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From Dublin: Cliffs of Moher, Burren & Galway City Day Tour
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From €85 per person
This is the second-bestselling day tour from Dublin for good reason. In a single day, you get to experience three of Ireland’s greatest hits - the towering Cliffs of Moher, the alien landscape of the Burren, and the irresistible charm of Galway city. It’s a long day (13 hours door to door), but every mile of the journey counts.
The Cliffs of Moher are the undisputed star of the show. Rising 214 metres above the crashing Atlantic, they’re one of the most photographed natural landmarks in Europe. You’ll have a full two hours here - enough time to walk the cliff-top paths, visit O’Brien’s Tower for the highest vantage point, and explore the award-winning visitor centre built into the hillside. On a clear day, you can see the Aran Islands and even as far as Connemara.
After the cliffs, your coach winds through the Burren - a vast expanse of cracked limestone that looks like the surface of another planet. Despite appearances, this landscape is home to an extraordinary variety of wildflowers, including species that normally only grow in the Arctic or the Mediterranean. Your guide explains the geology and folklore as you pass ancient dolmens and ring forts. The day finishes with free time in Galway, where colourful shop fronts, street musicians and cosy pubs make it easy to fall in love with the west of Ireland.
At Moneygall: the comfort stop is at Obama Plaza on the M7, which is a motorway service station a few kilometres from the village itself - Barack Obama’s great-great-great-grandfather Falmouth Kearney actually left from Moneygall village in 1850. Obama visited the village pub, Hayes’ Bar, in May 2011. The plaza is fine for coffee and a breakfast roll; fifteen minutes is plenty.
At the Cliffs of Moher: the visitor centre sits at the midpoint of the cliff range. The paths run in both directions - most people head for O’Brien’s Tower to the north for the best elevated view. Go early in your two hours and you’ll beat the crowd that arrives at the centre around the same time you do. The cliff edge in a strong wind is serious - the path is safe but stay behind the wall.
In Galway city: you’ve got 1.5 hours, which is enough for a proper lunch and a walk through the Latin Quarter but not much more. Head straight for Quay Street - it’s the heart of the old medieval core, with good lunch options and buskers most days. Tigh Coili on Mainguard Street is the best pub for a quick pint if you want a genuine trad atmosphere rather than a tourist bar. Save a session in Galway for a separate trip - the city earns an overnight stay of its own.
If you want to come back for longer: the two hours at the Cliffs doesn’t do justice to the walk south from Doolin to Hag’s Head - a 14km return cliff path with no car park, no turnstile, and the Atlantic doing all the talking. Doolin is the village six kilometres north of the Cliffs visitor centre, with four pubs and trad sessions most nights; Gus O’Connor’s has been pouring since 1832. Liscannor is the working pier village eight kilometres south of the centre, where Vaughan’s Anchor Inn has been Michelin-recommended for years and the cliff trail from Hag’s Head starts above the village rather than at the visitor centre. Coming back? Base yourself in either and walk the route the buses don’t use.
For the Burren section: the coach passes through Ballyvaughan - the village at the northern foot of the Burren where the limestone meets Galway Bay. Monk’s Pub and Restaurant right at the pier is the chowder stop in this part of Clare. If the route comes via Lisdoonvarna, that’s the spa town with four naturally warm mineral springs that Victorian Ireland turned into a resort; the Roadside Tavern there runs trad sessions most weekends. The sulphur springs still work.
Return journey: the coach drops you at 12 Aston Quay, Temple Bar. If you’re staying nearby, it’s a short walk. If you’re further out, the Luas stops and bus connections are close - plan your evening journey home before you leave in the morning so you’re not figuring it out at 8pm.