Coole Park near Gort is the former home of Lady Gregory - founder and director of The Abbey Theatre, Ireland's National Theatre, and friend of poet William Butler Yeats - also a director of The Abbey.

The house remains only as ruins, the estate however is now a wildlife park - many birds include the small lakes as calling port along their migratory patterns. There are also a number of deer, and other smaller animals. The gardens of the house, which have within them a novel time-keeping solution, 'yew walk' and famous 'autograph tree', are still well maintained. Signatures carved on the autograph tree include those of George Bernard Shaw, Sean O'Casey, John Millington Synge and Douglas Hyde, the first Irish president.

There is an indoor exhibition which informs the visitor of the natural and literary history of the site. Access to the exhibition is by guided tour only. Tours run every 30 minutes. The average length of a visit is one hour. For further information about a tour see the contact details for the Head Guide below..

The Park itself is open all year round and offers several short and longer paths to walk - each taking in several of Coole Park's historical sites and places of natural beauty. All are well marked, the way shown by a combination of written signs and colour-coded markers.

Contact Information
Head Guide 
Coole Visitor Centre,
Gort, County Galway.
Tel: 091-631804 091-563016
Fax: 091-631653