Cliffs of Moher and Burren Private Day Tour

About This Tour

This private 10-hour tour from Dublin packs in a real mix of Clare and Galway highlights, all at a relaxed pace in a luxury Mercedes-Benz with your driver-guide.

You’ll stop at Dunguaire Castle and the scenic village of Kinvara, visit Newtown Castle in the Burren, and take in sweeping views from Corkscrew Hill before arriving at the Cliffs of Moher for two full hours. From there, you’ll head to Doolin Pier - a quieter, sea-level vantage point that most visitors miss entirely - followed by time in Doolin village for lunch. The afternoon continues through the lunar-like limestone of the Burren, with stops at Corcomroe Abbey and the award-winning Hazel Mountain Chocolate factory and cafe.

Your chauffeur meets you at your hotel reception and handles the luggage.

What’s Included

• Private transportation
• WiFi on board
• Bottled water
• Mobile device chargers
• Snacks
• Air-conditioned vehicle

What’s Not Included

• Lunch
• Gratuities
• Cliffs of Moher Visitor Centre admission

Itinerary

1. Dunguaire Castle - A 16th-century tower house built by the Ó hEidhin clan, on the shores of Galway Bay near Kinvara. (20 min)
2. Kinvara - A picturesque seaside village in south County Galway, at the edge of Galway Bay and the gateway to the Burren. The name comes from the Irish Cinn Mhara, meaning “head of the sea.” (pass by)
3. Newtown Castle - A beautifully restored 16th-century tower house about 2.5km southwest of Ballyvaughan, in the heart of the Burren landscape. (30 min)
4. Corkscrew Hill - A dramatic scenic route in County Clare through the Burren between Ballyvaughan and Lisdoonvarna, with wide views across the landscape. (15 min)
5. Cliffs of Moher - One of Ireland’s most iconic natural landmarks. The cliffs stretch for around 14km along the Atlantic coast and reach up to 214 metres at their highest point near O’Brien’s Tower. (120 min)
6. Doonagore Castle and Doolin Pier - A 16th-century round tower house perched on a hill above Doolin, built from local sandstone. Below it, Doolin Pier gives you a rare sea-level view of the Cliffs of Moher - far less crowded and genuinely different from the top. (20 min)
7. Doolin village - A coastal village just 10 minutes from the cliffs, known for traditional music and good food. Ideal for a relaxed lunch. (90 min)
8. Burren limestone pavement - One of the most distinctive landscapes in Ireland, shaped over thousands of years during the last Ice Age. (30 min)
9. Corcomroe Abbey - A hauntingly atmospheric 13th-century Cistercian monastery in a quiet Burren valley, often called the “Abbey of the Fertile Rock.” One of Ireland’s finest examples of early Gothic architecture. (30 min)
10. Hazel Mountain Chocolate - A bean-to-bar chocolate factory, café, and shop tucked into the Burren hills. Family-run since 2014, it’s won awards from the Academy of Chocolate and is rated among Ireland’s top cafes. (30 min)

Meeting point: Your chauffeur will meet you at the hotel’s reception, assist with your luggage, and transfer you to your destination.

Good to Know

• Service animals allowed
• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Infant and child seats available on request
• Suitable for all physical fitness levels

This is a private tour. Available in English.

Local Tips

In Doolin, head to the right pub. Your 90-minute lunch stop in Doolin is worth using well. Gus O’Connor’s on Fisher Street has been pouring since 1832 and the chowder is the real thing - mussels and salmon with brown bread. McGann’s is the one the locals tend to end up in, with a turf fire in winter and a more relaxed pace than O’Connor’s in high season. If you hear a session starting while you’re eating, that’s normal - stay.

Corkscrew Hill was built by starving hands. The hairpin road between Ballyvaughan and Lisdoonvarna was constructed in the 1840s as famine relief work during An Gorta Mór. Local men were paid pennies a day to stack those stone walls. The view from the top across Galway Bay is extraordinary - ask your driver to pause at the overlook. The walls on either side were laid by people who were starving.

Newtown Castle and the Burren College of Art. Two kilometres from Ballyvaughan, Newtown Castle is a round-on-a-square-base tower house - an unusual design, built by the O’Briens. Since 1993 it has housed the Burren College of Art, where international postgraduates come for residencies. The castle is worth a look outside even if you’re not going in.

At Doolin Pier, you’re seeing the cliffs the way the fishermen saw them. The pier is a working pier - ferries to Inis Oírr leave from here, twenty minutes out. Your sea-level view of the cliffs gives you their actual scale in a way the top of the cliffs does not. It’s one of the quieter stops on any Cliffs of Moher tour.

Nearby on IrelandMe

• Doolin - Three hamlets, four pubs, and a serious trad reputation - Gus O’Connor’s has been running sessions since 1832 and the cliff walk south to Hag’s Head starts from the harbour
• Kinvara - Dunguaire Castle catches the last light on Galway Bay, and Winkle’s pub runs trad sessions most nights of the summer
• Ballyvaughan - The front door of the Burren, with Monk’s Pub at the pier for seafood chowder and Gregans Castle Hotel up Corkscrew Hill for a Michelin Key dinner