Has Powerscourt House been restored? I know it was gutted by fire years ago, but I would love to visit and tour it if it is rennovated.

HI, I was there 5 years ago and at that time they were restoring it so I would thik they would be done. The gardens were beautiful!

Only the exterior of the house has been restored, as well as the addition of an indoor shopping area and a restaurant in a portion of the building. There are no restored rooms to visit. The gardens are really beautiful, and there are some nice shops as well as a pretty good restaurant/cafe. On a nice day you can eat outside on the terrace. The little town is also cute and has some good pubs on the main street.

Thank you both for your replies. I'll know what to expect when I visit there.

Actually - I was just there in April (and loved it)

There is an audiovisual room that was purposely left rough - to show the way the fire ate down to the cream brick.

The main ballroom has been restored from the floors to the grand ceiling - there is no furniture in that room, but you can imagine a lively party there.
On the 2nd floor , there are 2 or 3 connecting rooms that are restored. One has more AV displays, and the other is like a sitting/ smoking room.

There are 2 cafe's and 3 or 4 shops on the ground floor.

But the Gardens are the real attraction - well worth the time & entrance fee. I think that was my favorite part of my 2 weeks there.

Debbie

Any suggestions on how much time to allocate to see the Powerscourt Gardens and House?

all depends on when you go. If it is high season, or a bus group has just arrived it can take longer.

The house itself is about 20 - 30 min.
The gardens are self guided. You can do all or part. I think we spent around an hour or a little more, but that was just around the main lake. We didn't even get to the Japenese garden section. I would think you COULD spend 2 - 3 hrs there easily.
Not including grabbing a bite to eat on the terrace.

On the other hand, if you were pressed for time, you could skip the house, and do a modified tour of the gardens and be done in under an hour.

It is up to you.

"Cicerone" is basically correct, but there are (August 2003) a few restored rooms, one a large hall. I don't think it very effective; it looks rather newish.

The gardens are really wonderful.

I will be in Ireland 10/16-24. Does anyone know what the gardens should be like then? I don't expect full summer bloom, but do they have some nice fall displays? Still worth that time this late in the year? Thanks!