Ireland Part 2: From the Irish National Stud & Gardens to Ashford Castle

Our recent trip to Ireland was so incredible that we’ve decided to return next year. You can read more about our Irish adventures here. This article focuses on exploring Ireland with little ones (and I don’t mean the Leprechauns!) On this part of our journey, my 5-year-old daughter Merrin visited the National Stud of Ireland, the Cliffs of Moher, and Ashford Castle.

The Irish National Stud & Gardens

I booked the start of our trip specifically with Merrin in mind. First up, a visit to the The Irish National Stud & Gardens. The Irish National Stud is a Thoroughbred horse breeding facility in Tully East, County Kildare, Ireland. Prior to this visit, I had no idea that horses and horse racing are such a huge part of Irish culture. 

March was a great time to visit the National Stud, as we were able to see many foals. The weather also cooperated beautifully.  We took the free, guided tour, which was very worthwhile. Our guide was super knowledgeable about the history of the National Stud, the horses who were born at the National Stud, and the horses currently residing there for various reasons. If you visit the National Stud, be sure to check out the gorgeous Japanese Gardens on site. They would be a great venue for a picnic, proposal, or photo session in dry weather. 

Cliffs of Moher

Weather permitting, I also recommend taking kiddos to the Cliffs of Moher. Even though it was super windy and cold the day we did the Cliffs, Merrin was kind enough to pose for this photo with us. On a better day, it would have been really nice to put Merrin in the stroller and push her along the edge (but not too close!). I am guessing that older kids would get a kick out of how high the Cliffs are, and the whole family probably would enjoy seeing puffins nesting on the Cliffs. Their breeding season begins in April and goes through late July. 

Ashford Castle

Many of the kid-friendly activities we experienced were through Ashford Castle, on the edge of Connemara. We stayed here for two nights.  Ashford Castle is expensive (less so for us, because we were there in the off season). Next time we visit, I probably will book it through either the Chase or the American Express portal to mitigate the cost. That said, this castle is extremely kid-friendly, super fun, and we definitely will return next year.    

Available Activities at Ashford

Ashford Castle is a one-stop shop for every fun Irish (and mostly kid-friendly) activity you can imagine. The list of activities on the website is not comprehensive. We were not able to participate in any of the following activities either because of Merrin’s age or because we just did not have time: archery, tree climbing, golf, clay shooting, horse riding, fishing, cycling, kayaking, stand up paddle boarding, an off-road driving tour of Connemara, and (the one I won’t be missing next year) a sheep dog demonstration. 

Our first activity of the full day at Ashford Castle was ziplining, which Mike (my husband) and I had never done before. Merrin was too young to participate. She kindly waited on the first platform with one of our instructors and gave us tips and updates (mainly about how much time was left before her pony ride).  We picked up the “how-to” of ziplining pretty quickly and had a great time flying through the forest.  Both of us got up the courage to go hands-free, but I was not quick enough to grab the handle and avoid a butt landing at the end of the course. I feel pretty confident that older kids would love the zipline and that they would be a lot more graceful than I was.     

Ashford Pony Ride

Merrin was excited but also super nervous about the pony ride, having never been on a horse before.  Her pony, Biscuit, is in his twenties and seems to be made for teaching children to ride. After a few laps around the indoor arena while holding either Mike’s hand or mine, Merrin decided she was ready to take a ride up to the castle. By the end of the lesson, Merrin and Biscuit were trotting under the watchful eye and guidance of her instructor, Fergal. Fergal said that this activity could be hard on our pocketbook, given Merrin’s enthusiasm. He may be right!  Merrin was very sad that they couldn’t fit her in for another pony ride before we left.  

Ashford Hawk Walk

Our final activity was a favorite for all of us – the hawk walk. Humans have used birds of prey as hunting partners for centuries, something I didn’t realize before planning our Ireland trip. The birds at Ashford Castle are Harris Hawks, which are native to North America. The falconers at Ashford Castle work with Harris Hawks because these birds naturally work in groups to hunt and are, therefore, easy to train. Our bird, Andes, would fly off in search of prey and would return to our glove when offered something to eat.  The falconer, Mel, would alert Andes to the presence of a treat with a whistle. Merrin loved the hawk walk, even though she is too young to wear the glove, and even started whistling for Andes when Mel would prompt her. I highly recommend doing a hawk walk or other falconry demonstration when you travel to Ireland. 

In Conclusion:

For all the activities we did at Ashford Castle and all the ones we didn’t have a chance to do, remember that most of them also can be organized through other outfitters. I found various options for sheep dog demonstrations and hawk walks, for example, when we were planning our trip, and we looked at the possibility of Mike doing a horse ride on the beach when we visited Ballynahinch Castle in Connemara National Park.   

Merrin said her favorite activities of the whole trip were the pony ride and the hawk walk. I’m looking forward to planning more fun things she doesn’t even know she wants to do when we return to Ireland next year!   

Why I Plan to Return Next Year

I’m always planning the next trip, even when the current trip hasn’t ended, so we discussed how to spend our time off in 2023. After considering a trip to a different part of Europe that won’t require my husband, Mike, to drive on the left side of the road (or just in an unfamiliar place that’s tricky), we decided to do another Ireland trip next year.   

There are three primary reasons for this decision. 

• First, there’s so much of Ireland to see, and we just haven’t seen enough of it yet. We had to skip the Ring of Kerry this time, we would like to spend more time on the Dingle Peninsula, Donegal County sounds amazing and different, and we did not make it up to Northern Ireland to see the Giant’s Causeway. 
• Second, Mike met for the first time two cousins and an aunt who he has never had the opportunity to know. We would like to get back to Ireland to see these cousins and aunt again and possibly meet other cousins. 
•  Finally, we don’t feel like we’re finished with Ireland, because our daughter, Merrin, who is almost six years old, really won’t be the right age for a lot of typical European city activities, like art museums and historical tours, in a year.  She most definitely would find the typical city activities we enjoy to be “boring.”   

Cementing our decision is the fact that the Irish people were so welcoming to all three of us!