The green face paint has hardly been washed off and the banners remain unfurled but plans are already at a relatively advanced stage for the 2026 St Patrick’s Festival in Killarney.

In the coming months the dedicated and hugely enthusiastic committee, spearheaded by hotelier Jason Clifford, will hold several numerous meetings, with two on some days, as well as making and receiving hundreds of phone calls before the grand marshal is paraded through the streets in March of next year for the final instalment in the hugely successful Echoes trilogy.
The theme last year was Echoes of Killarney Past, this year it was Echoes of Killarney Present and in 2026 the focus will be on Echoes of Killarney Future and to suggest that the three-year theme has been a success is quite the understatement.
“The festival continues to grow in stature and in participation every year and St Patrick’s Day brings the biggest footfall to Killarney at any one time of the year,” said Clifford.
He added that the fact that the traditional one-day celebration has now grown to a hugely successful five-day festival speaks volumes about the high regard in which Killarney and its many festivals are held.
Jason said the secret to success is the small army of volunteers who so willingly give of their time and effort to ensure everything runs smoothly.
In addition to a 22-strong committee, this year the festival had close on 30 volunteers working at AbleFest – a fully inclusive one-day outdoor festival on March 16 – while a further 75 volunteers took to the streets to help with the running of the parade and all it involved on St Patrick’s Day, under the direction of co-ordinator Thys Vogels.
“Without the volunteers, who range in age from 16 upwards, the St Patrick’s Festival or any of the great festivals in Killarney just wouldn’t be possible,” Jason said.
He singled out safety officer, Martin O’Brien, for special praise as he prepares and implements a 75-page safety document prior to the events and Jason acknowledged the enormous contribution of the festival organisers, Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce, in conjunction with Kerry County Council and Fáilte Ireland.
The chamber executive has heaped praise on Jason, the festival committee and the dedicated volunteers for the enormous effort they made to ensure that the parade in Killarney was one of the best in the country.
“We hand them the baton and off they go. They are a truly wonderful bunch and the Killarney business community, the people of the town and visitors have great reason to be grateful for the professional way they go about the task at hand.
“We thank everybody involved and we look forward to the exciting third part of the trilogy in March of 2026,” the chamber said in a statement.