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City Explorer: Howth Private Day Trip
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From €251 per person
Ask a Dubliner where to go for a day out from the city and most of them will point you straight to Howth. It’s about 20 minutes north on the DART - a rocky peninsula jutting into Dublin Bay with a working fishing harbour, castle grounds, good seafood, and cliff walks with the kind of views that explain why locals keep coming back. It feels like a proper escape without actually going very far.
This private day trip pairs you with a local guide for six hours, covering Howth’s main highlights at a relaxed pace with the kind of commentary you only get from someone who knows the place well. It’s just your group - no other travellers - and the tour is carbon-neutral. Public transport costs are covered in the price, so you don’t need to worry about DART fares or figuring out timetables.
Howth Castle - A centuries-old property with extensive garden and grounds. About 60 minutes exploring the estate.
Summit Inn - Originally built in the 19th century as a thatched cottage and in the Gaffney family for generations, the Summit Inn has a good bit of local character worth taking in. About 60 minutes.
Howth Harbour - The harbour sits at the heart of the village on the rugged peninsula forming the north side of Dublin Bay. It’s a beautiful working harbour - fishing boats, seafood restaurants, and good views back toward the city. About 60 minutes here.
4-6. Additional stops - Depending on your guide and the route they choose for the day, there may be other spots included along the way.
Meeting point: In front of Grainger’s Cafe Bar.
The DART ride to Howth is part of the experience. The line hugs the coastline from Clontarf northward, and on a clear day you get the full sweep of Dublin Bay, with Howth Head in the distance and the Wicklow Mountains to the south. Sit on the right-hand side heading out from the city centre for the best views.
If the weather is even half-decent, try to fit in a stretch of the Howth Cliff Walk. The full loop is around 10 kilometres, but even a 30-minute section above the harbour gives you views of Ireland’s Eye island and the bay that are hard to match anywhere within reach of Dublin. Your guide will know which section suits your group’s pace.
Howth is famous for its seafood. The harbour has several good fish and chip shops and sit-down seafood restaurants a short walk from the DART stop. Beshoff Bros and Wrights of Howth are both reliable, and the crab claws and Dublin Bay prawns are the things to order when they’re on the menu. Lunch here is worth budgeting for.
Howth Market runs every weekend on the harbour. If you’re visiting on a Saturday or Sunday, the market has local food producers, street food stalls, and craft sellers spread along the waterfront - it’s a good hour spent wandering, and the atmosphere is excellent on a sunny morning.
Howth Castle’s gardens include one of the oldest rhododendron forests in Ireland. The gardens are at their most spectacular in late spring, roughly May to early June, when the rhododendrons are in full bloom and the hillside turns every shade of purple and pink. Worth timing a visit around if you can.