Kilkenny, Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough, Sheep Dog Trials, Day Trip from Dublin

Everything about this trip was amazing. The tour guide and bus driver Cathy and Pete were fun and informative, and the sites we stopped at were beautiful and interesting. I would definitely recommend this tour for a trip to Ireland.

The best part of the trip was Wicklow and Glendalough. The mountains and national park are absolutely stunning and the ruins and story behind them are very interesting. You will want to bring your walking/hiking shoes to at least head up to the lower lake while you're there. The sheep dog presentation was fascinating. The dogs are amazingly quick with their response to cues and totally focused on their sheep. The baby lambs and border collie puppy made it even better. Then we headed to Kilkenny, which is a beautiful little town. The guide gave us a little history and then we were on our own with little information about the options we had to spend the time while we were there. Really wish there had been more guidance, as we didn't really know what would be best to do, so we walked a while and found a nice little place for lunch, that was it. We were going to do some more exploring after lunch, but the rain really started coming down, so we headed back to the bus. We were told that someone would be with the bus at all times, but this wasn't the case. We stood outside in the rain with a number of other people from the tour for almost 15 minutes before the bus driver returned and let us on. The return trip was the worst. We got stuck in horrible construction traffic that made us well over an hour late in getting back. Everyone on the bus was wondering why a professional driver wouldn't have checked the route and make adjustments for traffic this bad. We all had Google Maps or Waze, which alerted us to the back-up. We were also wondering why, under the circumstances, we couldn't have been dropped off at our original pick-up points rather than dropping us at their office, which was clear across town for many of us. The gesture would have gone a long way after the miserable ride back.

Kim and Paolo were absolutely fantastic, a real credit to your company. It helped that it was a sunny day, but Kim's description of the sites and Paolo's considerate driving was 5 star. Couldn't recommend enough.

My wife and I were extremely pleased with this day trip.. We truly enjoyed all of the scenery, the castle, and especially the ancient Monastery, ancient grave yard, and the incredible walking paths in the park like setting along the lakes.

We learned a lot during this trip and we enjoyed it very much despite the light rain. We got amazing pictures in Glendalough and at the sheep farm. our 9-year old had a great time petting the lambs. Great pictures.

If you are looking for a wonderful day trip from Dublin, look no further. The day was packed with beautiful sights, great explanations from our lovely tour guide Aisling, and amazing history. The sheep dog demonstration was a delightful experience, and the views of the Wicklow Mountains were breathtaking! Definitely would recommend this tour!

Kilkenny is a charming town with friendly people. The Wicklow Mountains are picturesque. We were blessed with beautiful weather which made the tour even more enjoyable. Glendalough was also very beautiful. The walk through the monastery and around the lakes was lovely. Farmer Michael was charming and personable and his border collies, Maggie, Jim and Gabby, were entertaining and adorable. Our guide, Nick, and our driver, Pat were excellent! As an added bonus, Nick sang and played music for us on his little guitar and on his Irish Tin Whistle.....we even had a singalong and he took requests. Viator has wonderful tour guides, but Nick and Pat went above and beyond!

one word -awesome to describe the tour, its sights, and the tour guide, Norman, who provided insights that only enhanced the visits to the locations

The guide was not good. He did not gave us Information about Irland, her history etc.I expected more and so my family.

The places we stopped were great but I cant compliment the driving or guide. Not our favorite experience but I gave it three stars because the destinations were worth it.

I enjoyed some aspects of this tour but could have left others. In terms of the tour company, our driver was great and the tour guide talked a lot, but I don't really feel like I got to know any of the places (the "walking tours" they provide don't provide much). It was more about being driven to destinations and then having some time to wander on our own. I didn't really enjoy being on a massive bus with so many other people, and it wasn't super enjoyable driving around on some of the narrower roads. We had done a couple Rabbie's tours in Scotland prior to this, so I think we were spoiled by the 16-person mini coaches and very personable guides. In terms of the destinations, I really enjoyed the drive through Wicklow (though there was no stop, like I thought we would have). Glendalough was truly beautiful, and we did have ample time to explore the lakes and monastery before going to see the sheepdogs work the sheep. I hadn't expected much out of the sheepdog trials, but it was amazing - The farmer was very informative and friendly, and the dogs did great work; it was very interesting to hear about Ireland and the life of a farmer. Kilkenny didn't really do much for me, and it felt like we were just killing time while there. Overall, we saw some great sights that we wouldn't have otherwise been able to see traveling by train, but I would maybe choose a smaller tour bus next time.

took this long tour on June 1 2019; pickup at Old Stone Church/Dublin. Tour Guide was Kathy, a fantastic low-key lady, who really knows her stuff :). Best part was the return to Dublin, when she got the whole big bus interacting with "Karaoke with Kathy" by singing favorite Irish songs ! She also was very concerned and helpful when 2 of us needed to catch a cab to the cruise ship in rainy rush hour. Thanks !

Our tour guide Aisling has a good sense of humor and very knowledgeable. Too bad that it was raining when we arrived Kilkenny town. However, this is not something that can be controlled. We spent our morning at Glendalough. There are monastery and mountain lake view. The view in Glendalough was good, it is a good mix of scenery viewing and cultural experience.

From the greeting to the good-bye, Richard the tour guide and Pete the driver made this day trip fantastic.

Our driver, Joe, and guide, Richard were fun, engaging, and made for a great day. Best day of our trip to Dublin. So much fun, beautiful countryside, and history. Oh yeah, the sheep dog, Bruce, was the highlight. Definite two thumbs up for this one.

Thoroughly enjoyed this day trip. Sights were beautiful, pretty good amount of time at each stop. Anthony and Paddy were great tour leader/drivers. Bus was comfortable. Loved seeing the sheep dog in action, and holding the lambs. I recommend this trip.

Our first stop of the day was Kilkenny Castle. Admission the castle wasnt included in the Viator ticket price. We did pay the admission though and it was worth it. The castle is amazing! Our next stop was the Glendalough Monastic site. I will never forget the trek to Upper Lake. They really need to post more honey buckets around. There are not many options a girl has just saying It was worth the hike to get to Upper Lake though. The view is absolutely incredible. I would have liked to stay longer. There is a hotel in the area, maybe next time we will stay the night. There are sheep everywhere in the mountains, they kept getting onto the road and delaying the tour bus. Thankfully it wasnt much of a delay, but you dont really see that in the states, so that was interesting. Id recommend this tour, you get to see beautiful landscapes and an awesome castle.

The tour was great! Everything ran on schedule and the guide was nice. I really enjoyed the sheep and castle. Would recommend this trip.

This was a fascinating and beautiful day trip. Our guide, Kathy, was well educated and passionate about history as well as the current events of Ireland. The visit to a working sheep farm was informative and entertaining. Kilkenny City was a beautiful town filled with restaurants, shops, and historical sites. The Glendalough monastery which is hundreds of years old was an awesome site which included beautiful walking trails. We highly recommend this trip and our tour guide Kathy.

I believe our guide's name was Kim. she was very knowledgeable and helpful. i loved her way of depicting historical events.The tour was accurate and well planned so the guide was very strict in terms of time and schedule and even talking at the bus. The tour overall was superb and we had a lot of time to visit each spot.