It is a must-see if are visiting Ireland. It seems quite unreal - we just saw those things before…read morein The Netherlands! =) But they are spectacular. The small one is 500 years old and the white 300 years old. You can observe restorations here and there, but it looks very well preserved. They do not work any more but are open for visitation. You can either go see it by yourself but I took the tour and I really recommend it. It costs 4.80 for students and 6.60 for regular ticket. Kids go free. The tour takes about 1h and you learn a lot. You can even try the old machines a little bit - it was fun! The guide was very friendly and full of stories. In the visitors center they have a restaurant and craft shop. You have a half day off it is a good idea to explore the place.

I took a tour here the other day, it took about an hour and it was very informative. You learnt all…read moreabout the history of the mill which dates back to the 16th century, they only were restored very recently. I must say that I had fun trying to grind the flour with the stone. The location is very pretty and you get to walk outside a few times as you there are several mills. The views of the area are very impressive. Afters we had some lunch in the café that is part of the mill. It definitely is a good family activity to do if you are looking for ideas and want to try something new.

Dublin Tourism is located in the former Saint Andrews Church. It is a great place to start when you…read morearrive in Dublin for assistance in everything that you may like to do in the city. They have tons of pamphlets on activities, tours, events and places to eat. If needed they will give one on one attention to assist you in booking tickets for transportation, theater and hotel stays. Maps and books are available for sale and you can also exchange money here. I was told that they can assist in four languages. (English, Italian, Spanish and French) For me the building housing the tourism office was the real star. It is stunningly beautiful and sits in the center of town. The church was built somewhere around 1862 and served that purpose until 1993. The Church of Ireland sold St. Andrew's in 1994. It has three levels and is over 19,000 sq ft. The first floor is massive at almost 9,000 sq ft.

I can't believe this is my 40th review of Ireland and my last... at least until my next visit to…read morethe Emerald Island. So let me go back to the beginning of this journey. My trip to Dublin was planned like the true procrastinator that I am. I was just finishing one job and due to start a new one in a week's time. I just knew flying to Dublin would be a relatively easy break, but I had next to no clue what to do when I got there other than the tips I got from a random sampling of YouTube traveler advice videos. In my typically aimless fashion, I ended up at the Dublin Tourist Centre, housed in historic St. Andrew's Church, on Suffolk Street. Inside are a series of tour company desks and kiosks set up much like the car rental counter at an airport. They all provide competitively priced tours going to the same places throughout the island. It was here that I impulsively decided to make a booking the next day to Northern Ireland, in particular, to see the Giant's Causeway. After booking with one company, I noticed that the pick-up time was too early for me to get from my suburban hotel to the meeting spot outside the building. I noticed their competitor picked up their passengers an hour earlier. You would have guessed all hell done broke loose since the agents didn't know how to process a cancellation on their PCs. They tried to convince me that I couldn't cancel, but the ugly American came out of me and they relented. Regardless I am grateful this office exists because I wouldn't have experienced many of the 39 other things I already reviewed.

Shay was our driver in the "new bus." Great driver!…read moreCareful, attentive, fun, educational, and knows how to manage and entertain an eclectic group who just met! The tour is great....but Shay totally deserves the credit for this 5 star rating!

I do not recommend the Cliffs of Moher tour. I can imagine no greater H3ll than sitting on a bus…read morefor 12 hours without a bathroom, but it exceeded my expectations for how awful it was. The bus drives erratically along winding roads, swinging horribly. At least 2 people on our tour were vomiting at their seats. It does stop at least every 1.5 hours for bathroom breaks but the stops are short, you do not get to experience anything at these stops except for one mediocre restaurant that is chosen for everyone for lunch. The cliffs are usually cloudy/windy/rainy anyway. Definitely not worth it. The driver was nice enough and gave some information while driving, that is the only positive feedback I can give.

Oh it was cold. So cold that my finger tips were numb, and my nose echoed Rudolf's. The wind howled…read morethrough the 'clubhouse' making a screeching, chilling sound, and the 'dungeon' room provided the only respite from the sleet. But here's the thing. That all added to the atmosphere. The Hellfire Club is a place solely dedicated to - as my Dad would say - 'shady goings on.' You will need to do the tour to find out the gory details, but do the tour you should. Unexpectadely, the tour also takes in a bit of a history lesson, from when it was built around 1700, to the current day. The guide talks about it's association with Satanism, the supernatural and the occult, as well as the political tone of the time. Our driver was actually one of the ones who witnessed, many years ago, some haunting activities up here. To hear his account, first hand, really brought it all home. The tour is eerie, exhilarating, spooky, at times funny, and always entertaining. It will give you a new view on Dublin, both literally and figuratively.

A big thankyou to Yelp and the guys at Hidden Dublin Walking Tours for their Hidden Dublin Hellfire…read moreTour! I'd been wanting to do this particular tour for ages so was delighted when it came up as part of the Yelp "Festival of Firsts" Not quite sure what we were thinking heading up the Dublin Mountains on one of stormiest weeks of the year but wrapped up to within an inch of my life we headed off from The Brazen Head (another first for me in Dublin's oldest pub) which is a very cool spot too! The guys from Hidden Walks kept the stories going setting the scene the entire time from the Brazen Head up to the foot of the mountains. Such great views over Dublin on the mini hike up to the Hirefire Club..I could probably have have done with a torch but walking in the dark kinda adds to the effect! Loved the spookiness of the stories once inside the club & the stormy evening added more to the Haunted evening! Wish I got to do this at Halloween! Top marks though, a great way to spend an evening. Hot Ports required all around afterwards!!!

My first visit to Carlingford, in August 2017, was for a friends birthday. A crowd of us rented a…read morehouse and spent a couple of nights there. Not only is Carlingford a beautiful little village filled with flowers, cobbled streets and medieval castles/ architecture, it's also located beside a stunning lough. We booked our accommodation, a mystery cocktail tour and an evening meal through Visit Carlingford. Everything was organised perfectly and this made our trip completely stress free and enjoyable. An excellent weekend.

From the owner: Visit Carlingford is an online information hub for people coming to the Carlingford Area. We have…read moreeverything you need from Accommodation to Activities we have it all covered. We sell customized package to suit any group like Hen or Stay Party, Sport Team Bonding Weekend, Golf Getaway, Family Break or a Couple coming to Carlingford. You can also build your own. We work with the businesses of the area to give the costumer the best package deal available. Contact us today.

Ashtown Visitor Centre is located in old stable buildings beside the reconstructed Ashtown Castle…read morein the Phoenix Park. The visitor centre,which is free contains a small visual and written display about the history,geography and natural history of the Phoenix park. There are also some artifacts on display e.g a communion bowel from Pope John Paul II mass held in the Phoenix Park in 1979. Small children love to walk through the constructed cave which shows what animals live in the park. They can peer into the underground burrows and see where the animals live. There is also an activity area where small children can draw etc.Downstairs in the visitor centre a short film about the Phoenix Park is shown aprox every 30 mins. There is often art on display in the small gallery beside reception. Opposite the visitor centre is a lovely cafe where you can get some nice soups and salads. A nice place to end up after a brisk walk around the Phoenix Park! Outside the visitor centre is a restored Victorian walled garden, the reconstructed Ashtown castle and a new childrens playground. Small children also love to play in the box hedge maze beside Ashtown Castle. Plenty of parking available. It's a great place for people with small children and agreat place for adults to treat themselves after a good workout in the Phoenix Park :-)

Absolutely beautiful location with a great guide who was friendly, informative and fun to spend…read moretime with. Bikes were great too.

From the owner: Dublin’s leading provider of adventure experiences and award winning family run tours, whose…read morepassion is sharing the beauty, history and nature of Howth with locals and guests from around the world. Our eco-friendly activities include walking, hiking, electric bike and boat tours. Howth Adventures are family and friends whose passion in life is to share the beauty, history and nature of Howth with locals and guests from around the world. We go out of our way to create exciting, meaningful, personal and memorable, adventure experiences connecting the stories, people, land, sea and sky in Howth. Howth is part of the Dublin Bay UNESCO Biosphere and our mission is to share this beauty, leave no trace and keep it a unique and glorious sustainable treasure where nature, people and culture can thrive.

Absolutely one of the Top 3 Highlights from my recent trip to Dublin! If you are staying in Dublin…read moreCity Centre, do not skip a little trip to Howth for a tour with Ireland's Eye Ferries. To start, I booked my tour via Expedia which ended up costing just over $25 for a single ticket. I ended up taking an Uber to the dock from my hotel in city center which set me back about 30 EUR (but you can easily take the train to Howth for much less $$$). Howth is an incredibly charming seaside town with tons of shops and eateries too, so I made sure to grab lunch after my tour as well. Tours tend to fill up very quickly in the summer, but I guess not many others were willing to brave the November cold with me. I ended up with the entire boat to myself along with Brian my tour guide/captain, which was such a unique and incredible experience. Don't let the cold dissuade you! Brian is extremely knowledgeable on the history of the surrounding areas and wildlife which I really appreciated. He stopped to give me fun facts and tidbits throughout the tour, which was just over 40 minutes. If you are traveling in the more wintery months like me, definitely don't hesitate to book your tour, just bundle up (and maybe take a Dramamine if you get seasick). I was able to take in the most amazing views and snap some great photos. It was truly one of the highlights of my time in Dublin. Would HIGHLY recommend. 10/10 experience!

"The legend of Howth" said a waitress to us about Shane of Ireland's Eye Ferries, so a boat ride we…read moredid book! It was super easy to do online and he has slots available pretty much on the hour, as tours are only 50 minutes long. Shane was super personable and clever. He made everyone feel welcomed aboard, from young to old. The boat ride just goes around Ireland's Eye and so you get some quick history facts as well as a lot of bird watching. A lovely activity that's just a quick 30 minute train ride outside Dublin. If you do make the trek, dine at Kings Citric!

Our 10 day trip was absolutely wonderful. Susan, our driver was just terrific. She was so very…read moreknowledgeable and kind. We were quite touched and blessed that she took us by the Gallarus Oratory, which is located on the farm where our grandmother grew up. It brought tears to my eyes to walk on the land where my grandmother lived. She even stopped for a quick photo of the church in Ballyferriter that our grandmother would have attended. We were able to meet up with cousins while we stopped off in Dingle. This personal touch made our trip one that we will never forget. The sites for each day were carefully selected and each was a new fantastic experience. I cannot go to bed without hearing the lyrics of Molly Malone in my head. I will head into the future with a newfound, more intense, appreciation of my Irish heritage. Two friends joined my sister and me on the trip, and they loved it as well. This was a wonderful blessing, and I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to see the country.

We were on a 10-day small group (16 people max) tour that circled the island. We had 14 in our tour…read moregroup. We had enough room on the bus that we each got our own row with plenty of room for our stuff. Our guide/driver was Kieran. He loved answering questions and telling us the history of the area. All the hotels were all excellent (one was even 5-star). All breakfasts were provided and dinners were 3-course meals with 3 different options. Our bags were brought to the van and into our next room at every stop by the porters. We got to see so much of the beauty of Ireland including stops not included on the itinerary such as the sheepdog demo and the Celtic steps show (additional charge but worth it ) If you don't want to drive, but want to see the major highlights of Ireland this is the way to go!! I would prefer that we start later some days or had more shopping time. We were normally on the road by 8am most mornings and back at the hotel by 330-430pm.

Booked this tour based on the great reviews on trip advisor and the great student discount and…read moreadditional 10% off booking special. Check their website for the latest deals before booking. They require you to have a student ID to get the discount but they never checked mine. I decided on the 5 day Celtic Rocker tour based on the limited time I had, but if I were to do it over again I probably would go with the 7 day that included Belfast and Northern Ireland. Everyone seemed to love that portion of their tour the most. The way this tour company works is that they join up the other tour groups and switch guides when you cross paths on the same route with another tour. We started out in a small group of 10 in Dublin, but ended up with about 20 more people meeting up in Galway. For a budget tour, I thought the sights and information provided to us by the local tour guides were excellent. We had Jaime and Gillian as tour guides and they were both excellent and offered great advice! It was mostly Aussies, Canadians, and Americans on this tour. Everyone became good friends which was aided on by all the fun social activities like pub crawls and nights out that everyone partakes in. Overall, really happy with my choice to book through Shamrocker. I hope to try their partner company´s tours in Scotland someday and in a few weeks will be going on the Busabout sailing tour of Croatia for 7 days.

I loved essentially everything about this trip.. the only thing I would have changed is better…read morehostels as the ones we had were squishy and hot and lacked power outlets. Other than that, our guide jack was fantastic with loads of energy and was very accommodating. The bus was clean and comfy, the views and stops were great! I would do another one anytime!