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Waterford Crystal & Kilkenny City
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From €149 per person
This full-day tour travels by InterCity train into the heart of Ireland’s sunny southeast, taking in two very different cities and one of the country’s most celebrated craft traditions.
Check in at the Customer Service Desk at Dublin Heuston Station for the 07:20 departure. By 09:00 you’re in Kilkenny, known as the Marble City because most of its buildings are built from black limestone. You have over two hours to explore freely - the castle and its rose garden dominate the skyline, and the medieval laneways reward a wander. From April to October, a guided Road Train tour of Kilkenny is included in the price. The train departs Kilkenny at 11:40.
You arrive into Waterford at 12:20 - a Viking city on the banks of the River Suir. En route you pass Jerpoint Abbey, a 12th-century Cistercian ruin that’s worth knowing about. On arrival, you’re transferred to the Waterford Crystal Visitor Centre for a guided tour of the factory, where craftsmen demonstrate the traditional skills of blowing and cutting the world-famous crystal glass. Lunch is your own time at the Visitor Centre or at one of the many authentic pubs and bars in the city. The train departs Waterford at 16:05 and travels directly back to Dublin.
You arrive back at Dublin Heuston Station at 18:00.
Make the most of your two hours in Kilkenny. The Medieval Mile runs from Kilkenny Castle at the south end to St Canice’s Cathedral at the north - about 1.5 km one way, full of slip-lanes and alleyways. You won’t have time for the full walk, but the castle and the lanes immediately around it are worth every minute you have. Park yourself on the castle steps or the Parade for five minutes and watch the limestone town do its thing.
The Smithwick’s Experience is on Parliament Street - if you’re a fan, it’s a short walk from the station and the doors open early. The ruined abbey wall the brewery was built around is the quiet surprise inside.
For lunch in Waterford, skip the main tourist drag and walk a few minutes to John Street. Geoff’s café bar at John Street has been the pub everyone ends up in since 1907 - three generations at the same table on a Sunday is normal, and the food is decent without trying too hard. If you want something faster, the Viking Triangle area has options right by Reginald’s Tower.
On the Crystal tour itself, the Bishop’s Palace museum - steps from the Crystal Visitor Centre - holds the oldest piece of Waterford Crystal in the world as part of its Waterford Treasures collection. If you have twenty minutes after the factory tour, it’s free with a museum ticket and puts the glassblowing in a much older context. Explore more of Waterford and Kilkenny before or after your tour.