Kinsale ("head of the brine") is a historic port and fishing town in County Cork, Ireland, which also has significant military history. Located approximately 25 km (16 mi) south of Cork City on the southeast coast near the Old Head of Kinsale, it is located at the mouth of the River Bandon. Its population was 5,281 at the 2016 census. Its population increases during the summer months, when the tourist season is at its peak and the boating fraternity and other tourist visitors arrive in numbers. Kinsale is in the Cork South-West constituency, which has three seats.

Kinsale is a holiday destination for both Irish and overseas tourists. Leisure activities include yachting, sea angling, and golf. The town also has several art galleries, and there is a large yachting marina close to the town centre.

The town is known for its restaurants, including the Michelin-starred Bastion restaurant, and holds a number of annual gourmet food festivals.

Historical buildings in the town include St. Multose's Church (Church of Ireland) of 1190, St. John the Baptist (Catholic) of 1839, the Market House of c. 1600, and the so-called French Prison (or Desmond Castle, associated with the Earls of Desmond) of c. 1500. Charles Fort, a partly restored star fort of 1677, is in nearby Summercove.

Kinsale hosts an annual jazz festival, which takes place during the last weekend of October. Pubs and hotels in the town host concerts by jazz and blues groups throughout the weekend, including on the last Monday of October (which is a bank holiday in Ireland).

The monumental steel, originally unpainted, sculpture The Great Wall of Kinsale, by Eilis O'Connell and installed in 1988 to celebrate Kinsale's achievements in the Tidy Towns competition, stands by Pier Road and Town Park.

Bastion, a restaurant on Market/Main streets, received a Michelin Star in 2020. Chef Keith Floyd was previously a resident of Kinsale.