Republic of Ireland · Munster
Where to Stay in Waterford, Munster
Waterford is the oldest city in Ireland, a Viking-founded port on the River Suir in the southeast.
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Where to stay in Waterford
Each area has its own feel; here's who each one suits.
Where you stay in Waterford turns on the quay. The old streets along the river and the Viking triangle keep the tower, the museums, and the shops within a walk, and staying by the quay suits anyone here for the old city. The quay lights up at night.
Rooms sit near the tower and the river. Out toward the newer suburbs and the ring road, the town spreads into quieter streets. A room away from the centre trades the old quay for parking, space, and an easy road to the coast and Tramore.
Farmland and green ridges start just past the last houses. If you want the tower and the museums, stay by the quay; if you want the road, take a room outside. Either way, the old city is close at hand.
About Waterford
Waterford is the oldest city in Ireland.
What is Waterford known for?
Founded by the Vikings over a thousand years ago, the port keeps a round Viking tower on its quay and a cluster of old museums in its medieval triangle, and it gave its name to the famous cut crystal made here. The river runs past the old walls. Vikings and glass mark the city.
What are the main landmarks in Waterford?
Reginald's Tower stands guard on the quay of Waterford. The round Viking tower, the oldest civic building in Ireland, rises at the point of the old town, the emblem of the city, above the river. Museums fill the medieval triangle.
The Medieval Museum and the Bishop's Palace hold the city's treasures, while the Irish Museum of Time and the old French Church keep its story.
What is the history of Waterford?
Waterford was founded by Viking raiders on the river. Norse seafarers built a fortified port here in the early tenth century, the first true town in Ireland, and raised a round stone tower to guard the harbour. The Normans took it next.
An English king came in person to seize the walled city in the twelfth century, and Waterford grew into a royal port, loyal and strong behind its walls for centuries. Trade and glass made the modern town. The port shipped the goods of the southeast across the sea, and in the eighteenth century its craftsmen began to cut the fine crystal glass that carried the city's name around the world.
War and time spared the old tower. Reginald's Tower still stands on the quay after a thousand years, the oldest civic building in the land, among the medieval streets. The old triangle keeps its museums.
Waterford guards its Viking past on the Suir.
Where is Waterford?
Waterford lies on the River Suir in the southeast of Ireland. The city spreads along the south bank of the broad tidal river, a few miles above its harbour on the sea, in a green country of low farmland and hills. Gentle hills roll behind the town.
The river widens toward the sea.
What is the climate of Waterford?
Waterford has a mild, damp Atlantic climate. Cool summers and soft winters cross the southeast, kept gentle by the nearby sea, with rain and cloud spread through the year. Showers blow in from the sea.
The green country stays soft and wet.
How do you get to Waterford?
Waterford lies in the southeast corner of Ireland. Roads and a rail line run to it from Dublin in the north and Cork in the west, and the port sits at the head of a deep harbour. Regional buses fan out to Tramore and the harbour villages.
Most arrive by road from Dublin.
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Updated August 2026