Office of Public Works announce free weekend admission for National Heritage Week 2024

The Office of Public Works (OPW) has announced two days of free admission to over 80 heritage sites on the 17th and 18th August, the opening weekend of National Heritage Week 2024.

Speaking at the OPW Launch of National Heritage Week, Kieran O’ Donnell TD, Minister of State for the Office of Public Works said:

“We are delighted to offer free admission to OPW Heritage sites on Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th August. With more than 80 sites across the country, there is truly something for everyone to enjoy. We hope that the public take full advantage of the range of creative, engaging, and imaginative events on offer for all ages.

“A thread that runs throughout National Heritage Week and the wider work of the OPW heritage services is to stimulate interest, meaningful inclusion and community connection. The OPW is pleased to support National Heritage Week to ensure individuals, groups and families can get out and explore all that the country and its heritage attractions have to offer. Our free admission days allow greater numbers of visitors to connect with our past and hopefully gain a deeper appreciation of the breadth and variety of sites cared for by the OPW. Clonmacnoise Monastic Site ties in perfectly with the theme. St Ciarán founded the monastery at this particular location due to its connections. It is accessible over roads but also via the River Shannon. A centre of learning, it became a university of its time, with a network of students all over Europe.”

Rosemary Collier, Head of Heritage Services & Capital Works Delivery said:

“At OPW, we work all year round to protect the heritage sites in our care. We provide the public with access to incredible sites and immersive tours. The theme for this year, “Connections, Routes and Networks” offers the opportunity to explore the ways we are connected to each other through physical or cultural connections. Our sites offer a rich tapestry of crafts and traditions that tell the story of the connections between our people, heritage, communities and culture. With more than 80 sites across the country, there is truly something for everyone to enjoy”.

This National Heritage Week, the OPW will invite visitors to explore the links between people and communities, to look at what brings us together and what connects us.

Physical routes dot the landscape, roads, paths, boreens, rivers and canals, and remind us that societies have always strived to connect. Discover a pathway into our past at Corlea Trackway Visitor Centre in the form of a togher – an Iron Age road – built in 148 BCE. More recently, at Derrynane House, a 190-year-old poem by Daniel O’Connell’s daughter led to the discovery of a lost pathway in dense woodlands to the north of the Liberator’s house.

The exploration of our intangible heritage through this theme allows us to understand our connections through sport, pastimes, hobbies, family connections, religion and traditions. At Ionad Cultúrtha an Phiarsaigh, Connemara – Pearse’s Cottage, you can explore what drew Patrick Pearse to Connemara – the area’s unique landscape and the ancient Gaelic culture and language which is still alive today.

Meanwhile, in Dublin, visitors to Pearse Museum – St Enda’s Park can see where the leader of the 1916 Rising, Patrick Pearse, and his brother Willie, lived and operated their pioneering Irish-speaking school from 1910 to 1916.

An initiative of the Heritage Council, supported by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, National Heritage Week focuses on engaging with heritage in all its forms whether as individuals, families, communities or organisations.

Welcoming the free admission initiative, Virginia Teehan, Chief Executive at the Heritage Council said:

"It gives me great pleasure to welcome the OPW’s decision to open over 80 of its sites for free admission during the opening weekend of National Heritage Week in 2024 - a testament to the excellent partnership we have shared with the OPW over many years. It will bring immense benefits to the public, allowing families and visitors to experience some of the richest and most beloved heritage sites in Ireland. National Heritage Week is a fantastic festival of events, where everyone from big organisations to small voluntary community groups come together to make significant contributions to the celebration of our national heritage.”

Over the coming weeks, a full programme of OPW National Heritage Week events will be announced. These include a collaboration between OPW and NPWS guides at Glendalough, a community-generated exhibition of the social history of the National Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin and an expert-led exploration of medieval pilgrimage in Tipperary at the Rock of Cashel.

Free admission to all fee-paying sites except for Kilmainham Gaol Museum. For a full list of OPW Heritage Sites, please see heritageireland.ie

National Heritage Week runs from the 17th to 25th August 2024. Visit heritageweek.ie for a full list of 2024 events

If you would like to speak with a nominated spokesperson on the announcement, please contact pressoffice@opw.ie

For further information, please contact pressoffice@opw.ie

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