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Ring of Kerry
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4.8
Read 421 reviews

See the very best of the Emerald Isle 

This fast-paced, short-and-sweet Ireland tour is the perfect introduction to the Emerald Isle. Taste of Ireland hits all of the "greatest hits" highlights—from Blarney Castle to the Cliffs of Moher—with five-day, six-day or seven-day departures to suit your schedule.

Trip details

Tour start Dublin

trip-destination

Tour end Shannon

5 icon

Days

4 icon

Nights

8 icon

Meals

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Booking window

01 May 2025 - 30 May 2025

Group Discount

Repeat Guest Savings

Solo Traveler

Solo Travel

Highlights

Blarney Castle

Get the gift of gab after you kiss the legendary Blarney Stone in Blarney Castle.

Dublin Castle

Tour the historic 800-year-old castle, which has served as a fort, an official government residence, and the site of presidential inaugurations.

Cliffs of Moher

Thrill at the views of the Atlantic from Ireland's famous cliffs, rising 700 feet above the ocean.

Ring of Kerry

See the spectacular coastline, mountain, and forest vistas of Ireland's famous drive.

Sheepdog Demonstration

Watch the hardest working dogs in Ireland guard their herd.

The Merry Ploughboys
Merry Ploughboy Pub

The Merry Ploughboy Pub is owned and run by the traditional musical group ‘The Merry Ploughboys’ who perform every night and are one of Dublin’s longest performing Irish music groups.

Skellig Experience
Skellig Experience

This prizewinning interpretive center gives visitors a rich and evocative experience of "the islands at the edge of the world".

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Itinerary

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slide Day 1Dublin City Tour | Dublin Castle | Merry Ploughboy Pub
At 2:00 PM, meet your tour director in the hotel lobby and depart for a panoramic tour of Dublin. Drive through the lively streets with a local guide, seeing this historic city’s highlights: Trinity College, elegant Georgian homes, and modern buildings rising by the River Liffey. Visit Dublin Castle for a guided tour and see the splendid State Apartments; for centuries the seat of colonial power in Ireland, this impressive complex is today a place for official ceremonies. Return to your hotel for a welcome drink with your group, then head to the Merry Ploughboy Pub for a dinner of Irish specialties and a lively show with traditional music and step-dancing. (D)
Travel through lush green countryside on your way to Blarney Castle. Along the way, stop for photos of the stately ruins of the Rock of Cashel on their hilltop perch. At Blarney, climb the winding staircase to kiss the legendary Blarney Stone and gain the gift of the gab, or wander the beautiful gardens. Arrive in the friendly lakeside town of Killarney, where you’ll dine at your hotel this evening. (B, D)
Visit CIE Tours preferred shopping partner Moriarty’s in the beautiful Gap of Dunloe, before embarking on the famed Ring of Kerry scenic drive. The winding, 100-mile route reveals breathtaking coastal and mountain views, with plenty of photo stops. Pause for a casual lunch in a cozy restaurant. Continue on to Valentia Island to visit the Skellig Experience, a visitor center telling the story of the neighboring island of Skellig Michael, which you’ll see off the coast. Learn how this island, a filming location for “Star Wars,” was once the austere home of early Christian monks. Stop for a stroll around the quaint, colorful village of Sneem, and at Moll’s Gap for panoramic views of Ireland’s highest mountains. Visit a farm to see a demonstration of skilled dogs herding sheep. Return to Killarney and enjoy a free evening to dine and discover the pubs as you wish. (B, L)
Leave Killarney, taking a 20-minute ferry ride across the River Shannon before driving along the coast of County Clare to the Cliffs of Moher, a spectacular wall of sandstone soaring almost 700 feet above the Atlantic. Continue on to your hotel. In the evening, enjoy a medieval-style feast of traditional Irish fare at a castle. Lords and ladies will serenade you with songs and harp music evocative of medieval times. (Please note that January departures may offer a different dining experience.) (B, D)
Your tour ends in Shannon after breakfast. (B) B: Breakfast; L: Lunch; D: Dinner>

Where you’ll stay

The Beautiful 4-Star Clayton Hotel Ballsbridge

Clayton Hotel Ballsbridge Dublin, Ireland

This hotel was once a Masonic School and still retains many striking original features that give...
Killarney Towers Hotel

Killarney Towers Hotel Killarney, Ireland

The Killarney Towers Hotel is the perfect location from which to explore the excitement and...
Clayton Limerick Hotel

Clayton Hotel Limerick Limerick, Ireland

Located on Steamboat Quay, Limerick the 17-story Clayton Hotel Limerick combines architectural...
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Inclusive package with no hidden extras

What's included?

  • Full daily breakfast and many meals*
  • An evening of Irish entertainment  
  • Transportation (Buses, shuttles & ferries)
  • Welcome drinks with your group
  • Free Wi-Fi on luxury coaches
  • All entrance fees to attractions
  • Comprehensive travel itinerary

 

*Breakfast is not included on Day 1

Our welcome gift to you

  • A travel backpack
  • Travel adapter
  • Rain poncho
  • Luggage strap and tags
  • Water flask

From our travelers

Stunning Cliffs of Moher

We were able to see a lot of beauty in southern Ireland and experience some of the local food, drinks and culture. Would definitely recommend this package for anyone who would like to see some of Ireland's beauty.

Chastity Rachielle Vigil
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See what people are saying about this trip

5
CIE Tours Customer
3 years 6 months ago

The whole tour was great!

5
Walter Lee Yeager
3 years 6 months ago
Great Expetience

We loved all of the locations. Great weather. Our tour guide made the trip very memorable with his knowledge and experience.

5
Richard Macdowell
3 years 6 months ago
Great CIE Tour

We did the Taste of Ireland Tour A September 10 to 17, 2021. Our Tour Director/Bus Driver Patrick Cooney was a pleasure to spend a week with. So much inside information, history, stories, etc. to keep us engaged on the bus rides. Dublin was a great place for starting and ending, and the two different hotel locations, Ballsbridge and right downtown off O’Connell Street gave us a nice sampling of the city. Really enjoyed Killarney for 2 nights. The Ring of Kerry and Cliffs of Moher were fantastic, as was the sheepdog stop. Shannon is just a stopover before moving on to Galway, which is a good shopping town where we bought some items to bring home. Just 13 in our group, so we all got to know each other and had a great shared experience.Highly recommended.

5
CIE Tours Customer
5 years 1 month ago

The overall experience was 5 stars because all of CIE is lovely. Two recommendations for future guests: Although instructions indicate that CIE will meet Dublin arrivals after baggage and customs "in Terminal 2", our flight arrived at Dublin's Terminal One. There were NO signs telling us we were in the wrong terminal, and plenty of other tour guides were waiting for guests, so we waited a full hour before digging out the paperwork, noticing Terminal 2, then eventually (after completely exiting our terminal) discovering we were in Terminal One. The hike to Terminal 2 with luggage took over 10 minutes hard walk, which might be cumbersome for older travelers. Please consider having someone from CIE accompany or direct guests who arrive at the other terminal.

Second, for our particular package, we had two days of free time to utilize Dublin's "Hop on, Hop off" bus. The problem? We'd never ridden a bus in Dublin, knew nothing about the transport system, and our hotel was very far from the Hop-on experience. We attempted repeatedly to board what we thought was the right bus, only to be ushered off because our vouchers were no good for regular bus fare. We also didn't have exact change to pay our own way. Getting where we needed to go required downloading a taxi app so we could charge to our credit card just to get to the location where the Hop-on bus ran. I strongly recommend that instead of vouchers for the Hop-on, please consider two day unlimited bus passes for visitors to explore Dublin as they wish.

5
CIE Tours Customer
5 years 1 month ago

We loved taking an CIE tour in Ireland. Sending us our itinerary, and the back pack full of stuff was awesome! Bob Reid was our tour guide, and I cant say enough good things about him. He had such a good sense of humor, and his stories were amazing. The history he gave us was really neat.

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