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Backpacking in Ireland , Reviews

Ireland backpacker tours: shamrocker adventures review.

Most of the time, I travel on my own.  I spent two years backpacking in South America , Mexico and Central America, so I have no problem travelling solo – in fact, I love it!  However, on my recent trip to Ireland, I only had a few days to try and fit in as much as possible, so I decided to take a 5-day tour of Ireland with Shamrocker Irish Adventures .  Shamrocker Adventures arrange escorted coach tours of Ireland for backpackers and budget travellers, so I was excited to see what was on offer.  After my 5 day trip, I found that these Ireland backpacker tours give you a great taste of the Emerald Isle without breaking the bank!  Here’s my full and honest  Shamrocker Adventures review of their 5 Day Ireland Tour, the Celtic Rocker.

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I received a complimentary tour in exchange for my review, but rest assured that all opinions here are 100% my own!

About Shamrocker Irish Adventures

When I was researching escorted tours of Ireland, I wanted a budget backpacking tour which wasn’t focused on partying the whole time.  After researching some other Ireland tour companies, Shamrocker offered the best combination of budget, adventure and variety of travellers, so I had no doubts when I contacted them to arrange one of their coach tours in Ireland.

A photo stop at the Rock of Cashel - seat of the Kings of Munster in Ireland

Shamrocker have been offering backpacking Ireland adventure tours since 1999, and it is their mission “to give independent budget travellers the chance to really discover Ireland and remember it as one of the best times of their life!” 

All Shamrocker guides are 100% Irish, so you know you are getting a true Irish experience, and the guides on my tour shared myths, legends and stories about the legendary Irish ‘craic’ throughout the trip.

Shamrocker also offer a ‘Book and Go Guarantee’ which means they never cancel a trip once you have booked on it.  They offer several different affordable tours around Ireland between 3-7 days, so you can choose the best tour itinerary to suit your travel plans and your budget.

Travel Safely

  • Leave valuables at home and don't keep all your money and credit cards in one place.  I love hidden pocket clothing like this travel scarf for stashing my cash and passport or a belt with a hidden pocket.   Read more about how to hide money while travelling .
  • Bring a water bottle with a built-in filter so you can safely drink water from any fresh water source while saving money and reducing plastic use.  I take my Water-to-Go bottle with me everywhere!
  • Unfortunately, things can and do go wrong when you travel.  I always buy travel insurance and was very glad I had insurance when I had my laptop and passport stolen in Ecuador!  Consider getting insurance for your trip to cover things like trip cancellation, emergency medical, lost luggage and stolen items, as well as adventure sports and activities and more.  
  • I chose World Nomads Travel Insurance for my recent backpacking trip to Australia and New Zealand.  They offer travel insurance for independent travellers and intrepid families and you can get a quote, make a claim, or buy or extend your policy while on the road

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As an affiliate, I receive a fee when you get a quote from  World Nomads  using this link. I do not represent  World Nomads . This is information only and not a recommendation to buy travel insurance.

How the Shamrocker Bus Tours of Ireland Work

All of the Shamrocker Adventure Tours leave from Dublin, and there are several different tour options you can choose depending on the length of time you have and where you would like to go.  I was already planning to spend a couple of days in Northern Ireland, so I chose a 5-day tour in the south of Ireland. 

The Celtic Rocker tour leaves Dublin every Monday and Wednesday during the summer season from the end of May to the beginning of September, and on selected dates through the winter, and this fitted perfectly with the rest of my plans in Ireland.

Shamrocker tours include all transport on the tour(in private coaches between destinations, and occasional public bus and ferry trips mentioned in the itinerary), accommodation in shared hostel dorm rooms (although you can book a private room for an extra fee), breakfast, and a guide who will provide information about the stops, keep everyone together and help out with anything you might need along the way.

On this trip, we had 4 nights’ accommodation and 4 breakfasts included, as well as entry to the Cliffs of Moher and Blarney Castle  and stops at a whole host of highlights along the way.  Other extras such as the entrance to a whiskey distillery could be added on when you book.

Instead of being a specific Ireland walking tour, whiskey tour or castle tour we had a wide variety of activities and tried a bit of everything.  If it is your first time in Ireland or you aren’t quite sure what you’d like to do, a Shamrocker tour will give you a real flavour of the country, taking you to some of the top tourist attractions in Ireland as well as some beautiful areas you might not expect.

The Shamrocker Coaches

The size of the coaches depends on how many people are on the tour.  The second coach was bigger, it was a 37 seater and we had 37 people in our group so it was much cosier than the first coach!  We had USB charging sockets and free wifi on the bus, which was very useful for the longer periods of driving.

Accommodation on the Shamrocker Backpacker Tours

Accommodation for the four nights of my tour was included, in hostel 4, 6 or 10-bed dormitories.  There were a few people (mostly couples) who opted to upgrade to a private room in the hostels, so if you don’t fancy sharing a room there is that option for you as well. 

The hostels were all good quality, and all served a basic breakfast of bread, jam, and cereals.  All of the rooms I stayed in had comfy beds and all but the last hostel in Killarney had lockers and wifi in the rooms.  Our last hostel had wifi in the common areas, and I wasn’t too worried about the lockers at that stage as we all knew each other!

Our Celtic Rocker 5 Day Ireland Tour Itinerary

Ireland itinerary day 1 – dublin to galway.

From Dublin, our first stop was at the Hill of Tara, where the ancient Kings of Ireland used to come to be crowned.  On our way to the Tullamore we stopped off for a photo opportunity at Trim Castle.  From there, our coach drove to Tullamore Dew Whiskey Museum for an optional distillery tour, and a tasty lunch. 

I chose to take the tour, but those who didn’t had time to explore the pretty town of Tullamore instead.  After lunch we continued in the bus to Galway, where we would be spending two nights in the provided hostel accommodation.  We had some time to explore Galway in the afternoon, but the weather wasn’t great so after a walk around the town we retreated to the pub!

That evening, most of the group joined an optional pub tour of Galway, arranged by Tribes Pub Crawl, which took us around some of Galway’s best pubs, with live music, games and a potato collecting competition.  If you didn’t want to join the pub crawl there are plenty of bars and restaurants to explore in Galway, but it was a great way to get to know the group better.

Ireland Itinerary Day 2 – Inis Mór

Inis Mór (or Inishmore) is the largest of the Aran Islands, off the Galway coast.  To get there we took a public bus to the ferry terminal at Rossaveel which is about 45 minutes away from Galway, then a ferry to Inishmore. 

The ferry crossing was a bit rough on the way out, and very bad on the way back – I think partly due to the storm which was coming in from the Atlantic.  Some people who had a hangover from the revelry the night before felt a bit worse for wear, but with some Dramamine I kept my travel sickness at bay. 

In the winter months, instead of visiting Inishmore, the tour itinerary changes to visit Connemara instead.

READ MORE: A Day Trip to Inishmore from Galway

Inishmore is definitely worth the journey to get there.  We were also blessed with beautiful weather the whole day, and although it was windy the sun shone and made the island look even more beautiful. 

Miles of stone walls criss-cross the island, where residents made fields to farm on the rocky surface.  Cute cottages, fairy houses and church ruins were just some of the things we saw, but the highlight was Dún Aonghasa, a prehistoric hill fort perched on the cliff top. 

To get around the island you can hire bikes, take a horse and cart or a bus tour to see as much as possible.  We chose the bus tour, which was great as we got to see a lot more than we could have reached by bike in the time available, and our guide Patrick was a hoot!

We spent the night at Galway again, with the chance to see live music at the local pubs if we wanted, or to have an early night after the previous evening’s shenanigans!

Ireland Itinerary Day 3 – Galway to Ennis via the Cliffs of Moher

We left Galway to head towards the Cliffs of Moher .  Along the way we stopped off for a quick visit to Dunguaire Castle on the shores of Galway Bay, then at Poulnabrone, a stone-age tomb.  After a lunch stop, we arrived at the Cliffs of Moher, which had been closed that morning due to high winds from Storm Ali. 

Although the wind blew in strong gusts, the weather stayed dry, and we walked along the top of the cliffs admiring the views.  The cliffs are absolutely stunning, and it was wonderful (and scary at times!) to be so close to the edge.  After a wind-swept couple of hours on the cliffs we boarded the bus again to head to Ennis for dinner and live Irish music at a local pub.

READ MORE: Visiting the Cliffs of Moher from Galway

Ireland Itinerary Day 4 – Ennis to Killarney

Today was probably my least favourite day of the tour, partly due to the weather which finally caught up with us, and partly due to some odd timings meaning we didn’t have lunch till about 4pm. Although I did get to hold a baby lamb so it wasn’t all bad!! 

From Ennis we headed towards Killarney, stopping off briefly at Adare for a bathroom break and photos of some gorgeous thatched cottages.  Dingle was our next stop, a tiny town famous for its lone dolphin Fungie who lives in the bay.  We arrived in Dingle about 1pm, and had 45 minutes to wander around and get some snacks, before boarding the bus again to drive around the Slea Head Drive (stopping off at a sheep farm for a photo with a cute lamb!). 

By the time we got back to Dingle it was about 3.30pm, and had lunch then.  This was the only day when timings were a bit off, it would have been better to have lunch in Dingle before taking the Slea Head Drive, especially as the driver had to have a 45-minute break then anyway, so that was a bit strange.

After a late lunch, we continued on to Killarney, which we sadly didn’t have much time to explore.  Most of our group decided to join our guide William to go to an Irish dancing performance called Celtic Steps, which was fab.  The show had some live music and songs, and some incredible Irish dancers.  I have no hesitation in recommending the show!

Ireland Itinerary Day 5 – Killarney to Dublin

The last day of our Ireland tour was another drive-heavy day, as we made our way back to Dublin across the whole of Ireland.  Along the way, we had a good length of time to visit Blarney Castle (and queue to kiss the Blarney Stone!), and a photo stop for the Rock of Cashel which used to be the castle of the Kings of Munster. 

We made it back to Dublin about 6pm, there was quite a lot of traffic as we headed into the city, and when we arrived back I went for dinner in Dublin with some of the friends I’d made on the tour.

READ MORE: Visiting Blarney Castle and Kissing the Blarney Stone

What I Loved About Shamrocker Tours

I felt that the itinerary was well planned for the time we had available (apart from Day 4), and we saw a lot of different places in a short time.  I loved that we stopped off at various points of interest en route between our overnight stops, so I got to see a lot more of the country than I would have done if I was travelling by bus on my own.

The guides were friendly and fun, well organised and did well to talk to everyone in the group and make everyone feel welcome.

I met some lovely people from all over the world, especially Australia and the USA, and it was great to hang out with some new people for several days instead of just meeting them in a hostel for a night!

Anything I Didn’t Like?

As I mentioned, I am used to travelling alone so I found letting go of control quite difficult.  It is very hard for me now to rely on other people, and to trust they are going to make the right decision for me.  However, there was only one day on the tour when I thought the timings could have been planned better, apart from that I was happy to sit back and relax, even though it felt very strange at times!

One of the downsides of group travel, in general, is having to wait for other people to get ready, wait for other people to get on and off the bus, wait in queues for the toilet etc.  A good tip for this though is to take a seat at the front of the bus, so you are first off and so first in the queue for most things!

On Day 4, instead of seeing more of the coastline, I would have preferred to skip Dingle and the Slea Head drive and go straight to Killarney.  We had already spent two days on the coast, so to have a bit more time inland in Killarney would have been nice, to perhaps go to the Killarney National Park or Ross Castle, which was mentioned in the itinerary but we didn’t have time to do.

Would I Recommend These Ireland Backpacker Tours?

Absolutely!  If you are looking for a budget coach tour around Ireland I have no hesitation in recommending Shamrocker, as the value for money, itinerary and overall package is very hard to beat and perfect for backpackers. 

If you want a little more privacy you can upgrade to private rooms in the hostels, but for most people backpacking in Ireland the dorm rooms are more than sufficient.  What’s more, these Shamrocker Ireland backpacker tours are not just for twenty-year old students – I’m 35 and there were plenty of people around my age and older as well.  This isn’t luxury, but most definitely excellent value!

If you want to book, you’ll find all the information you need on their website , or you can check out more Shamrocker Adventures reviews on Tripadvisor.

Where to Stay in Dublin Before/After your Shamrocker Tour

The meeting point for all tours is at the Four Courts Hostel in Dublin, and we had to meet there are 8.15am so I chose to stay overnight at the Four Courts so I would there for my tour.  However, the bed was very squeaky and there was a large group of noisy students the night I stayed so I didn’t particularly enjoy it. 

When I returned to Dublin after the tour I stayed at the Gardiner House Hostel which was much more comfortable, although an Uber ride from the drop off point.  You can read my full review of the Gardiner House Hostel here .

BROWSE ALL HOSTELS IN DUBLIN

Have you taken an Ireland backpacker tour?  I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Explore More Ireland Travel Destinations:

  • A Day Trip to the Aran Islands
  • Visiting the Cliffs of Moher from Galway
  • Kiss the Blarney Stone at Blarney Castle
  • Where to Stay in Dublin: Gardiner House
  • Why Visit Dublin in Winter
  • Ireland Backpacker Tours: Shamrocker Review 
  • Things to do in Portrush NI
  • A Giant's Causeway Tour
  • Belfast Street Art
  • Titanic Afternoon Tea in Belfast

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Hi! I'm Claire Sturzaker, a 30-something foodie traveller who loves to enjoy the best of a destination without breaking the bank. I'm here to help you and all women backpackers to plan their best budget travel adventure. I am an avid supporter of female solo travel, and took my first solo trip 20 years ago! I love to write about travel, hostels, backpacking and van life.

9 thoughts on “ Ireland Backpacker Tours: Shamrocker Adventures Review ”

What a great experience overall. The ability to see so much and capture such stunning photography is quite impressive. Shamrocker sounds like they were the perfect partner and a company worth considering in the future.

We’ll have to remember these tours when we go to Europe. They seem like a great way to see the countryside. Of course, anywhere I get to snuggle baby lambs is pretty good.

This sounds like an amazing way to see Ireland! To be honest, I had no idea there were “backpacker” tours. I have only ever heard of group tours where things cost more because you stay in hotels and have other fancier additions. Knowing that this is more affordable is awesome! I have no issues staying in a hostel, so I would definitely want to do this tour if it means I save some money and am still able to see a lot.

Ahh what a great post! I kinda felt like I was in Ireland too, awesome pictures too! The Cliffs of Moher look absolutely stunning, I’m sure that it was a surreal experience! 🙂 Do you know if lots of people get to see Fungie? 🙂

I’ve barely touched Europe, but just beginning to plan an epic cross-Europe trip with my family next year, so this is really useful. I’m like you said; I never take tours and prefer to be in command, but traveling with kids is a whole different thing, so we are open to all options. Also, those cliff shots are amazing!

Awesome post. We did Ireland by camper, but now you having me wanting to come back and do this tour. Did I miss the section where you link to their site, and/or mention how much this tour costs?

I was happy to find your post as I am heading to Ireland next year. Also glad to see you would have skipped Dingle, as I was a little sad we couldn’t fit it into our schedule–now I don’t feel so bad. We won’t be joining a tour, but we also prefer to do a little bit of everything and I like the things you got to do. We have also used hostels in our travels, and that can be a great way to save a little money.

What a great itinerary. We made our own way through Ireland but I can totally see the benefits of taking a tour like this.

Also, your photographs are amazing and really capture the magic of Ireland. Thank you for sharing.

Sensational post Claire.

The Cliffs of Moher shot is brilliant. Looks like an epic spot we need to see on an Ireland trip.

Thanks for sharing.

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Finding Alexx

◦ Solo female travel blog

Europe , Ireland , Solo travel · November 13, 2019

The ultimate three-day Ireland tour with Shamrocker

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Week #16 of my 52 countries in 52 weeks adventure took me to Dublin, Ireland. I’d had Ireland on my wanderlist for a while now and I knew I wanted to explore beyond the capital city, but after a bit of research I confirmed that it was a tough to do Ireland on a budget as a solo traveller, thanks to limited inter-town public transport and pretty hefty car hire prices. So when Shamrocker Adventures reached out and invited me on an epic Ireland tour, I of course said yes!

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Ireland coach tour

Shamrocker Adventures are an award-winning tour company that run coach tours of Ireland as well as Northern Ireland tours. They pride themselves on their 100% Irish guides, and their Ireland tours are built for budget backpackers and independent travellers. There’s no upper age limit but keep in mind that most of your fellow tour-goers are likely to be backpackers between 18 and 35.

Here’s a full breakdown of my experience travelling with Shamrocker on their Southern Rocker Ireland tour.

Or skip straight to:

The ultimate three-day Ireland tour itinerary

Day one: rock of cashel, blarney castle & killarney, day two: slea head drive, dingle and ennis, day three: the cliffs of moher and galway, where do you stay, how do you get around, and who’s in the driver’s seat, why should you do a tour in ireland, and what are the negatives about doing a tour, the final verdict on shamrocker’s southern rocker ireland tour, where to stay before and after the ireland tour, unusual things to do in dublin before or after your tour.

ireland beach

The Southern Rocker tour starts and ends in Dublin, with three full days and two nights included on the tour.

Day one started with an 8.30am meet up outside the Four Courts Hostel in Dublin, before setting off to see the Rock of Cashel, Blarney Castle and Killarney throughout the day.

Blarney Castle entrance is additional, and is about €18. Unfortunately after spending a week in Switzerland earlier in the month my October budget was absolutely shot, so I opted out of Blarney and instead wandered around the small town in the rain and then had a hot soup in the café to warm up.

I heard mixed reviews of Blarney, if you’re a castle fan then it’s an obvious yes and if you can afford it then it’s probably worth it. But if you’re really on a budget and need to prioritise where you spend your money, I’d recommend saving the €18 for a decent pub dinner and a drink in Killarney instead.

Blarney Castle postcard

And on that note, Killarney! On the drive into the town our tour guide, Daithi, went into a hilarious monologue about what to expect when we walk into the pub that evening. I won’t spoil it for anyone going on the same tour, but let’s just say it’ll take about 30 seconds before a local lad ‘bumps’ into you and strikes up a conversation. Some might say that the Shamrocker bus entering the town results in a bit of celebration amongst the young men in Killarney, as the company is known for its strong female to male ratio.

The night out did not disappoint. As a mostly solo (and budget!) traveller my alcohol intake has drastically reduced from my ‘normal’ life, for safety, money and avoidance of dreaded hangovers, so I was excited to have a group of friends to drink with while listening to some live Irish music.

After many, many hours of Irish covers of singalongs, then a short stint in one of the only nightclubs in town, we grabbed a truly authentic Irish meal (jokes, it was Burger King) and headed home for a few hours of sleep before the next day’s adventures began. A fantastic first evening!

Killarney main street

The second day of the tour was packed with some of the most stunning landscapes I’ve ever seen. We drove along Slea Head Drive, a coastal road with insane views that get better and better as you go along. Daithi stopped at a couple of different places for photos, and we were #blessed with beautiful blue skies as the perfect backdrop behind the rolling hills and glassy water. The dream!

Slea Head Drive beaches Ireland tour

For lunch we stopped at Dingle, a colourful seaside town that’s famous for the lone dolphin that’s lived in the harbour since 1983 and loves following around the fishing and tourist boats. Locals see Fungie the dolphin on a daily basis, and there are boat tours each day with a guaranteed Fungie sighting or your money back.

Our lunch stop was short so we didn’t get a chance to see the dolphin, but we were able to try some local delicacies. John Benny’s pub was Daithi’s suggestion and the meals looked (and smelled!) great, but I opted for a cheaper bite to eat and got a delicious crepe from a stand just a short walk from the pub.

Murphy's ice cream in Dingle

After my Nutella and banana crepe I headed up the road to Murphy’s Ice Cream, one of the places Dingle is most famous for. Murphy’s has been making fresh ice cream from local ingredients since 2000, and they’ve now expanded into Killarney, Galway and Dublin. You can taste test any flavour for free so try them all, but my favourites were Honeycomb Caramel, Irish Brown Bread and their signature Dingle Sea Salt.

After Dingle we took to the road again with some more photo stops, as well as a couple of film locations from Star Wars! Our overnight stop was Ennis, a cute town packed with plenty of pubs for food, drink and music.

Ennis town at night

The third and final day is the highlight in terms of bucket list ticks, with the Cliffs of Moher in the morning (entrance included in the tour price) and Galway in the afternoon.

Cliffs of Moher Ireland

Let me just say that we were very, very lucky to see the Cliffs of Moher in weather conditions like this. And this was in October! We were told many, many times that this was almost unheard of for this time of year, and that only a couple of days before it was so cloudy you could hardly tell you were on a cliff. Just want to make sure I’m not giving anyone false expectations!

The cliffs were huge, with dramatic drop offs and some crazy views. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site too and one of Ireland’s most visited areas, which means the tour buses roll in from about mid-morning.

Cliffs of Moher castle

One of the best things about the tour was that because we stayed close by, we got there a couple of hours before the day trips from Dublin, and managed to soak in the epic views before the rest of the tourists turned up.

Please note that due to the Cliffs being, well, cliffs, you need to be safe when you visit. Don’t get too close to the edge, stay on the path, don’t climb fences etc. It’s also a protected breeding area for birds which means no drones allowed.

CLiffs of Moher on a clear day

After departing just in time to miss the carpark traffic, we continued the drive to Galway via some more crazy scenery. Burren (part of the same World Heritage Site as the Cliffs) has weird, wavy rocks unlike anywhere else in the country, and is an ideal photo spot if you want to show off Ireland’s more unusual landscapes.

We arrived in Galway early afternoon, perfect timing for lunch. *Cue Ed Sheeran song getting stuck in your head*. And wow, how beautiful is this little city!

Galway vintage shops

The only regret I had about my time in Ireland was that I didn’t spend enough time in Galway, but that’ll have to be for trip number two. I think an overnight trip would be the minimum it deserves, but two or three days would do it justice. The longer Shamrocker tours all have two nights in Galway.

There’s plenty of eateries to choose from in Galway, from pubs to market stalls to hipster-esque cafés, but there are two places particularly worth a mention. The first is Dough Bros, a pizzeria famous for their unique pizza menu which uses loads of local ingredients. I tried to go here but the line was out the door (it was 2pm on a Sunday mind you) so decided to leave that for my next trip.

Galway street art

The second Galway food shout out I’ve got to give is to the crepe stand at the Sunday market! I paid €6 for a mushroom, cheese and pesto crepe and WOW it was one of the best crepes I’ve ever had. Which is saying something, because I reckon I’ve had hundreds.

After Galway, we jumped on the bus and drove for a couple of hours until our final stop back in Dublin.

The tour includes two nights accommodation in dorm rooms at hostels. Both of the hostels we stayed at were basic but decent, in good locations close to pubs and shops and had full kitchens if you want to cook your own food.

The hostel in Killarney had 4 and 6-bed dorms with private bathrooms, and our Ennis hostel had 6-bed dorms with shared bathrooms. Both hostels provided linen but you had to rent a towel for €1 at each place.

There’s also an option to upgrade to a private room when you book the tour, dependent on availability.

Our tour group was small (only 15 people) as October isn’t such a busy month, and our coach could fit more than twice that, so we had two seats each! The bus was really new and comfy, with seat belts, USB chargers and WiFi.

Ireland coach tour

Shamrocker tours have driver/guides who are Irish locals, so you get a truly authentic experience on your trip. Our guide, Daithi, was an absolute legend! He was super knowledgeable about everywhere we went, had loads of hilarious stories and had great recommendations for pubs and restaurants too.

The majority of my current travels are totally solo, which I mostly love, but solo travel isn’t easy in every country. Dublin solo is totally fine, but to explore outside of the main cities and to really enjoy the drives, stop for photos and discover cute pubs in small towns you really need to either have your own car or jump on a tour.

Ireland coastal photo spots

An Ireland road trip is absolutely up there on my to do list for future travels, but paying for a rental car by myself and then driving alone for three days was way less enticing than travelling with an Irish guide and a bus of ready-made travel buddies.

But you’ve got to remember there are cons of any different travel style. I really, really loved the Shamrocker tour, but the problem with tours in general is that you are limited in terms of free time and going off course.

There were a couple of places close to our stops which I would have loved to add on if I was travelling alone with my own transport, but instead I’ve just added those to my list for when I return!

I would absolutely recommend this tour to anyone coming to Ireland as a budget traveller or a backpacker. It was a fantastic way to tick of some of the country’s major hot spots, experience authentic Irish pubs and music, and as an added bonus we had an awesome group of travellers from Australia, NZ, Costa Rica, Germany and the US.

Baby cliffs of moher

If you’ve got more time I would strongly recommend considering the five day Ireland tour (the Celtic Rocker ) or the seven day tour (the All Ireland Rocker ) just to get a bit of extra time in Galway, or if you want to add Northern Ireland to your itinerary you could go for the Giant’s Rocker .

All Shamrocker Adventures tours depart from the Four Courts Hostel . A couple of people from my tour spent a night at the Four Courts before the tour but said they weren’t too impressed with the rooms or facilities, although it is obviously an easy option for the 8.30am start.

We were also told that the area can be a little dodgy, partly due to a drug clinic next door to the hostel, and that there have been a couple of instances where bags have been stolen from the footpath while travellers are on their phones or saying goodbye to their tour mates.

It’s worth noting that Dublin isn’t the safest of cities in any case, but as a solo female traveller it’s important to me to mention anywhere that’s particularly known for crime so you can make an informed decision of where to stay.

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I spent five nights in Dublin, split between three hostels. The first hostel was My Place, and it was, in a word, a sh*thole. Don’t stay here!

I actually booked it knowing it was crap but there was a pricing error on Booking.com and I got it for €8 a night for a bed in a 6-bed dorm, which is unheard of in Dublin. There was no kitchen (not even a fridge), the showers were like a dungeon and the mattress springs woke me up every time I moved.

The other two hostels were a much more positive story! I spent a night at Garden Lane in the old neighbourhood of the Liberties, and then two nights after my tour at Gardiner House , their sister hostel. Both hostels were comfortable, social and had free breakfast, as well as full kitchens for guest use.

Note that Dublin accommodation is expensive, so expect to pay at least €15-€25 a night in the shoulder season.

Gardiner House Hostel Dublin

If you’ve got a weekend in Dublin before or after your Shamrocker tour, there’s loads of epic things to do, unique places to see and delicious things to eat to keep you entertained.

The usual tourist activities are an obvious must-do, like visiting Trinity College’s Old Library, doing a tour of the Guinness Storehouse and grabbing a pint or five in the Temple Bar neighbourhood.

But if you’re looking for something a little different, there’s plenty of off-the-wall ideas for your Dublin itinerary.

Foodies can’t miss the Secret Dublin Food Tour , the most filling food tour I’ve ever done. We had more meal stops than I can remember, including a traditional Irish breakfast, whiskey tasting, pub lunch, fish and chips, cheese and cold cuts, and ice cream!

If you’re a history buff, the EPIC Irish Emigration Museum is fascinating and gives a detailed insight into the country’s history. For a darker perspective of Dublin’s past, there’s haunted bus tours and night walking tours around the city too.

Keen to see another part of the country for a day? Book a day trip into the Wicklow Mountains , visit Howth on the coast or even cross the border into Northern Ireland to see the Giant’s Causeway , Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge or beautiful Belfast .

Looking for somewhere to stay in Dublin? Check out all the hotels and apartments on Booking.com right here , and don’t forget to sort by ‘review score and price’ to see the best value options first , or check out the best hostels in the city on Hostelworld .

I hope this has helped you decide on your Ireland tour or itinerary! If you’ve got any more questions flick me a comment and I’ll get back to you 🙂

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Read more about my 52 in 52 adventure here , see all of my blog posts from the trip here , or check out my Instagram @findingalexx to see all of my travel photos.

All the basic details from my big 52 in 52 trip:

How do you find your flights? Skyscanner ! I use the Everywhere tool to find the cheapest place to fly to each Tuesday Do you fly every week? Not every week no, once I have the destination I check trains and buses to see if there’s any other transport options aside from flying. If so, I usually book these using the Trainline app. How do you book your accommodation? I book all my hotels, hostels and apartments on either booking.com or Hostelworld . Do you have travel insurance? YES, I always travel with travel insurance and you should too. I’m insured for an annual policy with Worldcare NZ . Do you offset your carbon credits? I sure do! I always offset when I book if the airline gives me the option (Ryanair does), and I also offset all my flights using Co2nsensus.com . What luggage do you travel with? I travel with a 75cm Samsonite Cosmolite suitcase , a matching Samsonite Cosmolite 55cm cabin luggage hardcase , and a cheap laptop backpack . What camera do you use? You can see the full list of what’s in my camera bag right here . What laptop do you use? I have a super portable HP Spectre x360 13.3″ laptop, which is an absolute dream to travel with. For more FAQs about my 52 in 52 trip, see this post .

Huge thanks to Shamrocker Adventures for hosting me on their Southern Rocker tour, and to Gardiner House Hostel and Garden Lane for inviting me to stay with them in Dublin. As always all opinions are my own and are based on my personal experience.

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Shamrocker Irish Adventures - Day Tour

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Shamrocker Irish Adventures - Day Tour: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

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Shamrocker Express Tour | Galway to Killarney

Adventures await on the Shamrocker Express Tour, from Galway to Killarney. On this action-packed weekend adventure tour, you'll experience wild beauty, magical lakes and lyrical hotspots, as we weave our way along the wild Atlantic Coast.

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Adventures await on the Shamrocker Express Tour which explores the pretty villages, thatched cottages, astonishing plant life, ancient ruins, colourful harbours, awesome cliff-top vistas, along with the highest and most splendid mountains in the country .

The west of Ireland is populated by musical folk, and their pub-filled villages create a wonderful opportunity to explore and indulge in the rich musical culture of Ireland. On this awesome adventure, you'll be amazed by the moonlike landscape of the Burren, stunned by the magnificent Cliffs of Moher, and awestruck by the rugged beauty of the Dingle Peninsula, before enjoying an action-packed day out in Killarney National Park and the Gap of Dunloe. This fun-filled weekend adventure tour combines the opportunity to hike, bike and kayak in stunning landscapes and experience some of the best pub culture and traditional music Ireland has to offer. Departing Galway, this action-packed Shamrocker Express Tour travels all along the Atlantic coast to Killarney.

Expand to view itinerary »

Point 1: Galway to Ennis

We depart Galway City at 9am, with a scenic drive along Galway Bay, into the moon-like landscape of the Burren, stopping at Kinvara’s farmer’s market. Cycle the Black Head Coastal Route or walk along the Burren Way. There is an optional ‘pub-grub’ lunch in musical Doolin, before we head up to the Cliffs of Moher for a stroll along Ireland’s most spectacular cliffs. The night is spent in medieval Ennis, with an optional excursion to a medieval banquet at Bunratty Castle.

Point 2: Ennis to Dingle

Visit the pretty, thatched cottages of Adare and learn about Irish history at the Kerry Kingdom History Museum, before arriving in Dingle, where keen cyclists can tackle the Conor Pass. In the afternoon, stunning walks and cycles take us out to the most westerly point in Europe, followed by an optional evening boat trip to spot the famed dolphin Fungie. Tonight, we stay on the Dingle Peninsula, where you’ll find traditional music in the curious 'hidden pubs’.

Point 3: Dingle to Ring-of-Kerry

An action-packed day in Killarney National Park begins with a walk or cycle along the shores of Muckross Lake, to Torc Waterfall. Alternatively, take an optional visit into 19th century Muckross House, or opt to experience the magical lakes by kayak. After a scrumptious picnic lunch, we join our open boats to cross the magical lakes over to Lord Brandon’s Cottage. In the afternoon, walk through the stunning Gap of Dunloe. We end the day with a scenic drive to our accommodation on the Ring of Kerry.. 

We Include ~ No Hidden Extras!

  • 3-day budget adventure tour, with an experienced tour leader
  • 2 nights' hostel accommodation in shared room
  • All entrance fees for guided visits, as outlined in the itinerary
  • Bike hire, with fully equipped bicycle, helmet and accessories
  • Stunning walks each day, with route notes & maps
  • Exhilarating bike-rides each day, with route notes & maps
  • Picnic lunch in Killarney National Park
  • Breakfast each day
  • All our buses are fitted with drinking water tanks to refill your water bottles, as well as a fruit basket and cookie jar torefuel along the way!
  • All ferries, tolls and taxes
  • Heaps of fun along the way!

Included Activities & Excursions ~

  • Cycle Black Head Coastal Route or walk the Burren Way
  • Visit Kinvara Farmers Market
  • Visit the Cliffs of Moher and entrance into the Atlantic Edge Exhibition Centre
  • Slea Head walk or cycle
  • Open boat ride across Killarney Lakes to the Gap of Dunloe
  • Visit Torc Waterfall
  • Walk or cycle Muckross Lake, Killarney National Park
  • Walk the Gap of Dunloe

We Don't Include ~ Giving You The Choice!

  • Optional* activities, as outlined below
  • Lunch & dinner, as outlined in the itinerary
  • Transport to tour meeting point
  • Any additionally requested pre- or post-tour services
  • Personal expenses

Optional Activities & Excursions ~

  • 3-hour kayaking tour of Killarney Lakes = €50
  • Medieval banquet at Bunratty Castle, including dinner, wine and entertainment = €60
  • Dolphin boat trip, Dingle = €16

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Shamrocker Irish Adventures - Day Tour

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SHAMROCKER IRISH ADVENTURES - DAY TOUR - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

Shamrocker All Ireland Rocker Tour Review

Published by sarim mahtab on june 17, 2019 june 17, 2019.

The more I read up about Ireland, the more I bumped it up on my bucket list and in April 2019, I finally checked it off with Shamrocker Adventures and a 3 day stay in Dublin, which will be covered in a separate blog post. Here is my review of the 7-day All Ireland Rocker Tour with Shamrocker Adventures.

Ireland has a lot to offer in terms of history, culture, food and extremely friendly people, so I would highly recommend exploring different counties. It is also home to Game Of Thrones, among many other shows and movies whose filming locations can be seen all around the country. My 7 days with Shamrocker Adventures All Ireland Rocker were willed with fun, laughter, nature, food and absolute ‘craic’, I learned a lot about the country, made some amazing friends and drowned myself in Guinness.  Speaking of Guinness, make sure to visit the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin and also checkout my post on Must Try Food In Ireland .

All Ireland Rocker

Table of Contents

Who are Shamrocker Adventures?

Basically Shamrocker Adventures is a group of young Irish men and women who take you around Ireland on a low-budget 3 to 8 day guided backpacking tour to give you a true Irish experience. The tours set off from the capital, Dublin, and take you through different counties in the country. Accommodations (with breakfast) are included in dormitory rooms shared among the travellers from the tour, however, option of private rooms are also available at an extra cost. Click here to check them out .

Shamrocker Adventures 7-Day All Ireland Rocker

Just after a morning coffee at Four Courts Hostel in Dublin, I met our guides Gemma and Kevin, and the people with whom I was going to spend the next 1 week with. We loaded up in a bus and left the Republic to the capital of Northern Ireland, BELFAST . For those of you who don’t know, Ireland is divided into 2 countries, Republic Of Ireland and Northern Ireland which is part of the United Kingdom.

Once in Belfast, we went for the famous Black Cab Tour with a local cabbie who tells us all about the troubles in the 70s and the Peace Walls which divide the Catholics and the Protestants. Honestly speaking, I was quite shocked to hear how much Belfast has been through in the past few decades and that it can still be seen to this very day. Cheers to Big E for the tour, make sure to give him a shout to take a tour of Belfast in his black cab, you can reach out to him here .

Black Cab Tour

After learning all the grim details of the past we had some time to ourselves which means it was time for food. ‘St. George’s Market’ is an indoor food market filled with delicious food, buzzing tourists and live music. The market had a variety of choices and deciding where to fill my belly was not an easy task, but we settled on burgers flipped by a very sweet Spanish lady who also helped me brush up my Spanish.

St. George's Market

Unfortunately our time in Belfast was restricted to just a few hours, but we had a lot of exciting things up ahead. However, if you do visit Belfast and have some extra time at hand, make sure to check out the ‘Titanic Museum’ to learn more about the famous RMS Titanic ship which met its tragic fate in the waters of the Atlantic ocean, the Titanic was built in Belfast.

We left the capital early afternoon to a cosy little village in the country side north of Belfast called BALLINTOY , where we spent our first night of the shamrocker all Ireland rocker tour. SHEEP ISLAND VIEW HOSTEL was our home for the night, a small family owned hostel surrounded by green fields and a lot of sheep. It was entirely reserved for the shamrocker tour group, like a big shamrocker family. I was loving it already.

A couple of hours on foot in this town would reveal a lot of picturesque places like ‘Larrybane Quarry’, ‘Ballintoy Harbour’ and a few filming locations of Game Of Thrones, which is what I did in the few hours before dinner.

Larrybane Quarry

Our first day of the Shamrocker All Ireland Rocker tour ended with a group dinner and drinks in ‘The Fullerton Arms’, a local pub with a variety of options for food and even a Game Of Thrones themed room.

The Fullerton Arms

The sun was out, the sky was clear, I was surrounded by nature and we had just spent the night on the northern coast of Northern Ireland. I took this opportunity to start an early day with my headphones on, camera strapped to my neck and a morning coffee in hand among the cliffs next to the ‘Carrick-a-Rede bridge’, a rope bridge connecting the main land to a small island that can be crossed for a small fee.

Ballintoy

Back up on the shamrocker tour bus to the one place I was most excited for in Northern Ireland, ‘Giant’s Causeway’, an area of thousands of hexagonal shaped basalt columns formed by an ancient volcanic fissure eruption. Legend has it, that the columns are actually the remains of a causeway built by a giant, hence the name. This place is a national nature reserve and has been declared as a world heritage site by Unesco which makes it the biggest tourist attraction of the country. The entrance to the causeway comes at a small fee which was covered by shamrocker adventures.

Giant's Causeway

We spent a couple of hours exploring this magnificent place, clicking hundreds of pictures and resting our feet at the café with coffee and scones, before heading off to our final stop for the day.

Dunluce Castle

DERRY (a.k.a. Londonderry) is the second largest city in Northern Ireland and the most unique feature of this city are the walls that run through the city. These walls were built in the early 1600s to defend the city, now they form a great walkway around the city. Apart from its brutal past, Derry is also known for the famous sitcom DERRY GIRLS, a story set in the early 1990s about the everyday life of 5 teenagers during the troubles in Derry. Check it out on Netflix for a good laugh, just make sure to switch the subtitles on, you will know why. I spent my afternoon exploring the city on foot, discovering hidden gems and alleyways, before ending the day at ‘Peadar O’Donnell’s Pub’ with my travel buddies.

Derry Girls

It was Easter and almost everything in the city was closed for the holiday, including the food places I wanted to check out. ‘Pyke n Pommes’ and ‘Primrose’ are 2 food places I had marked on my map and although I never got to try them, I would love it if you do so and let me know about your experience, what did you order? was it worth the hype?

Shamrocker Adventures spoiled us with a bit more luxury this day, hotel rooms at TRAVELODGE DERRY, a budget hotel located in the heart of the city, right next to a ‘Boojum’ joint, just FYI boojum makes epic burritos.

We said goodbye to Northern Ireland and headed back to the Republic today. This was our longest journey on the shamrocker tour bus and it included a bunch of stops along the way. During the ride, we learned some basic Gaelic phrases and heard some interesting stories of the world famous Irish poet W.B. Yeats, through Kevin’s love of poetry and Irish literature. We even stopped to visit his resting place, W.B. Yeats’s not Kevin’s, kind of a creepy attraction but when in Ireland…

W.B. Yeats

Lunch stop was in a beautiful little town in County Mayo called ‘Westport’. This town was filled with lovely streetside cafes and restaurants; I followed my nose into ‘An File Pub’ and treated myself with a juicy chunk of salmon.

Salmon

While Gemma told us about the Irish Famine, our eyes were locked on to the beautiful drive through ‘Connemara National Park’. Mountains, lakes, fishing villages, everything you could imagine in rural Ireland was right in front of us, it was like staring into a fairy tale.

Our last stop on today’s journey was at ‘Gaynors Bar’ for their brilliant Irish Coffee at a breathtaking location in County Galway. This bar had a homely feeling to it, wooden interiors and a fireplace that used the Irish Turf for warmth, it was as Irish as it could be.

Irish Coffee

At last, GALWAY , the lively culture capital of Ireland and my favourite city in Ireland. Galway is among the top friendliest cities in the entire world, the atmosphere here just draws you in and makes you never want to leave. Whether it’s admiring the colourful Claddagh, walking down the bustling Quay Street or just bird watching at the banks of River Corrib, it’s just magical.

KINLAY HOSTEL GALWAY was going to be our home for the next 2 nights, it was the best hostel we stayed at in the entire tour and once again shamrocker adventures picked the best possible location for our accommodation.

Claddagh

I didn’t know what I wanted more, a nap or a big meal, who am I kidding, the answer is always food. With a couple of other shamrocker buddies, we stopped at the famous ‘McDonagh’s Restaurant’ for fish and chips. I was so hungry I got myself the classic fried cod as well as a portion of fried salmon, it was not a good idea.

Mcdonaghs

What is the best way to enjoy a city full of pubs and music? A Pubcrawl, and on our first evening in Galway, the guys at shamrocker adventures gave us just that. Needless to say it was the best 12 Euros I spent, we had a blast hopping from one bar to another, screaming our hearts out to backstreet boys and the cranberries, till the last of us had to be dragged back to the hostel. Liz, Chandler and Rob, hope you doing well.

Galway Pub Crawl

In the entire All Ireland Rocker 7-day tour, it was this morning that I needed the collective energy of all my dorm mates to get out of bed, pub crawl aftermath. Half asleep with heavy heads and sunglasses on a cloudy day, we were on a never-ending bus ride to catch a ferry to the ‘Aran Islands’. Once we hit the rough waters and cold winds of the North Atlantic Ocean, our hangovers got cured instantly, it was then when we could see Inishmore.

Aran Islands

INISHMORE , gaelic for BIG ISLAND, is the largest of the Aran Islands, it’s famous for the authentic Irish Culture and loyalty to the Gaelic language. We had a good 4 hours on this Island and there was a lot to explore so we pedalled away along the coastline on our bikes which we just hired for 20 EUR. It was the first time on the tour we had enough time to spoil ourselves with dozens of photo stops and off-track hidden gems. We saw seals on the ‘Seal Colony’, snacked on the ‘Kilmurvey Beach’, discovered ‘The Wormhole’ and burned all those Guiness pints away on our bikes before heading back to Galway city.

Inishmore

Gemma was right, we were totally exhausted from our daytrip to Inishmore and I was all ready to eat a cow. After a shower at the hostel I headed over to the one food place I was really looking forward to in Galway, ‘The Dough Bros’. I will be writing an exclusive blog post on the “must try food in Ireland”, shortly.

Dough Bros

The day ended with drinks in a bar right beside our hostel across the Eyre Square called ‘O’Connells’. This pub boasts a traditional style Irish bar and a beautiful beer garden which was also the filming location of Ed Sheeran’s music video of ‘Galway Girl’.

O Connells

 Day 5

I have no idea how to play the fiddle but I definitely fell in love with this Irish city. I just didn’t want to let go of Galway so I woke up before the city did and went out for a walk with the new album of Eluveitie in my ears. At this point, a light drizzle and a heavy overcast engulfed the city, we finally got the Irish weather.

Quay Street

Did you know the Leprechaun was actually a fairy? And a mischievous one too. Our journey continued into Country Clare and on the bus Gemma told us about fairies and their strong belief among the Irish people. Interesting isn’t it? Our next destination was the one place where every tourist in Ireland goes to, the ‘Cliffs Of Moher’, a place used as a backdrop for ‘Harry Potter and The Half Blood Prince’ and ‘The Princess Bride’. On the ride to the cliffs, a scary thought kept me occupied, the end of this trip was getting closer.

Cliffs of Moher

As busy and touristy these gigantic cliffs are, the views are breathtaking. Can you believe a big portion of the cliffs have no safety barriers? None at all. An analysis done by the Journal Of Travel Medicine confirmed that between 1993 to August 2017, 66 people have died at the Cliffs Of Moher for various reasons. So please be careful because the winds are quite fierce. At the visitor’s centre, you could also learn the history of the cliffs in a small museum, shop at the massive souvenir shop or enjoy the panoramic views from the café.

Cliffs of Moher

Welcome to ENNIS , the home of Irish music was also our home for the night. We checked in ‘Rowan Tree Hostel’ and set out for a quick stroll down Abbey Street, passing by the ‘Ennis Frairy’, exploring interesting alleys and followed back the River Fergus to our hostel where Gemma and some of the other shamrocker buddies gathered for dinner at ‘Rowan Tree Café Bar’.

Ennis

Lady Gaga once said ‘Music is one of the most powerful things the world has to offer. No matter what race or religion or nationality or sexual orientation or gender that you are, it has the power to unite us’, that power was very strong in the common room of Rowan Tree Hostel that afternoon. Local musicians jammed their irish hearts out while the travelers swayed heads and tapped feet in their pjs with a smile on their faces. I wanted to live in that moment forever.

Ennis

The entire shamrocker crew took the party to ‘Cruises Pub’ with live traditional music and pints and pints of the their signature dark stuff for the rest of the evening.

Today was all about gorgeous scenery and photo stops. We drove along the coastline, through villages of thatched cottages into County Kerry to a small town called ‘Dingle’, probably the most instagrammable place in Ireland. Dingle is a major fishing port and is home to Fungi, a common bottle-nose dolphin who’s known to live very close to the people of this town.

Dingle

Dingle is a town out of a a children’s colouring book, it sits on the Atlantic ocean, filled with colourful buildings in every corner and it’s symbol is a real-life dolphin, that’s not all, Dingle is also where the Murphy’s Ice Cream originated from.

Fungi

Once out of dingle, the shamrocker tour bus made a bunch of stops all around the dingle peninsula. We gave 2 EUR to a farmer to hold his sheep, wet our feet at ‘Coumeenoole Beach’, visited a few filming locations of Star Wars and enjoyed the panoramic view points around the area before heading to our final night at NEPTUNE’s HOSTEL in Killarney.

Dingle

KILLARNEY of County Kerry is the party town known for its vibrant nightlife, if that’s not what you fancy, one could spend hours and hours with nature at ‘Killarney National Park’. It was close to sundown and after such an eventful day, we were all pretty beat, besides, we needed to re-energise ourselves for our last night together *sniff*.

Later that evening, you could hear the music from every single pub down the street from our hostel and based on Gemma’s recommendation we kicked off the night at ‘Killarney Grand Pub’ with live music, more pints of Guinness and a group of people who would probably never be together under one roof after this night.

All Ireland Rocker

Why does this have to end?? Didn’t I arrive in Ireland just yesterday? Unfortunately the final day of the shamrocker All Ireland Rocker tour was here and there was only one thing on the agenda for today, hang upside from the top of a castle to kiss the Blarney stone for luck. ‘Blarney Castle’ is gorgeous castle with a postcard surrounding in County Cork which attracts a lot of tourists, mainly for the Stone Of Eloquence.

On our journey back to Dublin, we were all staring out the window, admiring the Irish country side and recollecting the memories of the past few days, as we let it sink that it was time to say Goodbye.

What I liked about the Shamrocker All Ireland Rocker Tour?

The tour was very well organised, the guides were very knowledgeable and super friendly, the whole trip was a lot of fun. I took the 7 day All Ireland Rocker tour and the package is very true to the name. It gave me a little bit of everything in the 7 days and I could see the difference between the different regions of this country. My group was quite diverse with travellers from all around the world across many different age groups, so the 30 year old me connected well with most of them, which was quite important since I was travelling solo. The pub crawl was a great addition which I wasn’t expecting.

What I didn’t like about the Shamrocker All Ireland Rocker Tour?

Although the tour had all that one could ask for, the one thing that I really missed was hiking. In a country full of greenery and nature, I was really looking forward to sometime in off-the-beat nature trails, which would’ve completed this tour.

I would definitely recommend this tour to anyone out there. Ireland is not only Dublin and Guinness, shamrocker tours take you deep into the Irish culture and frankly speaking, there is no better way to see this country. You will return home with unique and memorable experiences which you will be telling your grandchildren someday.

A massive thank you to Gemma, Emma and Kevin of Shamrocker Adventures for giving me the actual all Ireland experience and making me fall in love with their country.  ‘Slàinte’ to all the lovely people of my All Ireland Rocker group, without you guys there would be no ‘craic’ on this tour.

Shamrocker Adventures All Ireland Rocker

Shamrocker Adventures have a sister company called ‘Haggis Adventures’ who do similar tours in Scotland. Do check out my review of the Haggis Adventures Tour here .

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Rahul Sarkara · June 20, 2019 at 4:31 am

Man, this post just shot Ireland way up on my travel list. The only question which remains is when now. With kids in tow, it doesn’t look like anytime soon though. 😀

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Sarim · June 21, 2019 at 5:29 pm

Thank you very much Rahul bhai. I’m sure your kids would also enjoy this country as much as you would, maybe not so soon, but definitely in future.

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Alka Vyas · June 21, 2019 at 9:04 am

This post just gave me a tour of Ireland ! Amazing writing with awesome clicks 😊 Keep traveling more and posting more!

Sarim · June 21, 2019 at 5:28 pm

Thanks alot Alka. I’m really glad i could take you around Ireland a bit. Now next step should be plan a visit there 😀

Must Try Food In Ireland - Please Stamp My Passport · August 12, 2019 at 4:01 pm

[…] food. If you are interested in reading more about my all Ireland experience, check out my post Shamrocker All Ireland Rocker Tour Review. For now, let’s bring on the […]

Game Of Thrones Tour Review - Please Stamp My Passport · August 22, 2019 at 9:12 pm

[…] us laugh, cry and want to punch the television. On my recent trip to Ireland, after a memorable tour of the country with Shamrocker Adventures, I decided to sign up for the famous Game Of Thrones Tour for my love of one of the best television […]

Haggis Hebridean Hopper Tour Review - Please Stamp My Passport · September 6, 2019 at 3:32 pm

[…] into the wilderness and spend some quality time with Mother Nature. I had not even recovered from my epic trip in Ireland with Shamrocker Adventures when I was invited by Haggis Adventures to take a tour of Scotland on their 5 day Hebridean Hopper […]

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Shamrocker Irish Adventures - Day Tour

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SHAMROCKER IRISH ADVENTURES - DAY TOUR (Dublin) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go

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What’s it like traveling ireland with shamrocker adventures.

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On my solo trip to Ireland, I took a Shamrocker Adventures tour around the perimeter of the Emerald Isle. I was hopelessly stuck between jobs at the moment, so I didn’t have the time nor energy to plan a detailed itinerary. Life burned me out.

I know this attitude is “against the travelers’ code of conduct” to admit, but, eh, I’m an honest girl. At the time, I just wanted to hand over the responsibility to someone else and enjoy a remarkable vacation. No planning on my end.

No fuss, no muss.

I had already taken a Haggis Adventure tour of Scotland (which I loved!) so my expectations for Ireland were high.

shamrocker adventures review

But boy, oh, boy did I make the right decision! Turns out, Ireland was a wonderful experience for me. I mean, who wouldn’t love Ireland? This country is known for it’s friendly population, stunning natural beauty, and hearty beer. Yay for Guinness!

However, I also think part of Ireland’s unrelenting magic was due to being part of an arranged tour. Shamrocker Adventures let me “sit back and relax” so to speak. It was a lovely change from planning everything myself.

Prior to my visit, I decided to take the 7 Day All Ireland Rocker Tour because I wanted to see both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland on my solo trip. And, you know me, I hate to miss anything so (of course) I’d go right for the longest tour. I’d recommend this tour to all solo travelers to Ireland.

As a disclaimer, this post is completely unsponsored and opinions are absolutely my own. I actually took my Shamrocker trip way before I even created a travel blog if you can believe it!

Ahh, the good ol’ days.

shamrocker adventures review

Why Pick Shamrocker Adventures?

So why should you pick Shamrocker Adventures rather than independently explore Ireland? If you know anything about travel forums, the commenters tend to blast people asking about guided tours.

Well. There are many good reasons to take a Shamrocker Adventures tour!

First of all, Ireland’s public transportation system isn’t as extensive as other European countries. You can take trains and buses to Ireland’s major cities, of course. Sadly, though, you need to rent a car to see some of Ireland’s most beautiful natural scenery. And you may not feel comfortable driving on the left on tiny remote roads. I personally wouldn’t. Shamrocker Adventures makes it easy to see all the sights throughout Ireland’s Dingle Peninsula and Connemara National Park.

shamrocker adventures reivew

Shamrocker Adventures is also a wonderful option for younger travelers or those who are “young at heart.”

Okay, I know what you’re thinking: erm, a tour for 18-35 year olds means a tour filled with young kids.

No, don’t worry about being bussed around Ireland with fifty crazy teenagers. The average age on this tour was closer to 25/26 than 18/19, and believe me, those couple of years made all the difference in the world.  I made some great friends on this trip and keep in touch with a few of them to this day.

Granted, if you’re a super independent traveler, you might not like the fact that you need to sacrifice some of your self-sufficiency for the sake of the larger group. But overall, taking a Shamrocker tour is a great decision to make.

shamrocker adventures review

Who Will You Travel With?

As a solo traveler, Shamrocker Adventures is an awesome option simply, because of the other people you’ll meet on your trip.

Shamrocker Adventures is marketed toward the backpacker crowd and the demographics on the tour reflects this breakdown. My own seven day tour attracted a huge chunk of solo travelers, which was very beneficial for since I was also traveling alone to Ireland.

Shamrocker Adventures is heavily marketed in Australia. You’ll have a lot of Australians traveling with you (and they are super fun), as well as people from a variety of other countries including Canada, the USA, and United Kingdom.

shamrocker adventures review

During the first day, everyone gradually made friends with one another and all the solo travelers bonded to form our own little merry band.

And like I already said, the average age was much closer to 25 than 18. So don’t feel like you’ll have to “babysit” on your trip.

Small groups of friends and couples were part of the group, too, but due to the budget friendly and free-spirited nature of the tour, everyone pretty much got along well.

So, if you’re nervous about meeting people on your solo travels , then I would highly recommend a Shamrocker tour!

shamrocker adventures review

Where Will You Stay?

Shamrocker Adventures is a budget-based travel company. Therefore, in order to keep your costs low, you’ll stay in high quality hostels located throughout Ireland.

All hostels are clean and centrally located. Which makes life easier for you. You don’t have to waste your precious time researching reviews of hostels.

Keep in mind your hostel costs are  not  included in the cost of your Shamrocker Adventures tour. So you’ll need to set aside money for accommodation.

You don’t even need to stay at the pre-selected hostels if you don’t want to. You’re more than welcome to book your own hotels nearby and join the group at designated times. However it’s much easier to just stay where the group is staying. I had no problems with any of the chosen hostels.

Do you feel too old for hostel dorms? No worries. On you tour, you can upgrade to private rooms at any of the hostels. However, I would personally contact Shamrocker Adventures ahead of time to make arrangements since private rooms tend to sell out well in advance.

shamrocker adventures review

What Will You Guide Be Like?

Eeee! Shamrocker Adventures guides are fantastic!

They’re insanely passionate and knowledgeable about their country, and want visitors to feel at home there. My guide, Kim, was excellent. She was funny, outgoing, entertaining, and just a blast to hang out with.

One of the perks of taking a tour like Shamrocker Adventures is that you deeply appreciate the country by hearing all about it. For example, I loved learning about Ireland’s history, especially the conflict in Northern Ireland, as well as listening to the Irish myths and legends. In particular, the stories of fairies fascinated me. I never knew they were so territorial.

shamrocker adventures review

What Activities Will You Do?

Depending on your tour, you’ll have a variety of fun activities planned for your adventure around Ireland. These excursions are thoughtfully chosen and worth your while.

Now keep in mind the guides don’t force you to do anything, which I think is especially nice about Shamrocker Adventures. You’re allowed to be as independent as you want while part of a structured tour. It’s a perk.

However, I still recommend doing all of the activities, because, as I’ve said, they are thoughtfully chosen and a ton of fun. Plus they give you a chance to bond more deeply with your tour group.

The following activities were part of my Shamrocker Adventures tour. Your own experience may differ depending on the tour you pick.

More Information: 7 Day Ireland Itinerary

shamrocker adventures review

1. Kiss the Blarney Stone

Mwah! Kissing the Blarney Stone will probably be included on your Shamrocker Tour. I know, I know. Some people think giving the Blarney Stone a kiss is a tourist trap, and I’m not even gonna touch the rumors about people urinating on it, but this is a quintessential Irish experience. Meaning you ought to pucker up!

2. Tour of Killarney National Park

Killarney National Park is one of the most beautiful parts of Ireland. Taking a horse ride throughout the park was a magical experience, especially in the early evening hours with the ruined stone castles looming in in the background.

shamrocker adventures review

3. Biking on Inis Mor

One of the coolest activities we did was bike riding around the picturesque island of Inis Mor. Inis Mor is the largest of the Arran Islands where the Gaelic language is still actively spoken.  Um, we can pretend I didn’t fall off said-bike, though.

4. Walking Tour in (London)Derry

Okay. If your tour includes Northern Ireland and (London)Derry, then you’ll be able to hear all about the city’s intense recent history with City Walking Tours.   This tour is, without a doubt, one of the best walking tours I have ever taken on my travels. The touching stories reduced me to tears.

5. Black Cab and Mural Tour in Belfast

You can’t visit Belfast without taking a black cab tour and learning about the most significant murals. The stories behind these murals were interesting and I came away with a much deeper knowledge of The Troubles.

shamrocker adventures review

Would You Recommend Shamrocker to Solo Travelers?

Yes, absolutely!

Shamrocker Adventures is a great way for solo travelers, especially those who feel anxious about traveling alone , to experience Ireland without thinking too hard about logistics.

I’m still friends with a few people from my tour. How wonderful is that?

Just to reiterate: Shamrocker appeals to backpackers so you’re bound to make friends with other solo adventurers on your tour. You won’t be stuck with large groups of friends, families, and couples.

shamrocker adventures review

Are There Any Drawbacks to this Tour?

Hmmm, I think the drawbacks come with any guided tour.

You’ll have to stick to the predetermined itinerary. Meaning if you fall madly in love with, say, Galway, you can’t extend your stay when the group moves onto (London)Derry.

Additionally, there are days where you need to spend a decent chunk of time on the bus. The lengthy travel times are necessary, but are draining when all you want to do is explore.

Despite these small quibbles, the positives outweigh the negatives in my book.

shamrocker adventures review

I hope you enjoyed my Shamrocker Adventures review! Would you ever take a guided tour? Why or why not? As always, feel free to write your thoughts in the comments. 

shamrocker adventures review | shamrocker adventures | solo travel to ireland | visit ireland | solo travel europe | solo female travel ireland | traveling ireland alone | guided tours of ireland

Rachel Elizabeth

At 22, I took my first overseas trip to Bermuda. Took a break to follow the "American Dream." Had my self-esteem broken. Embarked on my first solo trip to Scotland at 26. The travel bug dug its way under my skin. I now book multiple trips a year.

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Skye Travels

Guinness, Game of Thrones and Giants Come Together in Ireland

Shamrocker Adventures Giant's Rocker Tour

Usually, I advocate exploring a country with an open itinerary. Haggis Adventures and Shamrocker Tours have shown me that this isn’t always best. When you get to a country like Ireland, which has so much to see, it would take you weeks a guide or lots of planning. You’d probably miss a lot, not to mention all the insider data, if you went by yourself.

Table of Contents

Shamrocker’s Giant’s Rocker Tour

There are six tours available in Ireland with Shamrocker Tours  ranging from 1-7 days. The one I took was the Giant’s Rocker, covering the north and west of the island. It was one of two tours which overlap to create the 7-day All Ireland Rocker.

As with the Haggis Adventures’ Tours, Shamrocker is quite popular with Australians. My tour had travelers from all over the world, and they were all wonderful. As this is an active tour, with some fantastic hikes, I’d recommend it for a younger crowd. Personally I walked (or ran) 110,000 steps in the five days, so get ready for some exercise when you go yourself.

One of my favorite part of the Shamrocker and Haggis tours is their sole use of locals as the guides. On my tour, I had Daithi, or Dave. What an amazing guide. He made the tour what it was with great knowledge of the country, personal anecdotes and the memorable SKIDOOSH!

There isn’t a bright green bus (green can be controversial in parts of Ireland), but the buses are tailored to the size of the group, and are very comfortable.

Knowledge of Ireland

Just to get a confusion out of the way, the island is called Ireland, and is divided into the Republic of Ireland (usually referred to as Ireland), and Northern Ireland (part of the United Kingdom). To keep it simple, I’ll be referring to the island when I say Ireland. A significant portion of the tour covers the tension between those regions with their political and religious factions. Don’t worry, it’s currently safe. (Ir)…ish.

On the first day of the Giant’s Rocker, there is an optional Black Cab Tour of Belfast, the capital city of Northern Ireland. What an eye-opener! Years ago I had friends tell me about the conflict and strife in Ireland, but it never seemed that bad. Having visited Belfast, I now know it was worse. Their wall to divide the town is still in place, and the gates will close at a moment’s notice. The city has come a long way, and now you can see all the art and creativity infusing the neighborhoods.

Game of Thrones

Northern Ireland is full of filming locations for the Game of Thrones. Dozens of them. You can see the first list here . Visiting them all would require a separate tour, but some are on the Shamrocker tour. One is in Ballintoy Harbor, use for a port in the Iron Islands. The area is wonderful and still looks like an ancient fishing harbor, except for the modern car park and restaurant on the quay. I spent quite a bit of time climbing around on the rocks and getting doused in the waves. You know me!

A couple miles to the east is a salt mine where they filmed Renly Baratheon’s camp in Storm’s End. Just beside that is the Carrick-a-Rede, or Rope Bridge. The price to walk to and cross the bridge is £5.90, which isn’t covered in the tour. Or you can do what I did and walk to the bridge in the evening for free. You won’t be able to cross it, but you’ll still get the fantastic views.

There are many more locations in the area, such as Murlough Bay where Theon and Yara Greyjoy shared a horse, but the tour only covers these two, which are a half-hour walk from the Sheep Island View Hostel in Ballintoy (the first night’s accommodations). The next morning, you’ll also get to walk down the Dark Hedges, otherwise known as the King’s Road.

Unfortunately, as with all filming locations for the Game of Thrones, they don’t look quite the same without the extensive CGI used. However, not everything in Ireland needs CGI to be enchanting. Of course, having a computer program to edit out the throngs of tourists does help.

The Giant’s Causeway

Nearly every great bucket list I’ve seen for traveling the world has included the Giant’s Causeway. The hexagonal rock formations only occur here and in parts of western Scotland, with mythology connecting the two locations. I don’t remember how long it’s been on my own bucket list, but I was happy to finally tick it off my list. It’s quite a popular site, so getting a photo without others in the frame is darn near impossible. But if you’re going for the memory more than the photo, not even the rain can detract from the beauty of this marvel. Actually, our overcast weather just added to the ambiance.

Derry or Londonderry

The second night was spent at a hotel in Derry, or Londonderry, depending on which side of the river you’re on. Just like Belfast this is a divided town, with a river instead of a wall. Conflicts have abated, and there is a peace bridge spanning the river. Shortly after we arrived, we took a walking tour of the city with Martin McCrossan City Tours . The tour is £4 (payable when you first book your Shamrocker Tour) and lasts about two hours, covering the history of the city and a lot of the murals and memorials. If you didn’t know, this is the setting of U2’s famous song Sunday, Bloody Sunday, although the incident itself was quite infamous. You’ll have to take the tour to find out the rest.

Great Famine National Monument

Beneath the looming Croagh Patrick mountain is the Famine Monument. Conflicts aren’t the only difficulties that Ireland has had in recent history. From 1845 to 1852, due to a potato blight, Ireland lost a million people to starvation and another million who immigrated elsewhere. That was nearly 1/4 of its population!

Croagh Patrick itself is one of Ireland’s pilgrimage locations. Rising 764 meters, it’s a great hike; unfortunately longer than the tour was willing to stop for. Other than this stop and a few other short ones, plus lunch in Westport, the third day of the tour was mostly a transit day, getting from Derry to Galway.

When we got to Galway, it certainly exceeded my expectations. By some standards, it’s a small town. That’s not the impression I got when I was there. The central walking street was reminiscent of many quaint European towns I’ve seen in my travels, but in the evening the nightlife would reach a fever pitch. Perhaps that was due to my arrival in Freshman Week. It might not be as wild as Dublin , but personally I like the smaller town feel.

Most of Shamrocker’s tours pass through Galway, with two nights spent at the Kinlay Hostel. It’s been voted the best hostel in Ireland more than once, which I can agree with.

Day 4 of my tour was spent on the island of Inishmore. We took a bus and ferry to get there, arriving just before noon. There were many ways to explore the island, and most of us chose to spend €10 on a bike rental for the day. My suggestion is to get the mountain bike unless you want to pay extra for the electric bikes. This island might be small, but it has all kinds of features to explore. There are standing stones, old churches, beaches you can swim in (if you’re like me and don’t mind cold water) and ancient fortresses. By ancient, I mean over 3000 years old! Unfortunately, you have to pay €4 to explore Dún Aonghasa, the main fort. Or you can see the other two for free.

Poll na bPéist was by far my favorite part of the island. That’s Gaelic (Irish) for “wormhole,” or more accurately, “Serpent’s Lair.” It’s a fantastic natural wonder, where a rectangular pool has formed in the cliffs, and water flows up (or over) into it. When I was there it was rather turbulent, although not as bad as it could have been. Had the water been calmer, I would have loved to jump in. After all, this is one of the locations for Red Bull’s Cliff Diving Championships .

The Cliffs of Moher

A.k.a. the cliffs of insanity a.k.a. horcrux cave.

These cliffs weren’t on my bucket list as long as they should have been. They’ve made appearances in such movies as Far and Away, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and the immortal Princess Bride. Unfortunately, none of the movies give the location true justice. This was the primary attraction of the day, which was good enough for me. I almost lost track of time walking the 5km path along the cliff edge toward Hag’s Head. I didn’t actually make it all the way, so I’ll have to return another day.

And that was the tour. There are dozens of more things I could mention, but you’ll just have to take the tour to find out the rest. I wish I could have done the 7-day tour to see Limerick and the Blarney Stone, but more because I just wanted another couple days with all my new friends. As great as Ireland is, it was the chance to explore with so many other wonderful people which made the trip special for me. I realize that’s a huge reason to book tours with Shamrocker Tours . I’ll definitely be back to Ireland in my usual solo-traveler fashion to see more Games of Thrones locations, do the Guinness tour ( Dublin is famous for its beer and pubs ) and catch everything else I missed. But it just won’t be the same without the gang.

Hi, I'm Skye. Writer, photographer, adventurer, foodie, teacher, masseur, friend, dreamer, etc. I think "normal" sucks. Let's aim for extraordinary. SkyeTravels seeks to find the good around the world, focusing on adventures, food and wellness. Be inspired. Be yourself.

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It’s amazing to know that there is a place full of scenery as well as history. It is rich in beautiful natural scenery that are truly one of a kind. And it’s also a plus factor that there area a lot of GOT locations there. I plan to visit this very beautiful place with the rest of the gang.

Thanks. Yeah, Ireland is definitely one of the most beautiful places in Europe!

I did not know GoT was shot in Ireland, too? Interesting! Plus, this place looks absolutely stunning!

Ireland has the most locations. I think Spain is second, with Croatia and Iceland in the top five as well. So many little spots that you’d just never know about if GoT hadn’t found them.

What a great post of Ireland. We were in Belfast in 2014. I should have stayed and seen all of these!

You’ll just have to go back someday!

My son would go absolutely nuts over this tour, you would have got him at “Game of Thrones”! But for me it’s the Giant’s Causeway and would love to see Poll na bPéist but I don’t think I’d jump in the water either. Brrrrrrrr..shiver…shiver! 🙂

If you want you can book the tours from the links on my page. I think they’re over for this year, but they’ll start again early 2017.

Exploring, being active…Game of Thrones! That’s what we like… Sounds like a great adventure, can’t wait to do it 🙂 And would like to hear those dozen of more things to mention…. 🙂

Thanks. I try not to spoil the tour too much. You’ll have to get the rest of those dozens of things by taking the tour. 🙂

Oh Ireland, how I love thee! My husband and I visited and did it on our own. Not for the faint of heart. The driving out there is a bit crazy! We loved every minute of it and to date both say it is the place we would most like to get back to. Sounds like you had a wonderful experience, so glad to hear it!

Thanks. It truly is an incredible place. It’s no wonder that it was picked as the filming locations for Game of Thrones and so many other movies. Of course, I still like Scotland better…

Sounds like a great tour and that you covered so much in such a short time. I’ve never been a big fan of tours, but the benefits of insider knowledge are undeniable – and that they know the BEST spots to take you!

Thanks! I’m usually not a big fan of tours either, but Shamrocker and Haggis Adventures for Scotland really do a good job. Driving by yourself you would miss so much of the country and the behind-the-scenes facts.

I’m having a hard time with your post, because it’s about so many places I wish I could go see right now!! (And I can’t…) All of these sights are on my list, but I still need to wait a few years to go. I’m also very interested in the fact that your tour covered history and politics, etc and really gave you a feel for the people and their culture. Sounds amazing!

Thanks a lot! Why can’t you to those places right now? You would certainly love them. I need to get back myself. 5 days certainly wasn’t enough to explore Ireland. I hardly even covered the Game of Thrones locations, and this year they’re adding more scenes to see.

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