Note: The Introduction to Ireland itinerary being reviewed and tips are from a trip in 2013, though the tour itself has not changed much in the intervening years.
For a short trip to Ireland, the Introduction tour is one of the best to give you a quick taste, provided you don’t want to journey to Northern Ireland. It was a good length and included just enough stops as a quick introductory taster without making me feel like I missed that much, while also whetting my appetite to return and see more of the country.
To get more details about what the tour looks like today, visit Globus’ site here.
OVERALL INTRODUCTION TO IRELAND (GLOBUS) TOUR Rating:
The sights you see are fantastic, you don’t have any heavy driving days, there’s a few optional excursions, and there’s still some freedom to do things on your own. I do wish that we had a little more time in Dublin, hence the docked half star. That’s easily remedied with an extension outside of the tour. In terms of cost, I found this to be one of the cheaper tour options that I’ve been on. Plus, for the price, the hotels were high quality. It didn’t feel like my dollars were being wasted.
Is this tour right for you? Check out the day-by-day review below and you can decide!
Day 1:
At 3pm, meet your Tour Director and travel companions for an afternoon orientation drive to see O’Connell Street, Georgian squares, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and Trinity College.
When I did this tour, my flight arrived much earlier in the morning than the meeting time. After all, flying in from Toronto to Dublin actually brings you in quite early. I was able to travel through Dublin using the public transit and spend the afternoon at the Guinness Storehouse. After a few hours here, I returned to the hotel to meet up with tour group.
It began with an orientation drive around Dublin, driving near sights including a quick stop near St. Patrick’s but not inside. If you want to see it, you should plan to go on your own time. Our stop was at Trinity College, where I was able to visit and see the Book of Kells for a reduced price since we were there near closing. The tour allowed a little shopping time before bringing the group back to the hotel for a welcome dinner.
My biggest warning for any tour is that these hotel dinners are often low quality. You’re being catered to in a group setting, which tends to limit the kitchens in what they can serve you. You’ll also often get an included drink, but costs will keep the quality low. It’s for this reason that I’ve started to really appreciate tours that have dinners free for you to explore and pick things on your own. Once dinner is over, you’ll be free to head to your room to unpack and head to sleep — critical given that you’ve likely flown in that day and will be dealing with jet lag.
Top Tips:
- Take advantage of your time in Dublin by doing some research of what you want to see. You’ll have about 3-4 hours before you have to meet up with the group if you arrive in the morning
- Beware the jet lag. If you just flew in, you might find it catching up to you in the evening. Don’t plan for evening activities unless you’re planning to nap. You’ll likely be exhausted
Day 2:
KILDARE Visit the Irish National Stud.
CASHEL See the Rock of Cashel, where St. Patrick preached.
LIMERICK Orientation drive includes St. Mary’s Cathedral, King John’s Castle, and the Treaty Stone. Free time this evening.
The second day leaves Dublin to head into the countryside, stopping first in Kildare at the Irish National Stud. You’ll get to see many retired racehorses, several foals, miniature horses, and enjoy the Japanese gardens during your visit.
From there, you’ll depart for lunch in Cashel. This will also give you an opportunity to break away from the tour and walk up to the Rock of Cashel versus just doing a drive-by photo opportunity!. There are several quick bites in town that will allow you to balance all of this before having to be back for the meeting point. The Rock of Cashel is about a ten minute walk, so be mindful of the time. I was able to head up for pictures of Rock of Cashel and Hore Abbey in the fields below, head back for lunch, and do a little light shopping.
The drive then continues onward with a quick stop in Limerick for pictures of King John’s Castle, then onward to your hotel in Ennis. The main square in Ennis has a small museum dedicated to Clare County that’s worth a quick visit. It’s not comprehensive, but it’s nice to learn a little more about where you’re staying. It doubly serves to get away from the group and have your own alone time.
On the evening of Day 2, you’ll have the choice to join an OPTIONAL EXCURSION — the castle banquet at Bunratty Castle. This is a medieval style banquet with live entertainment through the meals from the singers. The menu the night we dined was parsnip soup, spare ribs, chicken, strawberry tarts and lots of red wine, with very minimal cutlery. It’s medieval, after all. You’ll end up sitting with a bunch of strangers who might not even be from your group. It’s a great opportunity to meet new people and to have an entertaining time being foist back into history.
Day 3:
CLARE COAST Visit the Cliffs of Moher and the rocky plateau of The Burren above the Atlantic coast.
GALWAY Free time.
RATHBAUN Try your hand at scone baking, learn about sheep herding, and enjoy coffee and scones at an Irish farm.
The start on day three is slightly early, with the first stop at the Cliffs of Moher. You won’t have a lot of time here, but there’s definitely enough to make the walk out to the far edge near the tower and get some pictures. Hopefully if the weather is willing to cooperate, you’ll even get some sun!
The tour then continues to Rathburn farm for scones, sheep shearing, lamb-feeding, and a herding demonstration from the working dogs. You might even meet one of the sheepdogs (the one during my visit was a sheepdog/retriever breed).
Your next stop will be Galway for a late lunch (yes, two stops before lunch — it’s definitely an early start!) There’s enough time to grab a bite to eat and do some wandering. I spent most of my time simply decompressing in Eyre Square with my notebook and grabbing a drink at a local coffeeshop, because it had been such a busy day already and the farm stop had provided enough food to sate me for lunch.
The tour will return you back to Ennis that evening with a free evening for dinner. There’s plenty of options to dine in town and they’re all close to the hotel, so you’ll be able to wander and make your choice. I dined at Brogan’s, which was typical pub fare and was a great option!
Day 4:
ENNIS Take a short drive via Clonderlaw Bay to Killimer; cross the Shannon estuary by ferry.
RING OF KERRY Drive around part of Ireland’s southwestern peninsula and enjoy an Irish coffee at a local bar.
KILLARNEY Free time the remainder of the day.
Day 4 has a lot of driving, so be ready to do the bus shuffle — on the bus, off the bus, rinse and repeat. The day begins with crossing the Shannon estuary by ferry. It’s not a very long trip and there’s not much to see, but it’s a unique mode of transportation when you’ve been on a bus and nothing else for a few days!
Once you’re back with the bus, there may be a group photo of the tour group. This isn’t included in the costs, so if they are still doing this on your tour and you want to spend, go for it! I haven’t seen this happen recently, but it was a big thing back in the day. Truthfully, I have kept a few of these, but I rarely remember the names of most people unless I make a really deep connection (which has happened and I’m in touch with some of them still!). I haven’t seen this happen in recent tours, so it may not be something that’s done any longer.
Prior to beginning the main attraction of the day (driving the Ring of Kerry), the tour stopped at a small shop to allow for some souvenir shopping.
Then, we began the drive around the Ring of Kerry. This is where you’ll either want to make fantastic friends with the people on your bus if you haven’t already, or be willing to negotiate, because there will be plenty of things to see on both sides of the bus, so being able to trade cameras and phones to take pictures is a highlight.
Some of the highlights were Dingle Bay, including lunch at a restaurant that overlooked the ocean, and then a stop at Ladies’ View (a set of lakes so-named because of Queen Victoria’s visit) before heading onward to Muckross House.
If you like Downton Abbey, this may be a highlight for you. Between the House itself, and the garden and grounds, it’s like you’ve stepped into history. There’s even a little sliver of private beach that you can find on the lake if you head off the path just a little, which leads to a space that no one else is in, where you can just take in the view.
After this stop, it’s on to the Lake Hotel for a drink (included in the tour price). You can walk to the end of the path near the hotel and see a few historic ruins and the lake, before heading back to the hotel for an included dinner (a buffet, which wasn’t noteworthy in any way).
The night is free to explore Killarney, though. It’s a bustling and fun town to get lost in and have a fantastic time. Plus, the hotel is super central, so it won’t take long at all to stumble home if you do decide you want to stay out late. As always, remember that your luggage will be picked up at an early time in the morning, so you might not get a lot of sleep.
For those who don’t often do tours, luggage pickup means that on a departing morning, you’ll have to put your fully packed bags outside your door, typically 30-45 minutes prior to your meet-up time. This means packing to have it ready for the porter or you’ll be hauling things down yourself.
Day 5:
Drive across the Kerry Mountains and through County Cork.
BLARNEY Visit the village known for its magical Kissing Stone.
WATERFORD Guided tour of the House of Waterford Crystal.
The morning can begin with an OPTIONAL EXCURSION, if you’ve chosen it! This optional excursion involves riding a horse-drawn hansom cab into Killarney Park. Keep in mind that it will leave fairly early in the morning. If you stayed out the night before, this may be an exhausting day (I may be speaking from experience), but I highly recommend it. The excursion is just over an hour. Because it’s earlier in the morning, it’s a beautifully quiet little jaunt into the Park to see Ross Castle. The mode of transportation was also so unique. You get blankets to fight the cold and the cart has some weather protection too on the sides & top. Given that we left earlier in the morning, we didn’t have to worry about traffic.
You’ll take a leisurely route into Killarney Park, heading towards Ross Castle. By now, people will be awake and it will be a little busier on the roads as you loop back around to the hotel, but it’s a refreshing start to the morning.
Once you return to the hotel, the bags will have already been loaded up and the tour will be heading on to the next stop. It’s a famous one, given that it goes to Blarney (home of the Blarney Stone). Once you arrive, you’ll have time on the grounds, but of course the main draw is kissing the stone. You’ll ascend up a set of stairs that do get a tiny bit treacherous at the top. We had to pull a stranger up the final few steps because they’re a bit of a hike and get very steep. When I gave the kiss, it was very amusement park-esque — from the safety briefings, to the children’s height restrictions, to the rails, to the photos after that you can purchase. Did you kiss the Blarney Stone, or did you just go on a roller coaster?
It was an experience. To be able to kiss the stone, you have to get on your back and inch your way out. Then, you’ll kiss a stone that’s been sanitized between guests, which means that your kiss may taste very clean. I’m not sure I got the gift of gab out of it, but I certainly got a disinfected mouth. This was also the lunch stop, which was a quick bite to eat.
From there, the tour proceeds to Waterford, where you’ll get a tour of the crystal factory. You’ll get to see inside and live demonstrations of the workers shaping the crystal into their final products. You will be brought to a gift shop (because the reason this tour happens is due to partnerships between the local tourism spots and the tour company, don’t be fooled). I would recommend that you only buy something here if you really want it. The prices won’t be discounted and transporting things home will be difficult.
After this, there’s another OPTIONAL EXCURSION. This is a pub excursion with the inclusion of two drinks. Our pub was in Dunmore East and was a thatched roof pub. While you enjoy your drinks, you’ll receive entertainment via a singer with a guitar. This is a very staged experience, but it still means you get to enjoy some good drinks. However, I’d recommend maybe saving money and doing this in any of the Irish towns that you’ll be in. It’ll be cheaper, more authentic, and you won’t feel like an interloper in someone else’s pub (like I did).
Day 6:
KILKENNY Time to explore one of Ireland’s most quaint towns.
DUBLIN Free time this afternoon.
NOTE: On our tour, we did not stop in Kilkenny, but rather did a quick stop in Glendalough. Given that this tour does not stop in Glendalough, I will be omitting my experience as it is no longer relevant.
On the last day, the tour began with a stop in Avoca after departing the Waterford hotel. Avoca is another working stop, but this time, it’s to see hand weavers at work. This is a good option for souvenirs since you can find things from scarves to socks to other woven work and it isn’t as pricy/difficult to transport as crystal was.
Once you’re finished with your visit of Kilkenny, you’ll be brought back to Dublin to check into your hotel.
Once again, you have the option of a final OPTIONAL EXCURSION. For this one, you can go to the Irish cabaret, where you dine at very long tables next to a stage. First, you’ll get food (but keep in mind that additional drinks are not included and will have to be purchased separately). Then the show will begin. There’s dancing and singing and then a comedian. They’re typically more old-fashioned, who will bring the audience into the show. If I had to describe the style of the comedian, I’d say that it’s a little like if your grandfather got up on stage with a microphone to tell jokes.
The night I went, I was so close to the stage that I did end up getting roped into a few bits. If you’re uncomfortable like that (and trust me, I was), you might want to sit a little further back and out of the spotlight so you don’t get brought into the act.
After your excursion, you’ll be brought back to your hotel and the tour will be mostly over. However, you’re still in Dublin and there’s plenty to do, so you can head out for the night to explore the city one last time before you leave the Emerald Isle.
TIPS – Literally:
- Because you’ll have been doing a guided tour, you will have to think about tipping. For any local guides, a few pounds/dollars/Euros of the local currency is custom. For your driver, about $3 – 5 of the local currency per day is normal for a good job, and $5 – 7 per day of the local currency for the tour guide is suitable. If you feel like they went above and beyond, you can tip more. I’ve had guides where the minimum felt appropriate and guides who went above and beyond and deserved much more. For instance, the one who helped track down my lost luggage for two days to reunite me with it without me having to ever worry about it.
Day 7:
Departure day
The last morning is typically nothing very special on a tour. Since it’s your departure day, you’ll be transferring on to your next destination — whether that’s home or another country. Prior to this, your guide will have already warned you about your transfer times to the airport (if you purchased them as they are separate). These tours transfer you extremely early, which means you will be at the airport for a long time. When I did this tour, I was heading on to Paris, but I arrived at the airport four hours before my flight. Bring a book or some other entertainment!
To sum up, here are a few of the optional tours that were operating when I took the tour, but may have changed since:
- Bunratty Dinner
- Muckross House
- Hansome Cab Killarney
- Pub
- Dinner Show
I would recommend the first three, but I wouldn’t do the last two again. There were better experiences that I would have preferred to do with the money that it cost to do them.
Speaking of price, when I travelled in August, the tour was just around $3000 (Canadian). The current single supplement to do this tour alone is ~$630 Canadian. It’s a bit hefty and has increased since I took it, but is also by no means the upper end. This usually gets higher when you stay at nicer hotels. As I mentioned at the top, I do think this tour is a great value. You get multiple inclusions, extremely central hotels, and because Ireland doesn’t have extremely long drives, you aren’t spending money just to spend time on a bus every single day. It’s a fantastic introductory tour to Ireland. Since it’s only a week, it positions you nicely to do other things in Europe, since you’re right there.
Have you also taken the Globus “Introduction to Ireland” tour? What are your thoughts? Leave a comment below to help fellow travellers who might be seeking advice! And if you’re still eager to book, find the prices for the 2026 season here.
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