This is a very standard motor coach tour, and not a “first class, railroad tour” as touted. Buses are crowded and uncomfortable and you are stuck in close quarters with whomever for long days. There were no precautions in place to protect folks from exposure to COVID, and wouldn’t you know it the first day of this tour, there was a small group of adult family members who were visibly sick, coughing and sneezing into the air, they were very inconsiderate & irresponsible and sure enough, we were not feeling well the next day. The tour was disorganized, with no way to communicate with your guides, we spent a long time waiting on tour guides or buses, and on the final day in Belfast, we were abandoned by the tour, had to obtain our own transportation in order to return to Dublin, and we were not reimbursed by the tour for the costs (taxi fare) of transport from a train station in Belfast (this is where we were dumped) to another train station in Newry, which was the only station running trains into Dublin. This is not a “first class” “railroad” tour, you will not have “reserved seating,” it’s a very basic bus tour of Ireland and if that is what you’re looking for, you’ll be satisfied.

To be clear, this review is for the Ring of Kerry from Dublin tour from Irish Rail Tours First Class. Don't let the name/description "first class" fool you. Its not. Just a very standard train/big bus tour. The train seats were standard seats and the motor coach seats were very tiny and jam packed in. They also nickel and dime you to death. Nothing aside from the train and bus seats are included. No food. No admission at any stops. Nothing. It was hard to even know what the stops would be since the itinerary was vague aside from being Ring of Kerry. The host, Paddy, did (early in the train tour) come and show us a map and tell us what the stops would be that day. They all sounded interesting! But he failed to mention that we had to pay at each stop. That was an unwanted surprise! Want to actually SEE the bog farm, or the Irish Wolfhounds, or the Irish coffee tastes, or the Sheepdog demonstrations? Oh, pay up or sit on the bus. At the first stop, the driver moved the bus and there were 6 other buses there that looked identical. We were all confused about which bus to get on. A few words about this would have been nice. That is sort of how the day went. Beautiful country side, and I don't regret going, but I've done hundreds of tours at all price points. This was an economy tour, not first class.

Don't let the name fool you, like it did me. There is nothing really "first class" about the tour. I mean it was OK, but misleading in several ways. 1) It said there would be reserved seats on the trains. There weren't. We all got seats, but they weren't reserved, so we always had to hustle to get on fast. And they were just standard coach fare seats. 2) Our itinerary (even what they handed us that morning) said the train went to Belfast where we'd get off and take a coach. Now the tour "host", Paddy, said that we'd get off in Newry but didn't say why. And he was a bit hard to understand so I didn't understand why. We all followed him off the train at Newry, were led to a crowded bus where my husband and I couldn't even sit with each other, and we drove in silence for about 45 minutes. No explanation and I was super confused the whole time. When we finally got to Belfast, we transferred to a smaller coach that was ACTUALLY part of the tour. (I asked later why this happened and Paddy explained there was railwork being done to put in a new line in Belfast and this meant the Belfast stops were not functional and therefore they were having to bus passengers to the Belfast train station. It sounded like it was that way for a while, so why they didn't explain this or put it in our itinerary I have no idea). 3) Our itinerary document showed what was included and it explicitly said "Visitor Attraction Admissions", but on this tour, the two stops that had admissions--Giant's Causeway Visitor Center/Bus and Bushmill's Tours or Whiskey tastings, were NOT covered. So I felt that was very misleading. Another thing that bugged me was that details of the actual tour and stops/times, was very hard to come by. Nothing in writing. And lunch was at our own cost. Breakfast too we had to bring. It was hard to find info on the food aspect. Now with that said, the tour was fine. Paddy got us safely from point A to point B and back, and at times it was like herding cats. So my hat is off to him. And our tour guide/driver Ray was very informative and energetic in his narration. So they were good. But to be clear, the tour is not first class by any stretch.

This was a great tour. Being our first trip to Ireland it gave us a chance to see the West coast. It was a long day but worth it. I did wish we had more time at the Cliffs of Moher as we couldn't hike far enough to get a new view. I have to say one thing about the tour guides and Viator staff. On the train ride there we had to changed trains. I was on the second train a few seconds and realized I left my camera on the first train. The tour guide had already found it and made arrangements to get it to me before we flew out to our next stop. I'm forever grateful to all staff who helped me.

This tour was amazing! It’s an early morning and long day, but so worth it. We lucked out with a clear and sunny day and got great views at the cliffs and down the coast. Our tour guide was David, who was great. He kept us entertained with interesting stories and history, kept us on schedule and we saw so much. At the end of the day the trains were majorly delayed and he acted super fast to get us on a bus to Dublin instead. Great tour, highly recommend!

Beautiful scenery. Great tour guides with lots of local knowledge and very helpful information. The sheep dog trial was a highlight for us. The description of the tour needs to be updated to note that breakfast is not included. We didn't pack any snacks, so the only meal was lunch. Be prepared for a long day, but well worth it.

A fabulous tour! We were 4 senior ladies traveling the 9 day Titanic tour. The tour was exceptionally well organized. Our initial travel packet contained all needed documents. Our tour guides were outstanding and took great care to ensure our trip went smoothly. Brian was so knowledgeable as well as entertaining. He advised us of places to go in Killarney, and made sure we attended Sheehan's Pub for a night of Irish Music and dance. He took us to an Irish Dance concert. The best night of the trip! Kieron was exceptional on our Aran Islands tour! And we can't thank Barry enough for our gorgeous coastal tour of Connemara. All the guides made us feel safe and well cared for. The hotels were incredible! Killarney and Belfast were over the top wonderful! The rest were very nice and met our needs. The only negative, more time was needed in Blarney. We would have liked a full afternoon there. The trains were very nice and the buses comfortable. The drivers were amazing. Highly recommend taking this option to see Ireland! Well done Railtours Ireland!

Enjoyed the tour. Not enough time in Limerick at the Bunratty Castle. We didn't get to see the town. Needed more time at the Cliffs of Mohr as well.

Loved the Kilkenny Castle and the little city. Waterford Crystal was amazing. Great walking tour. Highly recommend this tour to all.

Trip hit the mark on a number of things. It was easy… all was prepared well by the guide service. It was nice not to have had to do the prep work. The stops were just long enough to experience the area. We squeezed in shopping in Galway. Walked the length of the Cliffs path that was open. It was a long day (about 15 hours), but worth it.

This trip was AMAZING! Ireland is such a beautiful country and very clean! Our tour guide's name was Peter (i don't know his last name). He was fantastic, funny and so polite. You can tell he really loved his country and really wanted everyone to see it's beauty. Everyone was so polite and kind. There was 10 of us in our group, and we all just really, really enjoyed ourselves. This was a trip of a life time, and we were not disappointed. I think the Irish could teach us Americans a thing or two on manners! LOL, thank you for all your help in putting this together. we loved everything! Great hotels, great tours, great agents, you went above and beyond. We will be back!!! Favorite trip ever!!!!

The village of Cobh was incredibly quaint. We took the train from Cork which allows you to see the more rural areas in the south. Arriving in Cobh station was just a short walk to the village which is filled with colorful hillside homes and businesses. We strolled around town and then had a good workout walking to visit the striking St Colman’s Cathedral which sits on the hilltop and overlooks the enormous cruise port and shoreline. One suggestion would be to visit on a day there are no cruise lines at dock. This information is available online to see when cruise ships arrive and depart from Cobh.

Gorgeous views, history, photo ops galore. A fun way to get a glimpse of Ireland. Our first guide, David, was awesome. We also enjoyed a sheep dog demonstration on the Ring of Kerry part of the tour-unfortunately it’s seasonal, late spring to early fall. One caveat- the tours include quite a bit of walking & stairs. Totally worth it!

Very organized and well-planned! John Todd was delightful and provided excellent insight into each leg of our journey. Highly recommend this tour for all. Ask for John T.!

Excellent tour. John was very knowledgeable, polite and thoughtful. The Blarney Castle and Seven Sisters garden was an interesting area to see.