Mountrath

Mountrath is a town in County Laois, with a population in 2022 of about 2100. In the 18th and 19th century it was industrial, with weaving and metal-working from local iron ores. It was also on the main Dublin to Limerick road, a traffic bottleneck until bypassed by M7 in 2010. Its name derives from Maighean Rátha, "the homestead of the ringfort", of which no trace remains.

By road from Dublin follow N7 / M7 to Portlaoise, where you need to take Exit 16 onto R445, otherwise you'll discover why folk say it's a long way to Tipperary. Until 2010 the main Dublin to Limerick road N7 was via Portlaoise, Mountrath and Borris, and horribly congested. Once M7 was extended this was down-classed to R445, becoming the longest regional road in Ireland, almost coast-to-coast. Odd that it hasn't been touted as a "heritage highway", an Irish Route 66 of Harley-Davidsons and TV travelogues, but they invented Wild Atlantic Way for that purpose.

Portlaoise is the nearest transport hub, with trains from Dublin Heuston towards Cork, Athlone and Galway, and buses from Dublin Airport and city centre.

Local Link Bus 834 runs 6 times a day from Portlaoise to Mountrath (30 min) and continues to Castletown, Borris-in-Ossory and Roscrea.

Local Link Bus 822 runs 3 or 4 times daily from Carlow via Abbeyleix, taking almost two hours.

Local Link Bus LS1 runs once M-F in the morning from Borris-in-Ossory to Mountrath, Portlaoise and Mountmellick, returning late afternoon.

Slieve Bloom Bus 832 runs three times M-Sa from Portlaoise to Mountrath, Borris-in-Ossory and Errill.

53.0035-7.47311 Main Street is how the main bus stop in Mountrath is usually shown on timetables.

You need wheels to reach the mountain trailheads, which are the main reason to be here.

• 53.0103-7.4231 Clonenagh along R445 was once an important abbey founded by St Fintan (526-603). It may have hosted the Synod of Ráth Breasail of 1111 AD, which aligned the early Irish church more closely with Rome, and organised it by parishes instead of monasteries. The main remnant is the series of cross slabs in the old graveyard. There was a holy well, but when it was filled in to curb superstition, folk marvelled that the copious rainfall still collected in the fork of a nearby sycamore, and transferred their venerations and imprecations to that. For the next 200 years pilgrims hammered coins into this "money-tree", to show how wonderfully resistant it was, until it wasn't. However the age of miracles is not gone: in the 21st century, not only did the tree re-grow, but much of Europe adopted the same money as Ireland, calling it the "Eire-oh".
• 52.971-7.48652 Gash Gardens, Gash, Castletown R32 K068, ☏ +353 87 272 8337. May-Sep Thu-Sat 11AM-5PM. Peaceful gardens, a hidden gem. They also have a nursery shop. Adult €7, child €2.  (updated Oct 2026)
• 53.0049-7.59253 Poet's Cottage in Camross is named for Patrick Ryan, an 18th / 19th century poet, but it's a modern replica.
• 53.077-7.6114 Stillbrook Hill at 514 m / 1686 ft and Carroll's Hill at 482 m / 1581 ft are nearby peaks of the Slieve Bloom Mountains on R440 towards Kinnitty.
• 52.94-7.6315 Borris-in-Ossory recalls in its name the ancient kingdom of Osraighe. This formed a narrow strip between Leinster and Munster, with its heyday as a Viking domain in the 9th century. Not much has happened since: St Mark's church with its stubby "Round Tower" is a piece of Victorian whimsy. Don't confuse this place with Borris in County Carlow.
• 52.9599-7.70716 Ballaghmore Castle: see Roscrea for this medieval turret.

• Slieve Bloom Mountains rise to the west to around 500 m. There's a 75 km three day hiking circuit, but most visitors day-trip.
• 52.9791-7.47951 Mountrath Golf Club, Knockanina R32 WY97, ☏ +353 57 873 2558. White tees 5735 m, par 71.  (updated Oct 2026)

• Centra on Main St is open M-Sa 7AM-9PM, Su 8AM-9PM. There's also a nearby Spar.
• Emo filling station on Portlaoise Rd has a Mace, and self-service pumps 24 hours.

• Brilliant Royal Asian Restaurant, 6 Shannon St, Mountrath R32 KF6P, ☏ +353 57 874 1900. Mon, Wed-Fri 4-11PM, Sat Sun 1-11PM. This gets good reviews for food, service and atmosphere. (updated Oct 2026)
• Gabriel's Kitchen on Main St R32 H99E is open W-Sun 9:30AM-5:30PM.
• Phelan's on Main St is open M-Sat 10AM-8PM, Sun 3-9PM.
• Mariana's Diner on Portlaoise Rd R32 KX24 is open M-Sa 10AM-11PM, Sun 4-11PM.

• Mountrath has Eddie Kirwan's, Fountain House and Tom's Bar.
• Castletown has Castletown Inn.
• Mountrath in 1800 had two distilleries, John Carr's and White Horse, but both disappeared early in the 19th century. Nowadays there's a liqueur distillery in Abbeyleix and a microbrewery across the hills in Kinnitty.

Mountrath is short of accommodation, there's much more in Portlaoise. For hiking in the mountains, another option is Kinnitty to the west.

• 53.0275-7.52491 Roundwood House, Mountrath R32 TK79, ☏ +353 57 873 2120. Upscale hotel in a Georgian mansion with excellent dining. No dogs. B&B double €250.  (updated Oct 2026)

As of Oct 2026, Mountrath and its approach roads have 5G from all Irish carriers.

• Abbeyleix doesn't have an abbey, but a notable bog and Heywood Gardens.
• Portlaoise is a transport hub with lots of accommodation and eating places. Its sights (such as Rock of Dunamase) are some distance out.
• Kinnitty is a good base for the west slopes of the Slieve Bloom Mountains.