choose this route, consider making stops along the way in notable seaside villages and towns like Greystones, Wicklow, and Arklow. Extend this route by staying along the shore all the way to Wexford, and leave time to explore the shore.
