Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre, for Newgrange and Knowth
About
Newgrange and Knowth are a few kilometres east of Slane, but you cannot drive to them. Every visit starts at the Office of Public Works visitor centre at Donore, on the south side of the Boyne, where you cross a footbridge to the shuttle bus depot and a bus that takes booked tour groups to the monuments. Access to Newgrange and Knowth is by guided tour only, tickets are limited and pre-booking is essential, and anyone who goes straight to the monuments is turned away. From March to the start of November the main option is the Brú na Bóinne tour with the Newgrange chamber, with one tour a day each for Newgrange or Knowth with the exhibition; from November to February only the Newgrange tour runs. There is no access to the chambers at Knowth. Online tickets are released at midnight Irish time, 30 days ahead for tours from April to the start of November and 7 days ahead for most of the winter, and cancellations come back on sale each morning between 08:30 and 09:30 and each afternoon between 15:00 and 16:00. The exhibition itself does not need booking. Third-party resellers are not authorised; buy only from Heritage Ireland.
Photos
Highlights
- ✓Guided tour into the passage and chamber at Newgrange
- ✓What the OPW calls the largest collection of megalithic art in western Europe
- ✓Exhibition at the visitor centre, no booking needed
Tips
- →Do not drive to Newgrange or Knowth; start at the Donore visitor centre or you will not get in.
- →Book on heritageireland.ie only. Tickets from any other site are refused at the door.
- →The Newgrange passage is low and narrow; email brunaboinne@opw.ie first if mobility or claustrophobia is a concern.
- →Unaccompanied under-18s are not admitted, and every child and infant needs a ticket.
Best Season
More Heritage Activities
The Hill of Slane
The ruins of a 1512 Franciscan friary and college on the hill where legend says St Patrick lit his Easter fire. Free, open, and a short walk or drive north of the village.
Slane Castle
The Conyngham family home since 1703 and Ireland's best-known concert venue. Open by appointment only: private tours from €150 for up to six, booked a week ahead.