Tourism Chat: Irish National Stud

[an capall]

For those nearby: Spent a morning down at the INS with Mrs AC and four grandchildren recently and would highly recommend a visit. The tour, access to horse and foals is great. Got to see Hurricane Fly, Kicking King and Faugheen up close and stopped for a short prayer at Arkle's skeleton. The Japanese gardens are spectacular and there is an interpretive centre a nice restaurant and loads of playgrounds. Very impressed.

Close enough to Punchestown if you fancied a morning pre racing excursion. All 6 of us in for €32 or approx 1.5 races at Aintree.

 

[Colin Phillips]

Went there some time ago but it was in February and the gardens hadn't come into bloom but it was a lovely afternoon strolling around with the mares with their foals and yearlings. Well worth a visit.

 

[moehat]

It’s wonderful to see so many old champions in their retirement. Don’t know if it’s as laid back as when we were there 15 or so years ago but we accidentally ended up by a foaling barn where a Celtic Swing foal had just been born. From memory we were close to The Curragh and saw horses being exercised there and some doing some stalls training. The English National Stud was a terrible let down when we went there a few years later. I’d love to go back to Ireland again. Even Punchestown was totally laid back compared to Cheltenham albeit being impossible to find winners. Again I don’t know if things are different now but people there weren’t as sentimental about the horses but racing was still very much part of the fabric of peoples lives whereas back home I rarely mention that I love racing for fear of a backlash from people. Whenever I see yellow gorse flowering I always think of Punchestown.