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If you want to understand Ireland, visit a cemetery.
It’s not the most cheerful sales pitch, but it’s true. Glasnevin is where modern Ireland is buried: Daniel O’Connell, Charles Stewart Parnell, Michael Collins, Éamon de Valera, Countess Markievicz, and a million and more ordinary Dubliners alongside them. Walk round it with a good guide and you get the last two hundred years of Irish history, told grave by grave, with all the feuds still visible in where people were placed.
Why Glasnevin matters
Daniel O’Connell established Glasnevin in 1832 as a burial place for people of all religions. That sounds unremarkable now. At the time, Catholics in Ireland faced restrictions on how they could bury their own dead, and opening a cemetery for everyone was a political act.
The round tower over his crypt, the O’Connell Tower, is the tallest in Ireland. It was closed for decades and has been reopened, and you can now climb it.
The Irish History Tour
The main way to see Glasnevin is the guided Irish History Tour. It takes about 90 minutes and visits the graves of the people who shaped the country, and every ticket includes entry to the Experience Glasnevin exhibition in the visitor centre.
The 2:30pm walking tour includes a re-enactment of Pádraig Pearse’s famous graveside oration for O’Donovan Rossa in 1915, the speech that ends “Ireland unfree shall never be at peace”. Hearing it on the spot where it was given is something.
Ticket prices
From the official booking page, checked November 2026:
Tour & Exhibition
- Adult: €17
- Senior (60+), Student, Child (up to 16): €15
- Family (2 adults and 2 concessions): €50
Tour, Exhibition & O’Connell Tower Climb
- Adult: €22
- Senior, Student, Child: €20
- Family: €60
The tower climb adds up to 30 minutes, with 198 steps to the top, a look into O’Connell’s restored crypt, and an exhibition about the man and his tower. Persons with a disability can request a free companion ticket through the visitor centre.
Book the Irish History Tour on the official site
Is the tower worth the extra €5?
If your knees agree, yes. 198 steps is a fair climb, but the view over the north side of the city to the mountains is one most visitors never see, and the crypt at the bottom is beautifully done. If you’re not comfortable with stairs, tell your guide on the day and skip it. The tour is the essential part.
Practical tips
- Wear proper shoes. The cemetery is huge and the paths go on a long way.
- Bring a coat. There is very little shelter between graves, a design flaw nobody has addressed since 1832.
- The visitor centre is fully wheelchair accessible, and the tours can be made accessible if you let them know.
- Looking for an ancestor? Glasnevin holds burial records going back to the start, and the visitor centre can help with genealogy searches.
How to get to Glasnevin
The cemetery is on the Finglas Road, Dublin 11, about 3km north of the city centre. Dublin Bus routes 4, 9 and 83 serve the National Botanic Gardens right beside it. A taxi from O’Connell Street takes about 15 minutes outside rush hour.
Combine it with the Botanic Gardens
The National Botanic Gardens are right next door. They’re free, they have glorious Victorian glasshouses, and they’re the perfect place to go after an hour and a half among the dead. Look for them in our guide to Dublin parks and gardens.
And if the tour has left you wanting more of the 1916 story, go back into town to the GPO Witness History museum, then out west to Kilmainham Gaol. Between the three you’ll have seen the Rising from the headquarters, the prison and the grave.
Glasnevin Cemetery FAQs
Is Glasnevin Cemetery free to visit?
The cemetery grounds are open to walk round. The guided tour, exhibition and tower climb are ticketed.
Who is buried at Glasnevin?
Daniel O’Connell, Charles Stewart Parnell, Michael Collins, Éamon de Valera and Countess Markievicz, among many others.
How long does a visit take?
Around 90 minutes for the tour, plus up to 30 minutes for the tower, plus time for the exhibition.
How many steps does the O’Connell Tower have?
198.
Prices checked on the official booking page, November 2026. Check tour times when you book.
More ideas in our guide to things to do in Dublin.