Wonderlights at Fota House
2024-11-24 - 2025-01-04
The Magic of Winter theme will transform Fota House and Gardens into a mesmerising winter wonderland, filled with large illuminated sculptures of arctic animals, meadows of glowing winter flowers, and an enchanting frozen forest. One of the highlights of this experience, will be the stunning projection mapping onto Fota House, where visitors will witness the building come to life with scenes of a grand Christmas celebration. From snow-covered gardens to festive interiors, immersing audiences in the magic of the season.
Be prepared to marvel at the magic in the beautiful Gardens and surroundings of Fota House, running from Nov 16th.
To book head to: https://www.wonderlights.ie/fota-house

Valentines Chocolate Workshop
2025-02-14 16:30 - 18:30 (Europe/Dublin)
📅 Feb 14 | 4:30–6:30 PM | Fota House, Cork – Limited Spaces Available Book Now!
This Valentine’s Day, share a sweet and unforgettable experience hosted by Home Chocolat. Make your own gourmet chocolates in a hands-on workshop and take home your personalized chocolate creations—a perfect gift for someone special (or yourself!).
✨ Learn how chocolate is made & craft your own treats
🎁 Take home handmade, personalized chocolates
👩‍❤️‍👨 A fun, interactive experience to enjoy together
💰 €50 per person | €80 per couple (Save €20!)
Bookings: https://forms.gle/sN7XvTfCrnoz7h4E9

Valentine's Watercolour Workshop
2025-02-15 11:00 - 14:00
📅 Feb 15| 11:00AM–2:30 PM | Fota House, Cork – Limited Spaces Available Book Now!
Join Sarah Rohu Illustration at Fota House and Gardens for a Valentine’s Day watercolour workshop! 💗
Expect lots of pink and red for this one!! Tea, coffee and delicious homemade scones served in the cafe included. All materials provided just bring yourself! ♥️💕
💶€65 per person
To book EMAIL info@sarahrohuillustration.ie

Improvers’ Scythe Course
2025-03-29 10:00 - 16:00
🌿🌾 Improve Your Scything Skills at Fota House! 🌾🌿
Join us on Saturday, 29th March from 10am-4pm for an Improvers’ Scythe Course in the stunning Fota House Victorian Working Garden! This course is perfect for anyone who’s completed a Beginners’ Scythe Course and wants to deepen their knowledge and skills.
What we will cover:-
🔹 Advice on common scything challenges you have encountered
🔹 Hands-on practice with different blades & scythe setups
🔹 Exploration of hafting angles, lift & lay of the blade
🔹 Blade care & sharpening techniques
🔹 A peening practice session
🔹 Plus, some valuable ease-of-movement tips from Ian Revins of Santosha Yoga Cork!
Instructor: Susanne Raven of Aphrodite’s Gardens
Cost: €95
Max participants: 6 (small group for more focused attention)
Lunch: Provided 🍽️
Note: Participants must bring their own scythe and the course is focusing on the Austrian scythe only. (No sales of scythes or accessories on the day.)
Limited spots available – book now

Botanical Sketching & Watercolour Painting Workshop
2025-04-12 10:30 - 14:00
🌿 What’s Included:
• Walk in the gardens
• Botanical sketching & watercolor painting session
• Tea, coffee, and scones included
💶 Cost: €65 per person
To book your place email info@sarahrohuillustration.ie

Fota Plant Fair - April 13th
2025-04-13 11:00 - 16:00
📅 Apr 13 | 11:00AM–4:00 PM
Our annual plant fair is a haven for plant lovers with numerous specialist nurseries from all over the country attending providing visitors with the opportunity to purchase unusual and special plants at competitive prices.
Our volunteer team from the Victorian Working Gardens will also be in attendance selling plants that are grown on site here. There will also be a vibrant selection of local artists and artisans as well as food stalls.
Entry Fee – €5.00 per adult payable on the day

Vanbrugh & Friends String Quintet Recital - April 13th
2025-04-13 15:00 - 16:30
The Vanbrugh & Friends present a programme of jewels from the string quintet repertoire in the beautiful Drawing Room at Fota House. Keith Pascoe, Simon Aspell and Christopher Marwood are joined by violinist Marja Gaynor and violist Ed Creedon to play a selection of movements from quintets by Boccherini, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms and Dvořák.
The Vanbrugh has evolved from the work of the Vanbrugh Quartet which was based in Cork as RTE’s Resident Quartet from 1986 to 2013 and as Artists-in-Residence at University College, Cork from 1990 until the retirement of violinist Gregory Ellis in 2017. Over three decades the quartet gave close to three thousand concerts, presenting the chamber music repertoire to audiences throughout Ireland, Europe, the Americas, and the Far East. Commercial recordings include more than thirty CDs of repertoire ranging from the complete Beethoven quartets to many contemporary Irish works. In 2016 the group was presented with the National Concert Hall’s Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of their contribution to music in Ireland. Keith Pascoe, Simon Aspell, and Christopher Marwood continue to perform together as the nucleus of the Vanbrugh and are joined by guest artists for performances of a wide range of chamber music repertoire.

Easter Egg Trail at Fota House
2025-04-19 11:00 - 2025-04-21 16:00 | Fota House, Arboretum & Gardens
Easter is almost here, and we’re excited to announce that tickets for the Fota House Easter Egg Trail are officially on sale!

Join us for a fun-filled adventure trail through the stunning Arboretum & Gardens at Fota House, where you’ll search for clues, collect eggs to claim your Easter treat, and meet some interesting characters along the way….
Plus, the Easter Bunny will be making a special appearance – you won’t want to miss it!

Dates: April 19th to 21st 11:00am to 4:00pm
https://bookings.fotahouse.com

Mór Artists Collective
2025-06-09 11:00 - 2025-06-22 15:00 | Fota House, Arboretum & Gardens
Mór Artists Collective is delighted to announce “Beneath the Layers”, an exhibition in partnership with Fota House, Arboretum & Gardens.
Members have been invited to respond to one of Ireland’s most unique and notably rich historical resources — the Fota House Wallpaper Collection. The project offers a rare opportunity for our member artists to view and respond to an extraordinary collection of 17th to 19th Century wallpaper samples.
“Beneath the Layers” will open at Fota House from June 9 to June 22, 2025 from 11am to 3pm daily. A public reception will take place on Thursday, June 12 at 6pm and provides an opportunity to meet the artists involved.
Mór Artists Collective is an artists-led membership organisation for artists living and working professionally in the visual, performing, and literary arts in rural East Cork and West Waterford.
Mór Artists Collective is facilitated by Greywood Arts, and supported by Cork County Council and Waterford County & City Arts offices.
Visit morartistscollective.com for mór information about what they do.

A Practical Introduction to Scything Course
2025-06-14 10:30 - 16:30 | Fota House, Arboretum & Gardens
Fota House, Arboretum and Gardens are delighted to run a scythe course at Fota House. Please book online via Fota House or call us on 0214815543.
Price: €85 per person
Max Person: 12
The course will be run by Christopher Hayes and Fergus O’ Regan with the help of Ian Graham who runs Fota’s working orchard garden and has re-introduced scythe mowing in Fota. All three are enthusiastic advocates for the scythe as a modern, efficient and environmentally relevant tool.
Fota House has begun to take a greater interest in the management of its grassland areas, with the focus being to protect and promote biodiversity. The intention is to create sustainable managed wildlife areas in parts of the estate. A move to less disruptive methods are being explored. As an alternative to fossil fuel powered machinery scythes are convivial with nature and ourselves. Working with a scythe isn’t the hard, back breaking work many imagine. Children, men and women of all ages and a very wide range of abilities use scythes and learning to mow isn’t difficult. Scything is fun! Imagine a summer weekend without the noise and air pollution of lawnmower and strimmer engines!
The hands on one-day course will cover scythe adjustment, safe blade handling and mowing, fundamental mowing technique and sharpening methods and will also touch on grass and meadow management and some of the history and culture of scythes.
Our instructors will give personalised on the spot advice as you use your new skills on a variety of grass in the garden. They can also point you in the right direction regarding your own future use of the tool.
Our aim is to give you the skills and confidence to consider a scythe as a realistic option in your farm, garden or community.
There will be tea and coffee on arrival (10am), and a light lunch around midday. The course will start at 10.30am sharp. Please note there is a 10-15 minute walk from the car park to the Victorian Working Garden.
This course is suitable for adults of all ages (18+) and perfect for absolute beginners but also those with experience that would like to improve or refresh their skills.
Ideally participants would use their own scythes as this allows for help with personalised set up and tuning however your scythe should be in working condition.
Chris Hayes will have a selection of scythes and accessories for sale on the day and it may be possible for us to supply a scythe to use for the course but please request in advance for either.
Please get in touch if you have any questions about your (or your scythe’s) abilities to do this course.
Our Instructors:
Chris Hayes started scything when he worked as a forester. He needed a comfortable tool that would help him control grass growing around young trees in young woodlands. He has been teaching for eleven years and loves spreading the good news about this wonderful tool. He teaches and sells high quality scythe equipment (scythe.ie) appropriate to Ireland.
Fergus O’Regan is one of our team of volunteers. He started managing some of his home garden for wildlife around 15 years ago. As a beekeeper he started to use a scythe for managing vegetation around beehives. After trying to teach himself how to use an old scythe (and not doing very well at that) he became a student of Chris’s and is now enjoying the enormous potential of hand mowing.
Please book online via Fota House or call us on 0214815543.

Botanical Sketching & Watercolour Painting Workshop with Sarah Rohu
2025-06-28 10:30 - 14:00

Flower Arranging Workshop - Create your own beautiful bouquet
2025-08-08 10:00 - 13:00
Friday, August 8th – 10:00am to 1:00pm
Join us for a hands-on, 3-hour flower arranging workshop where you’ll design and create your own stunning floral arrangement using sustainable techniques. Taking place in the surrounds of Fota’s stunning Victorian Working Garden, you will use flowers grown on site. Whether you’re a beginner or have some experience, this workshop offers something for everyone!
During the session, we’ll explore the fundamental principles of flower arranging, including balance, proportion, and texture, to help you craft visually pleasing bouquets. You’ll also learn about effective colour combinations to make your arrangement pop and harmonize perfectly with any space.
To help your floral creations stay fresh and vibrant longer, we’ll share expert tips and techniques on how to extend the life of your bouquet.
By the end of the workshop, you’ll take home your unique floral masterpiece, along with the skills and confidence to create beautiful arrangements on your own.
Everyone goes home with a bouquet. Bouquets also for sale.
Chemical-free flowers and foliage grown in the gardens.
Experienced instructor.
Tea/Coffee included.
Beautiful setting of the Victorian Working Gardens

CÓISIR an tSAMHRAIDH 2025
2025-08-21 19:30 - 22:15 | Fota House, Arboretum & Gardens
An evening of music featuring Irish artists:
Mick O Brien (uileann pipes)
buaiteor Gradam Ceoil TG4 2023
plus AOIFE NÍ BHRIAIN (fiddle)
Deirdre agus Aoife Granville
CEOLTÓIRÍ AGUS AMHRÁNAÍ
ó Dhaingean uí Chúis
Tickets: €20
For bookings call: 086 2618034

Cuidiú End of Summer Picnic
2025-08-23 08:00 - 17:00

The Pop Up Movie Club presents Outdoor Cinema at Fota House
2025-08-29 21:00 - 2025-08-31 22:30
Get ready for am evening of laughs and iconic movie moments as the Pop Up Movie Club return to Fota House this August with a line up that’s all about fun, friendship and feel good vibes.
The line up:

August 29th – Bridesmaids
August 30th – Mamma Mia
August 31st Mean Girls

Refreshments will be available to purchase on the night. Remember this in an outdoor prefomance so bring a chair or blanket.

ISNA Plant Fair
2025-09-14 11:00 - 16:00
We are looking forward to welcoming the Irish Specialist Nursery Association members back next Sunday, September 14th for their annual plant fair at Fota. ISNA represent the smaller specialised nurseries in Ireland who offer a wide variety of plants, rare trees and shrubs for sale.

Open from 11am to 4:00pm the event will take place in the area adjacent to the Fota House Car Park making it easily accessible for all visitors. Entrance is €5 to the plant fair.

A Celebration of Dining Tradition at Fota House
2025-09-20 18:30 - 20:30
Join us for an elegant evening in support of heritage, tradition and restoration at Fota House on Saturday, September 20th from 6:30pm to 8:30pm. This is a benefit evening in support of completing the presentation of our beautiful formal dining room.
Tickets – €55 (includes free entry to a fantastic fundraiser draw)
Your evening includes:

Processo on arrival
Exclusive access to the ground floor of the museum
Delicious canapes and wine served throughout the evening
A curatorial talk on the historic dining collection

The Magic of Santa at Fota House
2025-11-22 - 2025-12-22 | Fota House, Arboretum & Gardens
🎄 Experience the Magic of Christmas at Fota House November 22nd to December 22nd 2025 ! 🎄

Join Santa & Mrs. Claus at the enchanting Fota House as they prepare for the most magical night of the year. The Elves are bustling with excitement but, as always, they could use a little help from you to get everything ready in time. Bring your festive cheer and a sprinkle of magic to help the Elves impress Santa and earn the honor of accompanying him on his Christmas Eve journey around the world!
What to Expect:

Interactive Fun: Immerse yourself in a traditional Christmas experience as you explore beautifully decorated rooms, each with its own festive storyline.
Meet Santa: Enjoy a special family visit with Santa himself, where he’ll invite children to his North Pole library to choose two age-appropriate books as a gift.
Memorable Moments: The entire experience lasts about an hour, filled with joy, laughter, and holiday spirit.

Ticket Prices:

Infants (0-23 months) with Gift: €0.00
Children (2-13) with Gift: €28.00
Teenagers (14+) with Gift: €28.00
Teenagers (14+) without Gift: €17.50
Adults: €17.50

Make this Christmas unforgettable for your family at Fota House and Book Now at: https://bookings.fotahouse.com/Event/SANTA! 🎅✨
