Stay at Jurys Inn, Cork rating: 3*** Jurys Inn Cork enjoys a superb location in the heart of Cork city, overlooking the River Lee. Vibrant business and shopping districts and a host of restaurants, bars, museums and galleries are all within a few minutes' walk. Jurys Inn Cork has bright, spacious rooms, which can accommodate up to three adults or two adults and two children. Our fixed rate room pricing offers outstanding value for money. This hotel is suitable if you are sailing in and out of Cork (Skibbereen).
Address: Anderson's Quay, Cork, Ireland.
Tel: (+353 21) 494 3000.
What to See in Cork City:
City Hall Shandon Church, St. Anne's Shandon dates 1722 but its tower was not erected until 1750. This is a very splendid Church with two limestone faces and two faces dressed in red sandstone. There are three terraced square towers topping it off which are very finely and gracefully proportioned. The steeple houses the famous bells of Shandon and the tower itself is one of the city's best-known landmarks. The tower is crowned with the gilt ball and a fish in the form of a salmon, thirteen feet in length. The church replaces an older church of St. Mary which was destroyed in the siege of 1690.
Friar Mathew Memorial Church Fr. Mathew Memorial Church was built in 1832 on Fr. Mathew Quay. It was designed originally by G.R. Pain and although its very fine portico was not built until some fifty years later it is based on the original design and is the work of James Coakley. Its Bell Tower and lantern make it one of the most graceful buildings in the city and had it had an additional twenty or thirty feet in height would be all the more graceful for this. But it suffered many vicissitudes financially during its construction and would never have been completed were it not for the endeavours of Friar Mathew, the apostle of temperance who launched his campaign through most of the States of the U.S.A. from Cork. Its interior is well proportioned and a very fine stained glass window behind the altar is the city's only memorial of Daniel O'Connell.
St. Finbarre's Cathedral St. Mary's Dominican Church, Pope's Quay, was built in 1932. It has a splendid portico of 60 ft. high Ionic Columns and the rich plaster work internally is noteworthy in that it is the craftsmanship of local stuccadores at a time when most of this work was done throughout the country by Italian craftsmen. Its high altar and Baldacchino is the finest in the city. One of its side altars houses the miraculous statuette known as 'Our Lady of Graces' (from the Friary at Youghal). The earlier Dominican foundation was at North Abbey and their church was an 'Escalasia Magnifica.'
St. Peter & St. Paul's Church St. Peter & St. Paul's Church, Carey's Lane, is the work of the younger Pugin and is one of the finest neogothic works in the South of Ireland.
The Franciscan Church The Franciscan Church, Liberty Street, was opened in 1953 and supersedes a series of chapels which began during penal times. The former church was built in 1830 and it is noteworthy that one of its entrances has been retained and now forms the main entrance to the adjoining Franciscan Friary. The Church itself is one of the Byzantine Style of Architecture and its interior is richly decorated with mosaics and has the largest area of mosaics of any church in Europe with the exception of one or two in Rome. It's St. Anthony's Shrine is one of the architectural gems of the city and like the mosaics of the church itself is the work of Commendatore Professor Umberto Noni of Rome. T.F. McNamara collaborated with him in the design of this shrine and that of the choir, the stalls of which were carved in Rome. Chev. J.R. Boyd Barrett supervised its construction and was responsible for most of the churches recently built in the city.
St. Patrick's Church St. Patrick's Church on the Lower Road, erected in 1836, is a handsome Grecian structure designed by George Pain.
Christ the King Church By 1833 there were six enclosed markets in the City of Cork, the largest and principal one of which was the Grand Parade Market. There were also out-markets where articles were sold in the open street without covering. The City Council were entitled to collect tolls on goods brought into the City and from the traders who had stalls in the markets. A Clerk or Superintendent of Markets, appointed by the Mayor and accompanied by two beadles, three weighmasters and two collectors was responsible for the everyday management of the markets. A report on Municipal Corporations in 1835 refers to numerous instances of extortion in collection of market tolls in Cork. This often resulted in violence, riot and even bloodshed. The present buildings at Grand Parade Market was opened in 1881 and lead onto the Prince's Street Market opened in 1868 and designed by Sir John Benson. The Grand Parade Market was traditionally a meat, foul and fish market and the Prince's Street Market a root or vegetable market. A fire in 1980 seriously damaged the Prince's Street Market but this has been carefully restored by Cork City Council. The elegant l9th Century fountain at the centre of this market was made locally by W.R.Harris of Great Georges Street and was once the main source of water supply for the traders. There have been many changes in the markets over the years. The old market beadles, with their tall hats and long coats, responsible for keeping order in the markets are gone, some of the market families no longer trade here but others have taken their places. The markets are still a haven of fresh food and a place where the people of Cork go to get the best of produce and, in particular, where one can still find Cork delicacies such as tripe and drisheen. The markets continue to be very much part of Cork life. The records of the markets from 1867 down to 1960 are preserved in the Cork City Council Archives which are held at the Cork Archives Institute. These chiefly consist of Market and Tolls Committee Minute Books.
University College University College worthily maintains the tradition of learning commenced by St. Finbarr's great school of the sixth century. The main buildings are in Tudor Gothic style, enclosing a quadrangle, the whole surrounded by extensive grounds. The library, lecture halls, natural history and other collections can be visited on application. The original quadrangle was designed by architect, Benjamin Woodward who was taken on by Sir Thomas Deane for the project and two years later he was a partner in the firm. The new library was completed in 1984 and is the work of M/s Murray & Murray, Pettit & Partners.
The Crawford Art Gallery The Crawford Art Gallery, Emmet Place, has sculpture and picture galleries open to the public. The older portion of the building dates 1724 and was a Custom House. The sculpture gallery was built in 1884 at a cost of £20,000 and contains a heroic size statue by John Hogan commemorating William Crawford whose son built the sculpture gallery. Modern Irish artists are well represented and there are some good old Masters in the collection.
Cork General Post Office Cork General Post Office. Now we come to the most prominent building on the street, Cork General Post Office, with its handsome, finely-cut, silvery limestone facade rounding into Pembroke Street.
Cork's famous theatres And it was on this side that two of old Cork's famous theatres stood. The first of these goes back to the late 1750's when Spranger Barry came to Cork from the "Crow Street Company" Dublin, to establish a playhouse as part of an enterprise to secure the control of the Irish theatres. It was opened on Monday, July 21, 1760, under the auspices of the Theatre Royal and the curtins rose to the tragedy play "The Orphans". The erection of the theatre was made possible by the assistance of 40 subscribers each contributing £50, the receiving in return a solid silver transferable ticked bearing 4% interest and admission for an indefinite period. The theatre was modelled after the "Crow Street Theatre" and also resembled it in dimensions being 136ft in length and 60ft in width. For eighty years the citizens of Cork revelled in their enjoyment of the wit, wisdom and frolic of the theatre until the building, wardrobes, orchestral instruments etc. were destroyed by fire after a performance on April 1, 1840. The second theatre was built in 1853 retaining the old name of "The Theatre Royal". During the mid '60s it was much improved extending its accommodation to seat 2,000 patrons. Mr. R. C. Burke was the builder and leasee. The theatre was remodelled from the designs under the direction of Sir John Benson - the Cork based architect. The refurbished and enlarged Theatre Royal reopened on December 26, 1867, and was a resplendent addition to the city street scape. The outstanding attractions to grace the stage in the theatre during the early years of the '70s were appearances of the famous actor Barry Sullivan, the English Opera and the Opera Bouffe. The theatre flourished until 1875 when it was sold to the postal authority. After much alteration it opened two years later as Cork General Post Office replacing a much smaller one on Pembroke Street.
St. Vincent's Church St. Vincent's Church, Sunday's Well: Catholic Church, a fine viewing platform with panoramic views of the city lies adjacent to this fine building. "Fastnet House", (No. 11 Emmet Place). This unique and beautiful Queen Anne style house dates from c.1740 and is a fine example of a merchants town house of the period.
Savings Bank, Lapps Quay Savings Bank, Lapps Quay. This elegant limestone building, designed by Thomas & Kearns Deane, was completed in 1842. Externally, simplicity and dignity are its key notes. The vestibule is plain but the banking hall is full of the detailed craftsmanship of the stone masons' art. Blackrock Castle, Blackrock, Cork. Marks the gateway to Cork and offers an imposing welcome for the many maritime visitors to the city's quays.
The Cork Vision Centre, North Main St.: Restored St. Peter's Church, (c.1270) contains a 1:500 scale model of the city. An excellent start point for tours of Cork, enhancing ones exploration of the living city. The Vision Centre also houses: an exhibition of Cork - past, present, and future; a continuous video presentation on the attractions and history of Cork; a viewing gallery and meeting/seminar area; visiting/temporary exhibitions.
National Sculpture Factory The National Sculpture Factory is a unique facility in this country providing specialized fabrication facilities for sculptors and mixed media artists. It was founded in 1989 by a group of Cork sculptors who wanted to provide a focus for working sculptors from other parts of Ireland and abroad. The Factory is housed in a large 19th Century red-brick warehouse on Albert Road, provided by Cork City Council and was known traditionally and now again appropriately as "The Power House". Funded by both Cork City Council and the Arts Council of Ireland the Factory is concerned with promoting and maintaining high levels of professionalism within the field of sculpture and affords numerous possibilities for projects in co-operation with various business and public agencies and with community and educational groups.
The Life Time Lab At Old Cork Waterworks Fitzgerald Park is a beautiful area of over 18 acres which has been greatly improved in recent years and which includes a fine display of flowers in both formal bedding and informal arrangements, together with a decorative pond with aquatic plants and a Children's Playground. Within the Park is housed the Cork Museum. This Park, ideally situated alongside the river overlooked by the hills of Sunday's Well, was the site of the Cork International Exhibition of 1902/03. It is entered from the Mardyke, a tree-lined promenade nearly a mile long at the Western side of the City, which gives access also to the Cork Cricket Club Grounds, the Sunday's Well Boating and Tennis Club, and the University College Football and Athletic Grounds. It was formed in 1720 by Mr. Edward Webber then Town Clerk of Cork.
Marina Walk The Marina Walk extends westwards from the suburbs of Blackrock towards the City for a length of nearly two miles through lines of stately trees alongside the tidal river. It passes the Atlantic Pond which is a pleasant area comprising grassy slopes and walks around a decorative lake formerly the site of a mosquito-infested swamp.
Clover Hill This property contains an exotic collection of trees and shrubs. Here also is being established the central nursery where the City's future trees, shrubs and plants are grown. The remainder of the property together with adjacent lands have been developed as an eighteen hole Municipal Golf Course which was formally opened on September 3rd 1980. The Lee Fields alongside the river upstream from the Waterworks has been improved and levelled making a large recreation area available to the western suburbs. Nearby is situated an area planted with forest trees by Cork City Council.
Gurranabraher Adjoining the City Council's housing area at Gurranabraher are two large playing fields. Small children's playgrounds are maintained at Spring Lane, Shandon Street, Grattan Hill and at a number of other locations throughout the County Borough.
The Lough The Lough of Cork, surrounded by an extensive grassed area and located to the south west of the City is a pleasant recreation facility maintained by the City Council. The Lough has been designated as a bird sanctuary and a variety of wild life inhabits the area.
Ballinlough Park This is a newly developed park which has a new indoor swimming pool officially opened during 1976. Other facilities include one soccer and one Gaelic pitch. Part of the extensive car park area is being made available to give basketball and tennis facilities. Another part of the park which once had a dangerous quarry has been developed as a pleasant sunken garden with paths linking up the remainder of the ornamental garden. Other pitches have been made available, at Bishopstown, Lakelands and Mahon. At Bishopstown also a section of land has been made available to a local residents association for use as a pitch and putt area. A number of tennis and basketball courts have also been provided in various areas of the City. On the northside another swimming pool was officially opened in 1977.
Shalom Park Shalom Park is the most recent addition to the growing number of parks provided by the City Council.
Farranree Park Farranree Park has been laid out to give a playing pitch, and a children's play area, which has swings and slides, and an ornamental garden with trees, shrubs, rose beds and seating. Glen River Park has been created in the former Gouldings Glen on the city's north side. Care has been taken to preserve this "glen's" natural features along with the creation of artificial lagoons. Bishop Lucey Park on the Grand Parade, although quite new, is much admired and frequented by citizens and visitors alike.
Which hotel to choose. Jury’s Doyle Hotels are ideal for both business and leisure travelers and everyone loves to book a getaway. At Jury’s Doyle, we are dedicated to providing good quality hotel products that are appropriate to our customers needs in a friendly, professional and flexible environment.
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