Wow!We were expecting a scout-type kind of weekend (with sing-a long songs in the bus and umbrella following) and has chosen to do it 'cause public transportation through Ireland is just too complicated - but (really really happily) we got this amazing tour full of sincere entertainment. WE discovered Ireland (and fell in love with it) by it's true side: pubs, sheep, music, lanscape, inhabitants, Guinness, rocks, Guinness, sea, Guinness.....We are planning to found our own company now - The Mapel adventures (Ahah)Unforgettable experience!
Ireland is all I've built it up to be! I had a great time saoking in the history during the day and then soaking in the good stuff during the night. Listening to the locals was by far the best way to experience Ireland. Your stories, jokes and facts were great to listen to and take in while experiencing the fantastic secenery. I had a blast and can't wait to come back. Thanks for my first real travelling experience so far!
We did a Shamrocker tour of Southern Ireland. We couldn't wait to get out of the city and see the Irish country side. Our first stop was at the Mitchel Town Caves. Wow! We went 200ft underground and it was a comfortable 12 degrees. It was very peaceful and quiet and chockers full of amazing rock formations.No trip to Ireland is complete without visiting Blarney Castle and kissing the Blarney Stone to get the gift of the gab (like Kylie needs a top up!) Clints fear of heights was put to the test as the stone was right at the very top. To kiss it we had to lay on our backs, grab hold of some iron bars and lean backwards over the side of the castle while a man guided us, making sure we didn't fall on our heads! Eek! Scary but awesome!!Friday night we stayed in the hip and happening countryside town of Killarney. We had a lovely dinner, but it was very expensive.. as with all of Ireland. The tour took us through lots of towns that all came with their own claim to fame. Some were very serious, others just plain out there. e.g. the town of Killorgin have a festival where they find a wild goat and crown it king for three days, there are no rules in the town.. what the??They have BEACHES in Ireland Saturday night we stayed in Doolin. There are no trains or busses that go to Doolin so you need to drive or go on a tour, its a very special little town. It's near the Dingle penninsula which is the Western most part of Europe (just for the record we have been to the highest point in europe-Junfrau and now the furthest west from Australia) They have no internet in Doolin, and they have only recently got phones! Crazy!We had mighty craic here (it sounds worse than it is!! ask us when we get home!) and an amazing vegetarian dinner. The highlight of the night was Kylie getting up and singing two songs in front of the locals during the break of some local musos. She brought the house down and made us all proud. Nice work Kylie, you're a star We are stoked the Irish didn't let us down in the frozen puddle department. We saw some 'fecking fantastic' frozen lakes! On a side note we stopped at a National Park which had some stonehenge like rocks. The best part was that it lightly snowed while we were walking around, covering everything with a soft layer of snow. It was pretty.We are sad to be leaving Ireland, and the UK for a bit, as its home to some precious memories.
We arrived in Ireland safe and sound after catching the ferry from Holyhead in Wales to Dublin.Quickly did a reckie to find out where our tour was leaving from the next morning for our 3 day southern shamrocker tour around Southern Ireland with Shamrocker Adventures.Departed at 8.30 from Kinlay House Hostel, with our guide being Murf and our driver Kevin, great guys to spend 3 days touring Ireland with, Murf was 100% Irish!Our tour consisted of 18 people, 9 from Australia and the rest from US & Canada, a nice mixed bunch of people, a few annoying ones, but overall good company.We elected to stay at b & b's rather than hostels, how surprising, which was a good option for a bit of privacy, first night we stayed in Killarney and the next night in a one horse town (with 5 pubs) called Doolen.On the first day we visited Blarney Castle and did the obligatory kiss of the Blarney Stone! Lots of beautiful country side to take in, with so so much green!The first night we had tea at nice little tavern in Killarney and then headed to O'connors bar for some Irish storey telling, which was quite entertaining. Killarney was a really nice town that would usually be more quant than it was as there was a motor bike rally on, which meant that the town was overrun with Harleys!We set off at 8.30am the following morning and headed to the Ring of Kerry and crossed the mouth of the River Shannon by ferry, temperatures have dropped dramatically and it was bloody freezing.Got into Doolin late afternoon and all the boys headed to the bars to watch Ireland vs Bulgaria in the world cup qualifier match and then into the pub for a traditional Irish Stew, which was perfect for the freezing conditions.Yesterday we hit the road again and went to the Fairy Ring, a lovely old castle (name escapes me) and an old monastic settlement then last stop at a whiskey distillary for a sample of true irish whiskey
I had an absolutely amazing time in Ireland! Unlike most tours I've been on, the Shamrocker tour was geared towards younger people. Everyone was willing to have an adventure and looking for a good time. Even though I was traveling alone, I met so many amazing people and nevel felt shy or lonely. I loved listening to the Irish legends and history while exploring some of the sites. I loved the Cliffs of Moher and the town of Doolin. Pub Theatre in Killarney was a blast! Shamrocker really does choose the best hostels. Everywhere we stayed was comfortable, clean, and secure, especially the place in Doolin. A few things I suggest packing are:snacks for the bus, FLIP FLOPS FOR THE SHOWERS, plastic bags for dirty or wet clothes and towels, and extra batteries for your camera. If you're young, poor, and looking for a great way to experience Ireland, this is the way to do it.
Today was a new adventure for our study abroad group. Having been to many metropolitan areas, it was time that we were finally exposed to the country. After packing and leaving DCU, Dublin City University, it was time to board our tour bus. The company was called the Shamrocker tour and it started off to a great start. We went to Trim Castle, which was basically an old castle that we briefly walked around. The history in the area was great and the stones left from the castle were great picture opportunities. Our bus driver is named Sean and he will be guiding us through this 3-day tour. Throughout the day he discussed some of the history of Ireland and gave us a brief introduction of our future plans on the the tour. Some of the topics involved St.Patrick, the vikings and some geographical history. We ended our tour in Derrylahan in Kilcar where we are all staying in a hostel. It is on a farm with the most gorgeous views we have ever seen. After getting settled, some of our group went to the beach and Tina decided to take a shot at swimming. The whole experience was amazing and this area of Ireland is beautiful, with rolling moutains, animals, fields and fresh air. It feels completely surreal and were grateful that we can have this experience.
On Friday morning, I retraced my steps from the night before (it was much more enjoyable in the daylight even despite the rain that had started up while I was sleeping) to meet up with the Shamrocker Tours group. I had picked their bus tour as it was owned by the same parent company that owned Haggis Tours, and I had enjoyed my trip to Wales with them so much that I wanted to try another one of their programs. I was surprised to see that over 30 people would be on our bus and part of our group but was immediately impressed with our guide, Kevin, who launched into a humorous and detailed overview of the city of Dublin before we had even pulled out of the parking spot. After what seemed like much too brief a three days, we were headed back into Dublin. While the tour group officially disbanded at 5:30 when we arrived back in the city, so many of us, including the tour guide Kevin, were staying in the city that night that, instead of heading off on our own, we decided to do a group dinner and hit the Dublin pubs for a final night of celebrating Ireland. Overall it was an amazing adventure and I can't recommend Shamrocker and Radical Tours enough as it was the great tour that made the trip so fantastic and I really can't wait to go back to Ireland.