Naas
Naas is a town of 21,000 people (2016) in County Kildare, Ireland. It is a major commuter suburb of Dublin and has experienced rapid growth.
Understand
The Irish language name for Naas, Nás na Ríogh literally translates as Meeting Place of the Kings. The town proportedly hosted meetings of pre-Norman Irish kings from the Kingdom of Leinster. After the Norman invasion in 1169–71 AD, some meetings of the Parliament of Ireland were held in the town. Many of the early settlers in Kildare were Cambro-Normans from Wales therefore the medieval church was dedicated to Saint David.
In the Middle Ages, Naas became a walled market town and was occasionally raided by the O'Byrne and O'Toole clans from the nearby area which became County Wicklow.
A mayor and council were selected by the richer merchants and landowners. The mayor was titled the "Sovereign of Naas" and carried a ceremonial mace until the post was abolished in 1840. Naas became known as the "county town" of County Kildare because of its importance as a place for trading, public meetings, local administration including law courts, racecourse and the army's now defunct Devoy Barracks.
Because of Naas's proximity to Dublin, it is a commuter town for many of those working in Dublin, aided by significant transport infrastructure such as the M7 motorway.
Get in
By train
Commuter trains from Dublin Heuston run hourly to Sallins & Naas, taking 30 min with stops at Dublin Park West & Cherry Orchard, Clondalkin, Adamstown, Hazelhatch & Celbridge. They continue from Naas to Newbridge, Kildare Town, Monasterevin, Portarlington and Portlaoise. Inter-city trains usually don't stop here, change at Kildare for trains towards Cork, Limerick, Galway and Westport. See Irish Rail for timetables, fares and online tickets.
1 Sallins & Naas station is 3 km north of Naas town centre. There's a regular shuttle bus.
By bus
Dublin Coach 726 / N7, aka "The Green Bus", runs hourly round the clock from Dublin Airport via Red Cow Luas (for Dublin city trams) to Naas, taking an hour. It continues to Newbridge, Kildare, Monasterevin and Portlaoise.
GoAhead Commuter Bus 126 runs every 30 min from Dublin Docklands and Heuston station via Rathcoole and Kill to Naas, taking an hour, and continuing to Newbridge and every hour or two to Kildare.
There isn't a bus station. The 2 main bus stop is on Main St by the Post Office.
By car
From Dublin follow N7 to junction 9. This section hasn't been upgraded to motorway but is a fast dual-carriageway, 30 min should do it.
Get around
Naas is a very small town so everywhere is within walking distance. There are taxi ranks in Poplar Square and by the town hall on Main St.
Enterprise Car & Van Hire have a base south of town centre on Kilcullen Rd R448, tel +353 45 895 756.
See
- 1 Canal Harbour: the Naas Branch is a spur off Grand Canal completed in 1788. It branches off at "Soldier's Island" at Sallins 3 km north, runs into town through 3 locks to the basin, then makes a hairpin turn and heads west towards Corbally. It carried mostly mill goods; its extension into Wicklow never happened. It remains navigable (but check with Waterways Ireland) from Sallins to the basin and 1 km west then is blocked by R445. Beyond for 3 km is in water but derelict then it disappears altogether beneath the motorway.
- 2 St David's Church, North Main St. There was probably a wooden church here from the 6th century, dedicated to St Patrick. The Normans who built a stone church in the 12th century were Welsh and re-dedicated it to their patron saint; it was owned by the Knights Hospitaller of St John. In 1620 it was rebuilt, incorporating much of the Norman church; the baptismal font is believed to be 11th century. The steeple became tottery and had to be removed in 1767, and its replacement somehow never happened. The church became C of I (Anglican) and is still active, with major restoration in the 1990s.
- St David's Castle next to the church was built in the early 13th century. It's a three-storey turret.
- Church of Our Lady and St David is the RC church nearby on Sallins Rd, built from 1827.
- 3 Jigginstown Castle is the scrappy ruin of a mansion built in 1630 only to be wrecked in the Confederate / Civil wars of the 1640s. It's on Newbridge Rd west side of town.
- Punchestown Longstone is a standing stone 7 m tall, just off Craddockstown Road at the north edge of the racecourse. It's of local granite and is a burial marker from the Beaker era, say 2000 BC - it toppled over in 1933 to reveal a burial cist, and in 1981 another cist was discovered 700 m east. Craddockstown or Forenaghts Great Stone at the racecourse entrance is 5 m tall and of similar date, as the wristband found in its burial cist was typically Beaker. The Topographia Hibernica of 1188 AD would have you believe that "giants brought it from the furthest parts of Africa into Ireland and set it up, partly by main strength, partly by artificial contrivances, in an extraordinary way . . . ".
- 4 Bodenstown Graveyard, 2 km north of the railway station, has the ruin of a 14th century church, an outpost of Great Connell Priory at Newbridge. It's best known as the burial place of Theobald Wolfe Tone (1763-1798), leader of the United Irishmen, who sought to liberate and reform Ireland along the lines of the republican United States and France. But their rebellion of 1798 was already crushed when Wolfe Tone was captured in a French landing attempt in Donegal: he was sentenced to hang but committed suicide. A remembrance parade is held around his birth date, 20 June.
- 5 Clane is a village 9 km north of Naas. Its ruined abbey was built from 1272 over a monastery of 520 AD - this is now a garden and community centre, which you can stroll around. Its 7th century Saint Ultan was so unspeakably holy, he kept a stone in his mouth throughout Lent, little realising that he was sounding just like an English aristocrat. He can't be buried here as claimed, as he went to East Anglia and established a monastery, which was attacked so he fled to Namur. King Mesgegra's Mound on Moat Commons south end of the village is a bosky knoll, once a palisaded motte. Mesgegra was a mythical king of Leinster beheaded here, whereupon his brain-from-Clane (once slain) embarked on even weirder posthumous adventures than that of Einstein.
Do
- Cinema: the Odeon is on Dublin Rd near the N7 junction. Starlite Cinema is a retro drive-in held in summer on Naas Racecourse.
- Moat Theatre is on Abbey Road, box office +353 45 883 030.
- 1 Mondello Park, Carragh (About 8km north of Naas), ☏ +353 45 860200, [email protected]. Ireland's only international motor racing circuit. As well as racing events, it hosts track days and driving experiences. Has a small motor racing museum on site also.
- 2 Naas Golf Club, Kerdiffstown, ☏ +353 45 874644, [email protected].
- 3 Naas Racecourse, Tipper Rd, ☏ +353 45 897391, [email protected]. Horse racing. Regular meetings over spring, summer and autumn.
- 4 Punchestown Racecourse, Punchestown, Naas W91 VCX4. This is a National Hunt (jumps) track with a two mile right-hand circuit. The main meetings are Oct / Nov, and April / May with the Punchestown Festival. Music concerts are occasionally held here; note the two tall standing stones near the entrance. In 2008 they tried to hold the World Scout Jamboree here but it cascaded with rain and the event was washed out - welcome to Ireland.
- The Curragh is the other famous nearby track, between Kildare Town and Newbridge. Meetings are flat-racing April-Oct, including all five Irish classic events.
- Gliding: Dublin Gliding Club fly from Gowran Grange Airfield W91 VN52, on R411 south side of Punchestown Racecourse.
Buy
- Tesco in town centre is open M-F 07:00-22:00, Sa 08:00-22:00, Su 09:00-21:00.
- Barker & Jones, 2 Poplar Square W91 A7KP, ☏ +353 45 856 130, [email protected]. M-Sa 08:30-17:30, Su 11:30-17:30. Well-stocked chain bookshop with helpful staff. Bigger than it looks, it's on three floors.
- Tuckmill Gallery at 3 Dublin Rd has crafts and giftware. It's open M-Sa 09:30-18:00.
Eat
- Butt Mullins, Poplar Square (next to Lawlor's Hotel), ☏ +353 45 874 252. Tu-Sa 17:00-22:00, Su 12:30-20:00. Long established restaurant in town centre, trad food, the early bird is really good value.
- Trax Brasserie, Friary Rd, ☏ +353 45 889 333. This remains closed in 2021.
- Vie de Chateaux, Harbour View W91 X021, ☏ +353 45 888 478, [email protected]. W-F 12:00-14:00, 18:00-21:00, Sa 18:00-21:00, Su 13:00-17:30. This elegant French restaurant gets great reviews; mid-range prices.
- VDC@home, Castle Buildings, Friary Rd, ☏ +353 45 889 200. Tu-Sa 10:00-17:00. Owned by Vie de Chateaux, this is a bright little cafe. Great for fresh sandwiches, ice-cream and coffee, and takeaway meals.
- Yum Yums House of Coffee, 9 Friary Rd W91 NWY9 (By Lawlor's and VDC@home), ☏ +353 45 899 799. M-Sa 08:30-16:30. Good breakfasts and sandwiches. Try the chocolate fudge cake.
- Tani Japanese Restaurant, 3 New Row W91 XN4V (at town crossroads), ☏ +353 45 874 577. Tu-Su 16:00-21:00. Now here's a thing you seldom find outside Dublin. Good Japanese cuisine with fresh ingredients, none of your standard thawed-out sushi. Oishi, so des!
- Others along Naas Main St are Aprile / Regatto's, Rustic, Lemongrass, Amaya Fusion and Swapna.
Drink
- Grace's, 1 North Main St, ☏ +353 45 895 408, [email protected]. W-Su 12:00-23:30. Good for TV sports and lunch during the week, live music at weekends.
- Hayden's, 9 Poplar Square, ☏ +353 45 866 544. M-Th 17:00-23:30, F 15:00-23:30, Sa Su 12:30-23:00. Fine old pub established 1818. Lots of little snugs, good beer and live trad music some nights.
- Kavanagh's, 10 North Main St W91 ANP2, ☏ +353 45 897 423. Daily 10:00-00:00. Great pub, with an upstairs restaurant serving modern Irish food.
- McCormacks, 37 South Main St W91 R772, ☏ +353 45 897 686. Daily 11:00-23:30. Lively trad pub for all age groups.
- Main St also has O'Connor's, Tommy Fletcher's, the bar of Court Hotel (see below) and One New Row.
Sleep
- 1 Naas Court Hotel, South Main St W91 AX20, ☏ +353 45 866 073, [email protected]. Budget place in town centre, mixed reviews but decent value for what you're paying. The main gripes are lack of parking, and the raucous nightclub clientele. B&B double €80.
- 2 Town House Hotel, Limerick Rd, Naas W91 AX20, ☏ +353 45 879 226. Mid-price place, value for money. B&B double €100.
- 3 Osprey Hotel & Spa, Devoy Quarter, Naas W91 X40K, ☏ +353 45 881 111, [email protected]. Smart central hotel with pool, fitness centre and spa. B&B double €120.
- 4 Maudlin's House Hotel, Dublin Rd, Naas W91 VR4R, ☏ +353 45 896 999, [email protected]. Early 19th century villa, but it's by the industrial estate at the junction of N7, handy for motorists but feels a bit dated.
- 5 Lawlor's, Poplar Square, Naas W91 Y65N, ☏ +353 45 906 444, [email protected]. Good mid-price place, consistently delivers on comfort and service. B&B double €110.
- 6 White Swan, Sherlockstown Rd, Sallins, ☏ +353 87 444 9951. Pleasant B&B near Grand Canal north of town. B&B double €110.
Connect
As of July 2021, Naas has 5G with Eir and Three, and 4G from Vodafone.
Naas Public Library may have internet access. It's a block west of town centre on Harbour View.
Go next
- Blessington 12 km southeast has grand Russborough House, a Palladian mansion with a big-name art collection.
- Glendalough across the mountains from Blessington is a medieval monastic complex in a scenic valley.
- Trains and buses for the west of Ireland call at Naas, so you can quickly reach Galway, Limerick and Cork.