This 11-hour day trip takes you from Dublin all the way to one of Ireland’s most dramatic natural sights - the Cliffs of Moher - stopping at a medieval castle and a lively Clare town on the way.
You’ll start with a break at the Barack Obama Plaza, a well-known rest stop with a small exhibition dedicated to the former US president’s Gaelic roots. It’s a handy spot to stretch your legs and grab a coffee before the day really begins.
From there, the tour heads to Bunratty Castle, one of Ireland’s best-preserved medieval fortresses. Your entrance is included, and you’ll have time to explore the rooms and get a real sense of 15th-century life inside those thick walls.
Next stop is Ennis, a genuinely lovely Clare town known for traditional music spilling out of its pubs. You’ll get a guided walk through the town centre, then free time to find lunch and wander at your own pace.
The day finishes at the Cliffs of Moher - 214 metres of sheer Atlantic cliff face that really does stop you in your tracks. Entrance to the Visitor Centre and O’Brien’s Tower is included, and you’ll have around three hours to take it all in.
What’s Included
Private transportation with official guide
Entrance to the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Centre and O’Brien’s Tower
Entrance to Bunratty Castle
Guided walking tour of Ennis town centre
What’s Not Included
Food and drinks
Itinerary
Barack Obama Plaza - A well-placed stop for coffee and a look at the exhibition on the former US president’s Irish heritage. (20 min)
Bunratty Castle - One of Ireland’s finest medieval fortresses, dating to the 15th century. Explore the interior rooms with your guide and entrance included. (90 min)
Ennis - A guided walk through the town centre, followed by free time for lunch at one of the traditional pubs. (120 min)
Cliffs of Moher - Free time to explore the clifftop path and take in the Atlantic views. Visitor Centre and O’Brien’s Tower entrance included. (180 min)
Good to Know
Suitable for all fitness levels
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller; infants must sit on an adult’s lap during transit
Service animals are welcome
Please arrive at the meeting point 15 minutes before departure - the guide cannot wait due to the itinerary schedule
Tour available in English and Spanish
Maximum group size of 50
Local Tips
Bunratty is at its best before the morning coaches arrive. The tour gets you there early, which matters - the castle and the Folk Park both reward a slower look than the midday rush allows. The Folk Park is thirty acres of relocated cottages, a working forge, and a reconstructed 19th-century street, all moved stone by stone from sites across Clare and Limerick. It’s easy to spend longer here than you planned.
For your free time in Ennis, the Franciscan friary is worth a few minutes even before you find lunch - medieval ruins sitting in the middle of the town, with 15th-century tracery windows and an O’Brien carved tomb that are extraordinary for what didn’t get pulled down. The friary is roofless so pick a clear stretch to visit it.
Ennis is one of the best trad music towns in Ireland, with sessions running in Cruises, Preachers Corner and O’Halloran’s most evenings. If your tour returns in the early evening and you have some energy left, the town on a Friday or Saturday night is a different proposition to the daytime guided walk.
At the Cliffs of Moher, O’Brien’s Tower sits at the highest point of the cliff walk. Your entrance is included. The clifftop path in both directions from the Visitor Centre offers views the tower doesn’t, so split your time between the two rather than spending all of it at the tower.
The village of Liscannor sits 8km south of the Visitor Centre at the back end of the cliff range. The clifftop trail continues south from the Visitor Centre all the way to Hag’s Head above Liscannor - if your group has energy after the three included hours, the southern stretch has no railing, no fee, and far fewer people than the main platform.
Doolin is 8km north of the Visitor Centre, where the coastal cliff walk continues in the other direction. Three hamlets, four pubs including Gus O’Connor’s (in the family since 1832), and the ferry pier for the Aran Islands. Worth knowing about if you have an extra night in the region.
Nearby on IrelandMe
Bunratty - A 15th-century tower house restored by Lord Gort in the 1950s, a thirty-acre folk park built from real relocated buildings, and Durty Nelly’s pub in the shadow of the castle keep - five minutes from Shannon Airport.
Ennis - County Clare’s working market town with medieval lanes laid out in the 1200s, a Franciscan friary in the middle of it, and a trad music scene that runs in forty pubs and was never a tourist invention.
Liscannor - The working pier village 8km south of the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Centre, where the cliff walk continues south to Hag’s Head and Vaughan’s Anchor Inn has been doing serious seafood since 1979.
Doolin - Three hamlets north of the cliffs with four pubs, the Aran Islands ferry, and sessions running most nights at Gus O’Connor’s, McGann’s and McDermott’s - the north end of the same cliff walk this tour follows.
