Travelling to Bantry

For 9 days & nights in July the seaside town of Bantry in West Cork, Ireland comes alive to the sound of music for the West Cork Chamber Music Festival.

Travelling to Bantry Montage

With music from morning to midnight, the Festival repeatedly discovers unexpected repertoire and the programme blends challenging contemporary works with some of the best-loved works in the repertoire. World class musicians perform five concerts each day and young musician masterclasses run throughout the week, culminating in a dedicated concert featuring stars of the future on the final day. The Festival also hosts Ireland’s only violin and bow making exhibition.

Bantry House, the ancestral home of the Earls of Bantry,  is the main concert venue along with the small single-aisle St Brendan’s Church.

All the venues have an intimacy that is vital for chamber music and Bantry House itself is renowned for the atmosphere created in the candle-lit Library and the House’s extraordinarily beautiful setting with commanding views over Bantry Bay.

Getting to Bantry

Bantry Harbour

Bantry Harbour

Located along the Wild Atlantic Way, Bantry is approximately 90 km west of Cork City.

If you are unsure of travel directions please get in touch – we are more than happy to help you to get to this beautiful part of Ireland.

GPS: Latitude : 51.680563 | Longitude : -9.448771

Bantry on Google Maps

 

By Car

Bantry is along the N71 between Glengariff and Ballydehob.

  • From Cork (via N71):  Approx 90 km or 1 hr – 1 ¼ hr drive
  • From Dublin (via M7 & M8):  Approx 285 km or 4 hr drive
  • From Limerick (via N20):  Approx 180 km or 3 hr drive.

By Plane

Cork Airport

  • Direct flights from Munich and Dusseldorf
  • Cork Airport is located just outside Cork city centre, approx 90 km or 1 hr – 1 ¼ hr drive from Bantry.

Kerry Airport

  • Direct flights from Frankfurt Hahn
  • Kerry Airport is located just outside Killarney, approx 75km or 1 ¼ hr drive from Bantry

Shannon Airport

  • Direct flights from  Berlin-Schönefeld
  • Shannon Airport is located in County Clare, approx 180 kms or 2 ¾ hr drive from Bantry

Dublin Airport

  • Direct flights from Berlin-Schönefeld, Berlin- Tegel,  Düsseldorf, Frankfurt-Hahn, Frankfurt International,  Hamburg Fuhlsbuttel, Munich and Stuttgart.
  • Dublin Airport is located just outside Dublin, approx 348 km, 3 ¾ hr drive from Bantry

Private Transport

Contact George Plant Minibus & Taxi Services who provides private transport services for the West Cork/South East Kerry Region.

+353 (0)27 50654
+353 (0)86 239 8123

By Train

Cork City is served by a mainline rail terminal (Kent Station), however, there is no train connection to Bantry.

Visit Irish Rail website for more information.

By Bus

Bus Éireann offers a regular service from Cork (Bus Aras) at Parnell Square, with a special express service during the summer months, connecting to Kenmare and Killarney.

You can view timetables and buy tickets from their site.

By Ferry

Cork Harbour (1½ hr drive) is serviced by Brittany Ferries.

Find out all other ferry services to Ireland here.