Kilkenny weather by month

The best time to visit Kilkenny is June to August — 89/100 in July, 20°C and 12 rainy days. The best season is summer, June to August (87/100 on average).

The worst month is December at 53/100 — cold, rainy, clean air. See December →

Updated September 2026 · climate normals from ERA5 reanalysis

Planning the wider trip? Best time to visit Ireland →

Kilkenny🇮🇪 Ireland · British Isles · City89
  1. 56Jan
  2. 60Feb
  3. 66Mar
  4. 75Apr
  5. 83May
  6. 87Jun
  7. 89Jul
  8. 86Aug
  9. 78Sep
  10. 69Oct
  11. 61Nov
  12. 53Dec

Best season: June to August (87/100 on average) · worst December (53/100)

Days
20°C
Nights
13°C
Wet days
12
Sun
8.7 h
Humidity
78%
Daylight
16 h
Kilkenny, Ireland
Photo: Jay's Photography · Pexels

Kilkenny, month by month

Comfort score out of 100 for the kind of trip Kilkenny is best for, the average high, rainy days and hours of sun a day from the climate normals, and how busy it tends to be.

MonthScoreTierHighRainSunCrowdsOn
Jan56D8°C12 d4 hBusy—
Feb60C9°C13 d5 hBusy—
Mar66C10°C15 d7 hPeak2
Apr75B12°C12 d9 hBusy1
May83A16°C10 d10 hPeak2
Jun87A18°C12 d10 hPeak2
Jul89A20°C12 d9 hBusy1
Aug86A19°C12 d8 hPeak2
Sep78B17°C12 d7 hShoulder—
Oct69C14°C13 d5 hPeak1
Nov61C10°C13 d4 hPeak2
Dec53D9°C13 d3 hPeak1

What's on in Kilkenny through the year

Festivals, natural spectacles, holidays and the seasons to watch out for — curated and sourced. The month pages carry the detail.

March
  • St Patrick's Festival and Tradfest13–17 Mar (usually)Festival
  • St Patrick's Day16–18 MarHoliday
April
  • Kilkenny Roots Festival1–4 MayFestival
May
  • Cat Laughs comedy festival28 May – 5 Jun (usually)Festival
June
  • Ballykeeffe Amphitheatre summer20 Jun – 25 Aug (usually)Festival
August
  • Kilkenny Arts Festival6–16 AugFestival
October
  • Savour Kilkenny22–26 OctFestival
November
  • Subtitle Film Festival17–29 Nov (usually)Festival
  • Yulefest Christmas market26 Nov – 23 Dec (usually)Festival

Everything on in Kilkenny through the year →

Crowds in Kilkenny in July

How busy the place itself is — school and mass holidays, the months an editor tagged, and how sought-after the weather makes them. Never part of the comfort score.

BusySummer holidays in Ireland, school holidays in 7 of the markets that fill it(estimated)

JFMAMJJASOND

Peak crowdsBusyShoulder seasonQuiet

Good to know before you go to Kilkenny

Real experiences from travellers' own write-ups, quoted with a link to the original.

Visas & entry

A visitor's guide to Kilkenny notes the entire city is walkable end to end in about 20 minutes, unlike Dublin where buses and trams are genuinely necessary, making it one of the easiest "real Ireland" day trips to reach without a car, just 90 minutes from Dublin by train. Their advice for the castle itself: the self-guided ticket runs €8 versus €12 for a guided tour, but the guided option is worth the extra cost specifically for the storytelling, since the Victorian state rooms inside are more interesting with context than without.
The Wanderbug · Read the original ↗

Traveller notes on Kilkenny

What people who have been say about the place — the year-round notes first, then month by month.

Forum posters describe January in Ireland as bringing a better-than-average chance of snow and real ice risk, with main and most secondary roads gritted but minor roads still requiring caution. Posters are direct that the biggest practical issue is how short the days run, with some days barely seeming to get properly light at all, and typical temperatures sitting in the 40sF (around 4-9C) alongside wet, drizzly conditions. Posters specifically recommend Kilkenny as a well-suited January destination since it's easily reached from Dublin and every attraction can be covered on foot, making it a practical, compact city pick for winter's short daylight hours. Posters generally recommend leaning on Kilkenny's walkable city center, pubs and indoor sites as the main plan for a January visit rather than fighting the weather.
Tripadvisor community · January · 1 month ago · Read more on Tripadvisor ↗
Forum regulars call July Ireland's driest month on paper, but still expect drizzle - one visitor described hail, strong winds, thunder and sun all within 8 hours, and the recurring line is that a forecast is only reliable about 48 hours out at best. The standard packing list: a light jacket and sweater for cool nights, proper rain gear with a hooded waterproof top rather than an umbrella (which regulars call impractical in Irish towns and cities). July also draws the year's biggest crowds to nearby tourist hubs like Killarney, with several posters suggesting September instead for a similar climate with noticeably fewer visitors.
Tripadvisor community · July · 1 month ago · Read more on Tripadvisor ↗

Add your own note from Kilkenny's card on the map.