My family had a wonderful 10 day trip to Ireland, thanks to kimkim and our travel specialist, Claire. We were a group of 7 adults. We told her our interests/what we would for sure like to see and do. Claire came up with a detailed itinerary for us that made perfect sense. She was extremely prompt in the planning process and met with us via video chat to discuss details of our trip.
Our first stop was Galway. We landed in Dublin and took a bus to Galway upon arrival. We stayed at the Connacht Hotel. The hotel was very nice. The only thing was it was a little far from the city centre so we did end up paying for many ubers (about 15 euro each time) to get to the main area. Otherwise it was about a 30 minute walk. This wasn't ideal for our group but our accommodations at the hotel were very nice and we made it work. When we arrived in Galway we explored the city and went to dinner and pubs of course.
Our second day in Galway we had a private tour to Connemara. Our tour guide, Colleen was excellent. She picked us up first thing in the morning. We stopped in the city of Cong, where The Quiet Man was filmed. We then went to a sheep show in the beautiful mountains. We had so much fun at the Killary Sheep Farm! It was a trip favorite. We also toured a castle along with stopping at many other sites/landmarks. We loved Colleen as she told us interesting information throughout the day and was very knowledgable.
The next day we took a bus to board a ferry to travel to the island of Inishmore (Aran Island). Some of us got a little quesy on the ferry ride! It is about 45 minutes to the island. The island was absolutely beautiful! We opted out of renting bikes. However, if we were to do it again we would definitely rent the bikes. If you want to see the island, bikes are totally the way to go! We bought Aran Islands famous wool sweaters and had delicious fish & chips. We took a very long hike and were able to see beautiful views!
The next day we had a private driver transport us to Killarney and on the way we stopped at the Cliffs of Moher. We did the Cliffs of Moher cruise, which was so much fun! A couple of us were a little nervous for the cruise after the tumultuous ferry ride previously. However, the cruise was all open air which really helped. We had a blast! After the cruise, we walked around the Cliffs of Moher. We ate lunch in Doolin and went to a couple shops!
Next, we arrived in Killarney at the Scott's Hotel. We all loved the Scott's Hotel. The rooms were very spacious and the location was ideal. We were right in the middle of pubs and shops! The hotel had a fabulous pub in the lower level with live music every night. The next day was a free day in Killarney. We all sort of did our own thing- a couple of us went golfing and some went shopping. In the afternoon, we did an "Afternoon Tea" at a nearby hotel which really looked like a castle. We loved this. The food and drink was delicious. It was the perfect way to spend the afternoon. We had a delicious dinner at Hilliard's. We had made a reservation prior. Would highly recommend dining here.
The next day, we had a private guided tour of the Ring of Kerry. This was through The Killarney Touring Co. Our tour guide was Aodan Griffin. We could not recommend him more- he was amazing! This day was the group's favorite day of our entire trip. Aodan brought us to many stops along the Ring of Kerry including wonderful spots for Irish coffee, an old Irish village, a museum about Skellig Islands, and Skellig's Chocolate Factory. He brought us to Valentia island where he spent summers growing up and where his grandfather lived and worked as a principal of the school. We also stopped at a golf course with breathtaking views for lunch. We ended the tour at the Torc Waterfall (Killarney National Park). Aodan truly made this experience wonderful due to his vast knowledge of the Ring of Kerry and hospitality.
The next day we had a private driver transport us to Dublin. We stayed at the Ashling Hotel. The hotel was very nice however we may have liked to be a little closer to the city center. Claire arranged for us to get bus passes, which made is very easy to get around the city. We explored the city and that night we went to a Celtic dinner and show. We enjoyed seeing the Irish dancers and listening to the music.
The next day we did a private walking tour. We loved our tour guide, Pascuale. He provided us with information about the history of Dublin and also provided us with wonderful dining recommendations. We ate lunch at his favorite Italian restaurant, it was delicious. Later that day we did the Guinness Storehouse tour and the Jameson Distillery. The group really enjoyed both of these tours. Later that night we went to Temple Bar, Bambino Pizza, The Hairy Lemon, and many other pubs we found along the way!
Overall, we are very pleased with Kimkim and the structure of our trip. We had a wonderful time, and all plans went smoothly! Thank you for everything !!!
