Imperial Hotel

Cork City

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Having celebrated its bicentenary in 2013 – Thackeray, Dickens and Sir Walter Scott have all stayed here – the Imperial knows how to age gracefully. Public spaces resonate with period detail – marble floors, elaborate floral bouquets and more – while the 125 bedrooms feature writing desks, understated decor and modern touches including a luxurious spa and a digital music library.

Irish Free State commander-in-chief Michael Collins spent his last night alive here; you can ask to check into his room.

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • Cork city jail.

    Cork City Gaol

    1.25 MILES

    This imposing former prison is well worth a visit, if only to get a sense of how awful life was for prisoners a century ago. An audio tour (€2 extra)…

  • Charles Fort, Kinsale, Ireland

    Charles Fort

    13.93 MILES

    One of Europe's best-preserved star-shaped artillery forts, this vast 17th-century fortification would be worth a visit for its spectacular views alone…

  • English Market.

    English Market

    0.19 MILES

    The English Market – so called because it was set up in 1788 by the Protestant or ‘English’ corporation that then controlled the city (there was once an…

  • Spike Island

    Spike Island

    9.06 MILES

    This low-lying green island in Cork Harbour was once an important part of the port's defences, topped by an 18th-century artillery fort. In the second…

  • Lismore Castle Gardens

    Lismore Castle Gardens

    28.34 MILES

    Although Lismore Castle itself is not open to the public, the 3 hectares of ornate and manicured gardens are well worth a visit. Thought to be the oldest…

  • Crawford Art Gallery

    Crawford Art Gallery

    0.22 MILES

    Cork's public gallery houses a small but excellent permanent collection covering the 17th century through to the modern day, though the works on display…

  • blarney county cork ireland

    Blarney Castle

    4.85 MILES

    If you need proof of the power of a good yarn, then join the queue to get into this 15th-century castle, one of Ireland's most popular tourist attractions…

  • Saint Fin Barre's Cathedral, Co Cork, Ireland

    St Fin Barre's Cathedral

    0.49 MILES

    Spiky spires, gurning gargoyles and elaborate sculpture adorn the exterior of Cork's Protestant cathedral, an attention-grabbing mixture of French Gothic…

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Nearby Cork City attractions

1. Holy Trinity Church

0.1 MILES

The Holy Trinity Church was designed by the Pain brothers in 1834 in the honour of Father Theobald Mathew, whose statue sits just south of the River Lee…

2. English Market

0.19 MILES

The English Market – so called because it was set up in 1788 by the Protestant or ‘English’ corporation that then controlled the city (there was once an…

3. City Hall

0.19 MILES

Built in Georgian style in the 1930s to replace the original city offices, which were burnt down by renegade British forces in 1920, Cork's impressive…

4. Statue of Father Mathew

0.22 MILES

The imposing statue on St Patrick's St, just south of the River Lee North Channel, is of Father Theobald Mathew, the 'Apostle of Temperance', who crusaded…

5. Crawford Art Gallery

0.22 MILES

Cork's public gallery houses a small but excellent permanent collection covering the 17th century through to the modern day, though the works on display…

6. Red Abbey Tower

0.24 MILES

Overlooking a small public square, Red Abbey Tower is Cork's only surviving medieval building, and all that remains of a 14th-century Augustinian priory.

7. Elizabeth Fort

0.38 MILES

Originally built in the 1620s, and serving as a garda (police) station from 1929 to 2013, this small star-shaped artillery fort once formed an important…

8. St Peter's Cork

0.41 MILES

Housed in an old church, this cultural centre and gallery space houses a heritage display charting the history of Cork as well as changing exhibitions of…