Start your tour through the streets of Tullamore at O’Connor Square, the lively central plaza ringed by colourful shopfronts, cafés, and the handsome Town Hall—originally Acres Hall dating from 1790 and now home to municipal offices—whose classical proportions set a dignified tone for the town’s Georgian inheritance. This open space, with its benches and occasional market stalls, offers a fine vantage to observe the gentle pace of daily life before venturing onward.
A short walk along High Street or adjacent lanes leads to the prominent Church of the Assumption, a striking Catholic church whose spire rises above the rooftops, its interior featuring fine stained glass and a sense of quiet reverence typical of nineteenth-century ecclesiastical building. Nearby, glimpses of the Grand Canal appear, its calm waters and towpath inviting a detour to appreciate the engineering that once linked Tullamore to Dublin and beyond.
Proceed towards Bury Quay to reach the renowned Tullamore D.E.W. Distillery Experience, a modern visitor centre housed in a restored warehouse complex overlooking the canal. Here, the story of Ireland’s famous blended whiskey unfolds through interactive exhibits on distillation, maturation in those iconic green bottles, and the legacy of master blender Daniel E. Williams; even a brief exterior view of the site, with its towering stills and barrel stacks visible from the street, captures the essence of the town’s enduring association with the spirit.
From the distillery, follow the canal path or return via Bridge Street to Lloyd Town Park (also known as Tullamore Town Park), a peaceful green oasis with mature trees, ornamental beds, and pathways that wind around a small lake. This verdant retreat, popular with locals for picnics and promenades, provides a restful interlude with benches offering views across the water and occasional sightings of ducks and swans.
For those with energy remaining, a brief extension along the Grand Canal Greenway towpath reveals more of the waterway’s tranquil beauty, perhaps passing under stone bridges or glimpsing the distant silhouette of Charleville Castle—a Gothic Revival masterpiece in wooded grounds just beyond easy walking distance from the centre, famed for its haunted reputation and volunteer-led preservation.
This unhurried circuit, readily completed in an hour or so at a comfortable pace, distils Tullamore’s character: no ostentatious spectacles, but a satisfying mix of canal-side serenity, whiskey lore, well-preserved civic architecture, and pockets of greenery that reflect the town’s role as a welcoming Midlands crossroads.
Largest town walking tour
Antrim – Armagh – Carlow – Cavan – Clare – Cork – Derry – Donegal – Down – Dublin – Fermanagh – Galway – Kerry – Kildare – Kilkenny – Laois – Leitrim – Limerick – Longford – Louth – Mayo – Meath – Monaghan – Offaly – Roscommon – Sligo – Tipperary – Tyrone – Waterford – Westmeath – Wexford – Wicklow
Population of towns in county Offaly
Towns
Antrim – Armagh – Carlow – Cavan – Clare – Cork – Derry – Donegal – Down – Dublin – Fermanagh – Galway – Kerry – Kildare – Kilkenny – Laois – Leitrim – Limerick – Longford – Louth – Mayo – Meath – Monaghan – Offaly – Roscommon – Sligo – Tipperary – Tyrone – Waterford – Westmeath – Wexford – Wicklow
Villages
Antrim – Armagh – Carlow – Cavan – Clare – Cork – Derry – Donegal – Down – Dublin – Fermanagh – Galway – Kerry – Kildare – Kilkenny – Laois – Leitrim – Limerick – Longford – Louth – Mayo – Meath – Monaghan – Offaly – Roscommon – Sligo – Tipperary – Tyrone – Waterford – Westmeath – Wexford – Wicklow
County Offaly:
Ireland’s county Offaly is a county of historic depth and natural beauty, with the Clonmacnoise monastic site featuring ancient high crosses and a riverside setting along the Shannon. Tullamore’s historic distillery provides insights into Irish whiskey production, while the Bog of Allen Nature Centre explores the county’s unique peatlands. Other attractions include the Slieve Bloom Mountains’ hiking trails. Offaly is Ireland’s 18th largest county by size (1,998 square km) and ninth smallest by population (83,150). Population peaked at 146,857 in 1841 and reached its lowest point, 51,533 in 1961. In terms of hospitality, Offaly is Ireland’s 30th most visited (and third least visited) tourist county with around 37,000 international visitors per year.
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