Portlaoise (County of Laois)

Portlaoise is the county town of County Laois, Ireland. The Irish name means "Fort de Laois". It is located in the South Midlands in the province of Leinster. It is the most famous and also the most densely populated town in the Midlands Region, which has a total population of 292,301 at 2016. This also makes it the fastest growing of the top 20 largest towns and cities in Ireland.

It was an important town in the medieval period, as the site of the Fort of Maryborough.

Port Laoise is fringed by the Slieve Bloom mountains to the west and north-west and the Great Heath of Maryborough to the east. It is notable for its architecture, engineering and transport connections. Port Laoise is located 80 km (50 mi) south-west from Dublin, 170 km (106 mi) north-east from Cork and 113 km (70 mi) east-northeast of Limerick.

It was once famous for the manufacture of iron and steel buildings, tennis balls, rubber seals and electrical cabling. Today Port Laoise is a commercial centre, with the economy dominated by the service sector, and an important shopping, transport, events and conference hub.

We spent the day in this city. On a cultural level, there is not much to visit. There is above all a large shopping centre. However, we still found some nice little places:

- Rock of Dunamase: Dunamase or Dunamase Rock is a rocky outcrop in the town of Park. Archaeological excavations in the 1990s showed that the Rock was first populated in the 9th century when a fort was built on the site. The castle was built in the second half of the 12th century. It is a must-see and really beautiful place to see.

- O'Moore Park is a large stadium, Hurling and Rugby matches are played indoors.