Now I have the gift of gab! If you have never heard the legend of the Blarney Stone allow me to give you a quick history lesson! 

Located in Cork Ireland is the Blarney Castle and built into the battlements is the Blarney Stone. It’s a huge rock that has been there since 1446! It acted as a rite of passage for the old Irish Kings. Legend says that it was an oracular and if you could brave the peril and kiss the stone you would be given the gift of gab. Basically, people would hang upside down (with no guard or railing) to kiss the stone. They would then be able to convince people to do what they wanted with their newly acquired speech.  

It now acts as one of the most popular attractions in all of Ireland. People come from all over to have a chance to kiss the stone and get the gift of gab. I will say it’s an amazing experience but there are some tips and tricks on having a successful visit!

Being such a popular attraction, the waits and lines can get crazy long…like three hours long! It’s worse than Space Mountain at Disneyland.  Early bird gets the worm or in this case can kiss the stone in under an hour. 

Fun fact about the photo of me on the left. I met this amazing family who was on holiday from New Zealand. They were spending THREE MONTHS in Europe. My American brain couldn’t understand how you can have a job and take all that time off. Well anyways I mentioned I was there trying to start a travel blog…this is circa 2018 Melissa and she didn’t know what that fully meant…well the dad offered to take my photo. I didn’t have the heart to tell him it was such a bad angle and not “insta” worthy BUT now its one of my favorite photos. Not because of the quality but because it reminds me traveling is about meeting people and creating memories, photos are just a bonus.

I hate heights like I am deathly afraid BUT I constantly push myself. Not everyone can or wants to do that. I will say, it’s really scary you basically slide under this huge rock with someone holding your feet. You can hold on to the rail but if you look down it’s a LONG way to the bottom. Its super quick though like less than 30 seconds. You can do it but just be ready to face your fears if you are like me!

When you walk up the castle the interior is bare! I thought it would have some things inside, but nope. 

Not only is this castle a ruin but the stairs going up are so STEEP and NARROW. I cannot express enough how tight some of the spaces can get. 

Once you are done kissing the stone, the grounds here are so beautiful! Make sure to spend some time walking around and exploring!

I really loved spending time at the Blarney Castle and getting to kiss the stone! Plus having the gift of gab isn’t something I’m complaining about!

Make sure to drop a comment if you brave the climb to Kiss the Stone!