Ireland (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Fionn Davenport [294]
Sleeping
There are several B&Bs on Marlfield Rd, due west of the centre.
Fennessy’s Hotel ( 052-612 3680; www.fennessyshotel.com; Gladstone St; r from €45-80; ) Sts Peter and Paul Church, across from this hotel, will provide courage should you have impure thoughts in any of the 10 rooms at this attractive four-storey central hotel.
Befani’s ( 052-617 7893; www.befani.com; 6 Sarsfield St; s/d €55/90; ) Between the Main Guard and the Suir, this new guesthouse run by locally popular tapas restaurant of the same name (right) balances good value with style. Rooms aren’t huge, but they are attractive and are nicely fitted out in the sunny colours of Spain.
Hotel Minella ( 052-612 2388; www.hotelminella.ie; Coleville Rd; r €90-250; ) What can you say about a luxury hotel that has a sheep dog named Sparky to greet you at the door? Unpretentious yet refined, this family-run place sits amid extensive grounds on the south bank of the River Suir, 2km east of the centre. The 90 rooms are divided between those in an 1863 mansion and those in a new wing. The latter boast almost every kind of convenience, including luxurious private hot tubs on terraces overlooking the river.
Eating
Honey Pot ( 052-612 1457; 11 Abbey St; 9am-6pm Mon-Sat) It’s like a farmers market every day at this organic deli and health food store. The fairtrade provenance of goods on sale is explained in detail. The biggest problem with the picnics prepared-to-go is waiting to get to your picnic spot.
Niamh’s ( 052-612 5698; 1 Mitchell St; meals €5-15; 8am-6pm Mon-Sat) A smart deli and cafe with a wide range of appealing lunch options. Eat in the popular cafe or get one of the creative sandwiches takeaway and head to the banks of the Suir.
Sean Tierney ( 052-612 4467; 13 O’Connell St; meals €7-20; kitchen noon-9pm) Ketchup red at street level and mustard yellow for the two floors above, this narrow old pub churns out vast portions of pub classics like roasts, lasagne and more. Wander the warren of rooms and floors until you find a table that’s just right.
Befani’s ( 052-617 7893; 6 Sarsfield St; meals €15-30; 9am-9.30pm) Just down the street from the Main Guard, Befani’s brings the Mediterranean to Clonmel. Brightly flavoured dishes delight from breakfast to dinner. Throughout the day there’s a tapas menu highlighted by locally sourced organic produce, perfect for accompanying a sherry from the small bar. Breakfasts are a cure for the black-pudding blues. The €16 tapas platter is a bargain.
Drinking
Sean Tierney (left) has trad sessions some nights; the ground-level bar is always alive with craic.
Two traditional pubs almost next to each other on Parnell St (near Nelson St) are the diminutive Phil Carroll ( 052-612 5215), Clonmel’s most atmospheric old boozer, and the Coachman ( 052-612 1299), which has also escaped the crimes of modernisation.
Entertainment
There’s an excellent program of art exhibitions, plays and films at the South Tipperary Arts Centre ( 052-612 7877; www.southtipparts.com; Nelson St), the focus of the arts in the region.
Getting There & Away
BUS
Bus Éireann (www.buseireann.ie) has buses to Cahir (€5, 30 minutes, eight daily), Cork (€16, two hours, three daily), Kilkenny (€8.50, one hour, 12 daily), Waterford (€7, one hour, eight daily), and a number of other places. Tickets can be bought at the train station on Prior Park Rd, where the buses stop.
TRAIN
The train station ( 052-612 1982) is on Prior Park Rd. Head 1km north along Gladstone St, past the Oakville Shopping Centre and it’s just after the petrol station. Monday to Saturday, the Limerick Junction–Waterford train stops three times daily in each direction.
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AROUND CLONMEL
Directly south of Clonmel, over the border in County Waterford, are the Comeragh Mountains. There’s a scenic route south to Ballymacarbry