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5 Days Private Tour in North of Ireland
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From €4250 per person
Northern Ireland gets far fewer visitors than the south and west, and that’s part of what makes it so good. This five-day private tour takes you through landscapes that feel genuinely untouched - the hexagonal basalt columns of the Giant’s Causeway, where the geology alone will stop you in your tracks, and the heights of Slieve League in Donegal, where the cliffs drop nearly 600 metres straight into the Atlantic.
The small-group format means the itinerary can bend to what interests you. Your guide knows the hidden pubs, the quieter viewpoints, and the stories behind the places that don’t make it into the guidebooks. The Antrim Coast Road is one of the great coastal drives in Europe, and you’ll have a full day to take it in properly, with stops at the Dark Hedges, the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, and the Causeway itself. Derry’s walled city is a powerful mix of history and culture - the walls are the best-preserved in these islands - and crossing into Donegal opens up some of the wildest Atlantic coastline anywhere on the island.
This isn’t the kind of tour where you’re moved from one photo stop to the next. The pace is relaxed, the group is small, and the guides are the kind of people who bring the history alive over a pint in the evening.
Day 1 - Dublin to the Boyne Valley Collected from your Dublin accommodation, you head north through the Boyne Valley. Depending on your interests, you can visit Newgrange or the Hill of Tara before continuing into Northern Ireland.
Day 2 - Antrim Coast and Giant’s Causeway A full day along the spectacular Antrim Coast Road. Stops include the Dark Hedges, Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, and the Giant’s Causeway UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Day 3 - Derry and Donegal Explore the historic walled city of Derry, then cross into Donegal for stunning coastal scenery and traditional Irish villages.
Day 4 - Slieve League and the Wild Atlantic Way Visit Slieve League, where the cliffs rise nearly three times the height of the Cliffs of Moher. Continue along the Wild Atlantic Way through remote Donegal.
Day 5 - Return to Dublin A scenic return south through the drumlin countryside, with stops along the way based on your preferences.
Slieve League is taller than the Cliffs of Moher and sees a fraction of the visitors. The cliffs rise to 601 metres at their highest point - nearly three times the height of Moher - and on a clear day you can see as far as Scotland and Donegal Bay stretching south below you. The walk to the viewing point at One Man’s Pass is steep in places, so wear decent footwear and give yourself more time than you think you’ll need.
The Dark Hedges on the Antrim Coast are exactly what they look like. The beech trees were planted along Bregagh Road in the 18th century by the Stuart family, and the tunnel they’ve formed has one of the most photographed stretches of road in Ireland. It looks best in the early morning before the crowds arrive - ask your guide if an early start is possible on Day 2.
Derry’s city walls are the most complete in Ireland or Britain. They were built between 1613 and 1619 and have never been breached - which is a remarkable fact given the city’s turbulent history. Walking the full circuit of the walls takes about 45 minutes and gives you a clear sense of how the city was laid out. The Museum of Free Derry on Glenfada Park is worth an hour of your time if the history of the late 20th century interests you.
Donegal has some of the best traditional Irish music in the country. The style here - Donegal fiddle music - is distinct from what you’ll hear in Clare or Galway. Leo’s Tavern in Meenaleck is one of the most famous traditional music pubs in Ireland, and the family connection to Enya and Clannad makes it an interesting stop in its own right.
On the drive back through the drumlin country on Day 5, the landscape shifts noticeably from the dramatic Atlantic coast to the quieter midlands - drumlins are the rounded hills left by retreating glaciers, and they roll across Cavan and Monaghan in a way that’s very particular to that corner of Ireland. It’s worth looking out the window rather than putting on headphones.