This is the most relaxing, informative and fun way to view Cobh's historic sites and beautiful sea…read morevistas is aboard the Cobh Road Train. The train will gently go up and down the hilly Victorian streetscape where you will be able to take panoramic views. The driver/guide is very knowledgeable, funny and friendly. He will tell you all of Cobh's fascinating history plus some amusing facts. From the top of the hill you will take in spectacular views which provides an opportunity to view the last mooring of the Titanic. The panorama of the inner and outer harbour and the historic Haulbowline Island is breathtaking! You will also have a stop at the famous and historic St Colmans Cathedral which is worth a look in. The journey takes approximately 45 minutes and some 8 trips per day are provided. The train departs from the centre of town, from where the last passengers embarked the Titanic. The train is ideal for young and old alike.

Butler's Coach of Cork Ireland. John O'Donovan provided us Irish history, music, sports, and…read moreculture as well as safe driving and beautiful scenery. His narrative as we went through Belfast still affects me. He took us to the very best places and helped us experience the best of Scotland as well. He also made sure our little flock was safe and happy through 12 dayd. From pub suggestions to directions to concert halls, we couldn't ask for more. Ask for Mr. O'Donovan and you'll be pleased with your Ireland and Scotland experience.

Shortest distance to our excursion bus, and we'll organized terminal! Staff was friendly and…read moreefficient. The area was clean.

We had a marvellous time aboard the 'Spirit of Kinsale'! The departure point is found not far from…read morethe tourist office. It was a very pleasant, professionally run, trip around the harbour and beyond, with a great commentary of what to look out for, the history of the area, and there were wonderful views too. The boat was comfortable and not overcrowded. Also, Kinsale is twinned with Mumbles, which is near to where we live in Wales so we were particularly interested to come here.

This is as much a review of a walking tour around historic Kinsale, Cionn tSáile, and the famous…read morepromontory The Old Head of Kinsale, as it is for it's friendly tourist office. Housed in an imaginatively designed modern structure, it manages not to look out of place with the towns vast majority of pretty heritage buildings, and is situated on what was the original quayside of this once important garrison town. I'd come on the 249 bus the 27km from Cork, as I wanted for personal reasons to make a pilgrimage to the Old Head of Kinsale, where within sight of land in 1915, a tragic sinking close to the scale of loss of life on The Titanic took place, more about this at the end! Suffice to say I'd called in the Tourist Office essentially for information on how a non-car driver might get there. The staff were helpful beyond the call of duty, and although as you will see despite the best advice, and considerable effort, I was eventually thwarted in my attempts to get there, they told me about a local historian & guide called Dermot. Dermot Ryan as well as conducting a regular early evening walking tour around the atmostpheric narrow & winding hilly streets, starting from the tourist office, is an absolute gold mine of information. Like the best tour guides I have listened to, he never feels the need to over sell his subject, and has a wonderfully subtle delivery that leaves you hanging on his every word, and wanting more. He takes small groups around the historic town, telling you about everything from Spanish allies helping the locals to fight the English, through wine trade in what was once one of the most important harbours in Europe. Even the 'Kinsale cloak', a famous hooded cloak worn by local ladies from medieval to more recent times, puts in a humorous appearance, with remembrance of the women who wore them being the feared hoodies of their day!. All the time Dermot compellingly managed to put little old Kinsale right in the heart of much bigger history. Dermot was very pleased I asked him about RMS Lusitania, once the worlds largest liner, which brings us neatly back to The Old Head of Kinsale! It was within easy sight of here on a bright sunny afternoon in May that the Lusitania was torpedoed by a German U-boat, and took just 18 minutes to disappear beneath the calm waters, robbing 1198 men, women & children of their lives. There is a memorial to this tragic event close to the R604. Sadly however this is no easy place to get to get to, particularly if you don't have a car for the around 13km journey from Kinsale. Anyway the day I chose to get a taxi to view the memorial, the road was closed. Also after I'd settled on walking, it seemed that the elements in the form of an incredibly strong & long lasting downpour of rain, were conspiring to keep me away. Next time remind me to bring a bike & oilskins! Controversially this beautiful headland point which stretches out into the sea for almost 2 miles, complete with it's dramatically situated lighthouse is now dominated by Irelands costliest Golf Course. Here non members are denied access, although the Golf Courses website tauntingly boasts of it's beautiful natural habitat & perfect vantage point for viewing Whales & Dolphins. Another reason why I hate golf!

A very cute B&B just outside Cork city. Our initial room unfortunately smelled like cigarette smoke…read more(even though this is a non-smoking B&B) but they accommodated with a room change so we actually ended up in a family room with a double bed and two twins! Haha. The breakfast is 9 Euro and you get a choice of full Irish Breakfast, poached eggs, or scrambled eggs -- which come with bacon and sausage and toast and tea as well. A LOT of food, and it was quite good. There's also a little buffet station with cereals and cheeses and a bit of smoked salmon. I think it was a pretty good value! The only unfortunate thing was how hot the dining room got because of the sun shining directly into it. But Ireland usually doesn't have the heat wave we experienced while there so I imagine that's not a frequent issue. The rooms are old-fashioned but fairly well-kept, and again, the staff is all very friendly. Bathrooms are nice, they provide you with (gasp!) real shampoo and conditioner. The bathtubs are weirdly narrow for my big American butt, but the shower pressure was good. It's not the height of luxury, but it was a very comfortable way to spend a couple of nights. Oh, and they have a deal with one of the taxi companies that will take you straight into the city center for 7 Euro (other taxis will cost you 9 - 10)!

A very hotel-like B&B, with a lovely interior and fairly friendly staff…read more This location is situated less than a 4 minute drive from Cork city centre. Near two service garages and a bus stop, it is fairly conveniently located. That said, it's still about a 35 minute walk and 7.5 Euro taxi ride for two. The B&B has free parking and they give you a key to the front door and to your bedroom. Checking-in was relatively informal. You signed a guest card, gave them your reg, and that was that. If you pre-purchased breakfast (more on that later), it is served in a warm, but small, dining room and conservatory between 7 and 10 am. The room was quite pleasant. It overlooked a lovely garden. Flat screen television, sofa, kettle with UHT milk, tea, coffee, and hot chocolate, and two complimentary kit kat bars. The bathroom was modern and large, with a socket for your razor and attached hair dryer. It was a full-house, so I was expecting noise between the walls and ceiling. There was none. So, either the other guests were quite quiet or the walls block sound. The bed was a comfortable double, that had 4 pillows. One strange thing was that what appeared to be a duvet on the bed, was actually just a plastic-like curtain which matched the curtains on the wall. It felt like plastic and underneath there was no fabric. This quickly slide to the floor. Beneath that was a standard blanket and sheet. The bathroom seemed to have an ant problem. Ants were coming in through the cracks. I was washing my hands and I saw one appear from a crack, followed by his co-worker. Later on, I would be brushing my teeth to be coupled with a sensation of an ant crawling up like ankle. Fortunately, I didn't notice this problem in the bed. Breakfast was ok. It was friendly and sunny in the dining area. Thing is, I don't think I'd pre-buy breakfast again. The full Irish felt more like a half Irish. The portions were relatively small, especially the hashbrown. The wee triangle of the hashbrown was, and I'm not joking, smaller than my thumb. It was like a baby hashbrown. In addition to that, the black pudding wasn't very good. Not certain what brand they were using, but it was over-gritty and yuck. There was also a buffet you could avail of, with several different types of juice which you could pour into glasses that were only slightly bigger than shot glasses. While this may indeed limit how much I can drink, it is also going to annoy me to make frequent trips to the buffet to fill up on orange. Further, I'm going to probably, initially, just take several glasses with me. These were indeed small, barely above a shot glass in depth. The selection was nice, there was some fruit and cereals. Then they come to take your order, in which you could get scrambled eggs (I believe), a poached egg, or a full Irish. I would return, however before I were to book again, I would definitely compare the price difference between the lodge and some of the places in city centre. Reason being it's about a 6.5 Euro (+1 euro per extra passenger) ride, each way, into city centre. Depending on how many trips you plan on making, it may be more economical to just stay inside the centre itself.

Great tour. Kate is really funny and happy to answer lots of questions. The tour was a lot of fun…read more Different from all the whisky and beer tours we've been doing. Completely recommend especially if you know nothing about mead.

Really great tour and tasting. Super friendly folks. Great honey and great meads. Pretty…read moreinformative on the whole process.

THE SHANDON WALK Took the Shandon Walk today. You can pick…read moreup a map in the Tourist Office; well worth it, even if you are a native. The one hour jaunt takes you through some of the oldest parts of Cork: the narrow lanes of the Huguenot Quarter off Paul Street, old and new buildings all along the way, including a string of churches, more narrow lanes in the Shandon vicinity. Shandon Street itself is an eye-opener. There are food outlets galore, from the traditional chipper to shops selling Hungarian, African, Asian food - truly multi-national. If you overdo it on the eating, there is an undertakers at the bottom! Start in Daunts Square, down Paul Street, into Emmett Place, turn left on the quay and cross the river via the pedestrian bridge, turn right, and then left up towards Shandon; from here, head to the Cathedral and then back down the multi-national Shandon Street, over the North Gate Bridge. The walk actually stops at the Cork Vision Centre. The morning started frosty and foggy but the blue skies were appearing as I started. Just took in the sights today, including information boards along the signposted way. Next time, I'll take it real easy and call in for a snack, a drink, a look or a chat.

Ian, Una, and all of the Blarney Castle Hotel staff,…read more Thank you for everything. You made our stay in Blarney the most enjoyable part of our trip to Ireland. Everyone at the hotel was so friendly, so helpful, and so accommodating. You exceeded our expectations by 1000%. Our group of 50 people have all told us that this was world class service at its finest. A lifetime of blessings to you, as you provided a lifetime of memories for us. - Bobby and Kristen

5 stars isn't enough for the Blarney Castle Hotel. We stayed there for two nights and had an…read moreamazing time. The food at the hotel was spectacular and the staff was so charming and accommodating. The hotel is within walking distance of the castle which was another big plus. I will definitely be returning to stay here again next time I visit!