Celebrate Ireland’s national holiday in the heart of Ireland’s Ancient East with a BIG FESTIVAL IN A SMALL CITY.
15th – 18th March 2024
Enjoy several days of festival fun, with American Marching Bands, Street Entertainment, Funfair, Festival Market, Children’s Shows, Workshops, Live Music, Special Events and of course the St. Patrick’s Day Parade!
Parade Theme: Kilkenny Cats: Tales and Legends – From ancient tales to present day legends, Kilkenny has is all! Join us at our St. Patrick’s Day Parade, March 17th to see our tails come to life through the medieval streets of Kilkenny.
Highlights include: American Marching Bands, Street Entertainment, Funfair, Festival Market, Children’s Shows, Workshops, Live Traditional Irish Music, Special Events and of course the St. Patrick’s Day Parade
Celebrate Ireland’s national holiday in the heart of Ireland’s Ancient East with a BIG FESTIVAL IN A SMALL CITY! Kilkenny will come alive with pageantry, craic agus ceol this March 15th to 18th. Enjoy free events and scale the heights on the ‘big wheel’, glory in the sight of Kilkenny Castle as it lights up in green, enjoy American bands and performances, indulge in festival street food, ignite your senses with Traditional Irish Music and the main event – The St. Patrick’s Day Parade where families and visitors gather to watch the bands, dance troupes, artistic and colourful floats and so much more.
This year’s Parade theme is Kilkenny Cats: Tales and Legends. From ancient tales to present day legends, celebrate the history, culture, and heroes of Kilkenny with a colourful Parade through Kilkenny’s medieval streets.
It is widely known that Kilkenny is home to Ireland’s best festivals, combining culture, the arts, comedy with culinary and festive themes. Kilkenny pride themselves on creating a big festival atmosphere in a small city. Their return to the streets in 2022 saw 100,000 people visit the city and attend events across the 6 day festival. For 2024 St. Patrick’s Festival Kilkenny are continuing to build on this and are welcoming – musicians, street performers, theatre groups to enhance the entertainment and festive atmosphere in the city for the thousands of spectators.
Join in the fun at St. Patrick’s Festival Kilkenny 2024! Whether you’re a local community group, a marching band from abroad, a group from our twinned towns or a theatrical group from anywhere, they want you to spend St. Patrick’s Day in Ireland and take part in the St. Patrick’s Festival Kilkenny.
For music lovers, the St. Patrick’s Festival Kilkenny takes place alongside Kilkenny Tradfest, a traditional music festival with gigs from some of the best Irish Musicians offering everything from live music sessions, sing-alongs, from trad to folk and ballads. More details can be found here.
St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated all around the world, but there is nothing quite like celebrating it in Ireland. Kilkenny is an intimate city, with medieval streets and a 900 year old castle, full of warmth, culture, heritage and fun. It’s the kind of place where you’ll easily bump into the same person twice! With so much to see and do, and so many things happening around the St. Patrick’s Festival, Kilkenny it is the perfect place to be!
