From Cobh to Cork City by Train: a Half Day Guide for Cruise Passengers

Cruise tourism in Cobh is scheduled to open in the summer of 2022. Before the pandemic, cruise tourist gets treated on their day embarkation visit to all the wonderful things to do in Cobh Ireland, As early as March 2022, the Cobh harbour could be welcoming cruise passengers on their shores again. The past two summers has been disastrous to Cobh tourism and hospitality but there is hope in the near future. Although it may take some time before the cruise arrival gets back to pre-covid level, the demand is still there for Europe and particularly Ireland travel.

Cobh Cruise Terminal is ideally located close to the town centre of Cobh and also a few steps away from the Cobh train station. While most cruise vacationers would wander off on our beautiful seatown, some of them might prefer to check out Cork City. The purpose of this post is to give these day visitor cruise passengers a suggested and doable itinerary on a half day trip to Cork City.

The train ride to Cork City is about 30 minutes, but be sure to check the train schedule for departure time so you won’t miss your cruise. From Kent Cork City station, you can walk or commute to go to the town centre where all of the interesting attractions are located.

English Market – First off is the historic and diversed English Market on Grand Parade or Princes St. This would be a good place to grab a breakfast or brunch If you are heading there straight after disembarking from the ship. The best time to be there is on the morning too because it tends to get busy after 11:00.

The English Market has been trading since 1788 and a true icon of Cork City. Walk around the different stalls and check out an array of traders in this covered structure. Aside from the meat, fish, fruit and veggie market, there’s also a cafe, restaurant, bakery, spices, wine and other specialties inside.

Crawford Art Gallery – Open from Monday to Saturday at 10:00 a.m., this free museum houses Irish and European paintings and sculptures. There’s also Greek and Roman sculpture cast from the Vatican Museum in Rome. These are the permanent exhibit but there are also revolving and temporary exhibit.

We believe visiting an art museum in Europe should always be on a to-do-list on your itinerary, and we think the Crawford Gallery in Cork City is a good stop for art lovers and passerby tourists. If your taste is more contemporary, Cork City also has the Glucksman Gallery over at UCC or University College Cork.

Shandon Bell or Bells Field Park – So far, you have covered a lot of ground on Cork City already. Why not see a vista from above this time? We suggest walking to Shandon Bell and Tower or Bells Field Park. The famous Shandon Bell is in the tower beside the active St Anne Church. The tower has three floors and a belfry and it takes 132 steps to reach the top, but the reward is an amazing nearly 360 degree view of the city. Please check their website for more info and current restrictions.

Made famous by the movie The Young Offenders, Bells Field Park is the perfect place to be on a sunny and clear day because the view of Cork City here is spectacular. There’s a steep hill to climb but it is all worth it when you sit on the bench and rest your eye to the sprawling cityscape.

Other attractions that you can visit and swap for are the former prison building Cork City Gaol or the one of a kind Butter Museum, just be sure to budget your time as needed.

Before taking the train back to Cobh, you can also make a quick shopping at Opera Lane or snack at the many irish pubs and tasty restaurants around the city.

That’s Cork City for you on more or less a half day trip. Remember that the train ride is an hour at least back and forth so stick and adjust accordingly to your itinerary so you’ll make the most of your time. To sum up this post, i hope you enjoy your visit in Cork City and Cobh.

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