Laois has a fuller festival calendar than most people expect. The county tends to be associated with Electric Picnic, which is fair enough given that it’s one of the biggest music festivals in Ireland, but there’s quite a bit more going on across the year if you know where to look. Some of it is well attended and well publicised. Some of it is the kind of local event that doesn’t make national listings but is worth knowing about if you’re in the area.
We’re based atRoundwood House in Mountrath, and guests often time a visit around one of these events. What follows is a rundown of the main ones, with a few honest words on each.
Electric Picnic, Stradbally (Late August)
Electric Picnic takes place every year at Stradbally Hall, about 25 minutes from Roundwood House, and it has been one of the anchor events of the Irish summer festival season since it launched in 2004. The site at Stradbally is genuinely beautiful, a large parkland estate with mature trees and good natural topography, which makes it a more pleasant setting than most Irish outdoor festivals manage.
The lineup covers a wide range, from major international headliners to smaller Irish acts across a large number of stages. The Body and Soul area, which sits apart from the main stages in a wooded section of the grounds, has developed its own identity over the years and is worth seeking out even if you’re not particularly interested in the music on its stage. There’s good food across the site, better than the average festival offering, and the crowd tends to be mixed in age in a way that makes it feel less relentless than some larger events.
Tickets sell out quickly, usually well before the lineup is announced. If you’re planning to come to Stradbally for Electric Picnic and want a comfortable base nearby rather than camping,Roundwood House is worth considering. We’re close enough that the drive is straightforward, and coming back to a proper bed andbreakfast in the morning is a reasonable alternative to the campsite experience, depending on your disposition.
Forest Fest, Emo (July)
Forest Fest is a smaller, younger festival that takes place in Emo village, about 30 minutes from Roundwood, and it has built a loyal following quickly. It describes itself as a community and family festival, and that’s a fair description. The emphasis is on music, art, and a relaxed atmosphere rather than scale. The setting, in woodland near Emo Court, suits it well.
It’s the kind of festival that’s easier to enjoy than Electric Picnic if you have children with you, or if the prospect of 70,000 people in a field has started to lose its appeal. The lineup features a good mix of Irish acts, and the production values have improved noticeably year on year. Worth watching if it fits your timing.
The Slieve Bloom Walking Festival (May)
The Slieve Bloom Walking Festival runs every May over a long weekend and is the biggest organised walking event in the midlands. It’s been going for well over two decades and it draws walkers from across Ireland and further afield who come specifically for the guided walks through the Slieve Bloom Mountains.
The programme covers routes at different levels, from accessible loops of a few kilometres to full day mountain walks. Local guides lead each route, which is genuinely useful in the Blooms where the open bog sections can be disorienting in poor weather, and where the local knowledge about the landscape, the wildlife, and the history of the area adds something that walking alone doesn’t give you.
Accommodation in the area books up early around the festival weekend.Roundwood House is well placed for the southern sections of the Slieve Blooms, and we’re about 15 minutes from Glenbarrow, which is one of the main trailheads. If you’re planning to come for the walking festival, it’s worth getting in touch early in the year.
We’re happy to help with planning around any of the festivals listed here, from logistics to recommending the best day walks in the area.Get in touch here or call +353 57 873 2120.
The Leaves Festival of Writing and Music, Portlaoise (November)
The Leaves Festival is a three day literary and music festival that takes place in Portlaoise every November and celebrates writing, film, and music with readings, screenings, workshops, and performances. It’s a small but well programmed event that punches above its weight in terms of the quality of guests it attracts.
November is not the most obvious time to visit Laois, but it has its own appeal. The countryside is at its quietest, the light is low and clear, and a literary festival followed by dinner at the house and a fire in the drawing room makes for a good weekend. Portlaoise is about 20 minutes from Roundwood.
The Half Door Club Festival, Castletown (Autumn)
The Half Door Club Festival is a traditional music and set dancing event that takes place in Castletown over four days every autumn. It’s less well known than the other festivals on this list but it’s the one we find ourselves recommending most readily to guests who are interested in traditional Irish music and culture without the commercial packaging that often comes with larger trad events.
Castletown is a small town on the River Nore, about 20 minutes from us, with good Georgian buildings and a pleasant main street. The festival uses the pubs and venues in the town rather than purpose built stages, which gives it an atmosphere closer to a genuine session than a performance. If you’ve been to Ennis or Miltown Malbay for similar reasons and enjoyed it, this is worth knowing about.
The National Steam Rally, Stradbally (August)
The National Steam Rally takes place at Stradbally Hall every August, on the same estate that hosts Electric Picnic but at a very different register. It’s one of the oldest and largest vintage machinery events in Ireland, and it draws an enthusiastic crowd of people who are genuinely interested in steam engines, vintage tractors, and working farm machinery rather than people who have wandered in by accident.
It sounds niche, and it is, but it’s also a good family day out if you have children who like large, loud, moving things. The hall and demesne are beautiful, and there’s usually a fairground and traditional craft demonstrations alongside the machinery. Worth an afternoon if you’re in the area in August and the timing works.
Abbeyleix House and Farm Open Day (Summer)
The Abbeyleix House and Farm Open Day is an annual event at the historic estate in Abbeyleix, about 15 minutes from Roundwood. It opens the gardens, farm buildings, and sometimes the house itself to visitors for a day, with demonstrations, local food, and the chance to see a working estate that is usually closed to the public.
Abbeyleix itself is one of the most attractive towns in the county, a planned 18th century estate town with good proportions and a strong local identity. If you’re coming for the open day, it’s worth arriving early and taking time in the town as well as the estate. The bog walk at Abbeyleix, which is free and open year round, is also worth an hour if the weather is reasonable.
Festival of Gardens and Nature, Ballintubbert (Summer)
Ballintubbert Gardens, near Athy in the north of the county, holds a festival of gardens and nature each summer in the grounds of its 17th century house. It’s a relaxed event, more of an open garden day with talks and demonstrations than a formal festival, but the gardens themselves are lovely and it draws people with a genuine interest in horticulture rather than a general festival crowd.
Athy is a bit further from us than the other events on this list, about 40 minutes, but it makes for a pleasant day out paired with a stop in the town, which has some good heritage sites including a Dominican church and a canal walk.
Planning a Stay Around a Festival
Most of the festivals listed here are day events or short weekends, which makes them easy to fold into a longer stay in the county. A common pattern for guests at Roundwood is to arrive on a Friday, spend Saturday at a festival or event, and use Sunday for walking or visiting somewhere like Emo Court or Birr Castle before heading home.
If you’re coming for Electric Picnic or the Walking Festival specifically, it’s worth noting that rooms fill up in the area well in advance of those dates. For the other events, availability is generally less of an issue but it’s still worth planning ahead if you have particular dates in mind.
You can check availability andbook a room at Roundwood House here. We also have twoself catering cottages in the grounds if you’re coming as a group.Dinner is available most evenings and is worth booking in advance, particularly at weekends.
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