At the end of August my little family and I went on a road trip to Co. Tipperary to visit Cahir Castle and Swiss Cottage. Cahir Castle is actually the first place Jacek and I ever visited together, so it was lovely to return with our two little boys in tow and I’ll share some pictures and words about our visit there in a separate post.
Swiss Cottage was closed when Jacek and I first visited, so he was adamant about showing it to me this time – knowing that I’m a lover of nature and have always wanted to live in a cottage. Ever since I was a child I’ve wanted to live in a beautiful little countryside cottage with a garden of wildflowers, maybe one day my dream will come true.
We had quite a long walk to Swiss Cottage from Cahir Castle, 2k to be exact and typically it was raining. We walked through woodland alongside to the river to reach the cottage and it was quite scenic really, a lovely walk if you’re up for it, although you can also drive to the cottage if needs be. Tyler Lee did get a bit tired along the way and had to sit on his daddy’s shoulders for awhile. It was definitely an autumnal looking walk too with brown and golden leafed trees leading the way for us.
Once we reached the cottage the sun had peeped out from behind the clouds, even if it was only for a short time. Swiss Cottage is absolutely beautiful, surrounded by woodland, a river close by and a veranda of flowers all around the outside. It really is so picturesque and it was lovely to sit on the benches on the veranda while we waited for the tour to begin.
While we waited for the tour to begin (you can’t explore the inside of the cottage on your own or take places due to the preservation of the original features) I took lots of pictures of the beautiful flowers growing on and around the veranda – I can never resist photographing flowers, they’re my second favourite thing to capture on camera, after my adorable little boys of course.
We all went inside for tour and Tyler Lee was actually fine for the two downstairs rooms, but then he started acting up a bit so I asked Jacek to take him outside seeing as he’s done the tour. Beau and I continued upstairs with everyone else and surprisingly to me, I was actually quite interested in the tour. Usually I prefer exploring places by myself but it was good to learn the history of the cottage and about some of it’s beautiful features too.
As I mentioned, you’re not able to take pictures inside the cottage but it really is quite charming – all the different windows were my favourite features, and there’s lots of nods to nature within the decor and that really appealed to me, being a nature lover and all.
Swiss Cottage is probably the best example of a cottage ornate in Europe and if I could have lived there I would. The place was even abandoned during the 1980’s and was left fall into destitute so to see it looking lovely again today is quite special, especially as it was built in the early 1800’s.
Swiss Cottage isn’t the most family friendly place we’ve ever visited but we managed, it is a very old building after all. You have to enter the cottage through a narrow corridor which you can only get up to via steps, so if you do bring a buggy be prepared to carry it up. We left our buggy in the reception area and just carried Beau around. There was another lady there with a baby in a sling and that’s probably the best option to go for if you have a baby in tow.
You can read more about Swiss Cottage and find opening times, etc. on the Heritage Ireland website. Entry is €4 for an adult, €2 for a child and €10 for a family – our two boys were free. Swiss Cottage really is a place to visit if you’re a history and nature lover like myself, even if it’s just for a sit down on the beautiful veranda.
