Ireland Excursions with Private Drivers

[bhambamacruiser]

My family enjoys cruising and have sailed often with Princess and Holland America. We've been on two river cruises in Europe, but have not done an ocean cruise in Europe. Our mother turns 80 next year and wants to visit Ireland. She has some limited mobility, so we feel a British Isles cruise is an ideal way for mom to visit Ireland. Has anyone booked private drivers as an excursion in Ireland (Cork, Dublin, or Belfast) or even Le Havre for an excursion in Normandy? Princess offers a private driver for 1/2 or full day excursion in multiple ports. I know you can also secure these on your own. We want mom's trip to be accessible and easy. We are also researching a land tour in Ireland, but keep coming back to a cruise. The Princess cruise to the British Isles (May 15-27, 2024) aligns closely with the Queen Mary 2 crossing from NYC that we are also considering, so that is why were are narrowing our search to Princess. I guess I'm trying to compare a cruise vs. land tour to Ireland. Thank you for the feedback and input!

[gumshoe958]

I guess the choice between cruise or land tour depends on how much of Ireland you want to see.

 

That itinerary only includes two days in the Republic, so you’ll only be able to scratch the surface and won’t really get the chance to explore its beautiful coast and countryside. 

However two days in Belfast means you’ll get to see a good deal of Northern Ireland including plenty of time for a trip to the Giants Causeway, Derry~Londonderry and over the border to Donegal should you wish.

 

So there are pros and cons to both and if the Princess cruise aligns with a QM2 crossing, that would make for a very special holiday.

[VMax1700]

You don't mention how many will be in your group, but for Cork I would suggest first contacting Butler's Buses, who are based in Cobh, Cork!

https://www.butlers-buses.com/cobh-shore-excursion.php

[Tak8]

I did a similar trip on the Caribbean Princess in May of '17, but two days were in Dublin rather than Belfast.  It was a nice taste of Ireland, Scotland and France.  I want to get back and have been looking at land vs. cruise.  I'm not sure I want to pack and unpack so many times for hotels and I wonder how much of the trip will be in a bus.

 

Princess is my favorite line, but for the right itinerary I will look elsewhere.  NCL has an entire Ireland cruise on May 8th of next year.  It hits the Irish ports you list above and Waterford, Dingle, Galway and Killybegs.  

[lesnpatty]

We have used getyourguide.com to book private guides and drivers on our last 2 cruises.  We have a really good experiences and the prices are much better than what Princess offers.   Our guide/drivers all spoke English and were very knowledgeable and courteous.

[Tbird58]

On 6/28/2023 at 9:37 AM, bhambamacruiser said:

My family enjoys cruising and have sailed often with Princess and Holland America. We've been on two river cruises in Europe, but have not done an ocean cruise in Europe. Our mother turns 80 next year and wants to visit Ireland. She has some limited mobility, so we feel a British Isles cruise is an ideal way for mom to visit Ireland. Has anyone booked private drivers as an excursion in Ireland (Cork, Dublin, or Belfast) or even Le Havre for an excursion in Normandy? Princess offers a private driver for 1/2 or full day excursion in multiple ports. I know you can also secure these on your own. We want mom's trip to be accessible and easy. We are also researching a land tour in Ireland, but keep coming back to a cruise. The Princess cruise to the British Isles (May 15-27, 2024) aligns closely with the Queen Mary 2 crossing from NYC that we are also considering, so that is why were are narrowing our search to Princess. I guess I'm trying to compare a cruise vs. land tour to Ireland. Thank you for the feedback and input!

 

Edited July 21, 2023 by Tbird58
I didn't get to write anything

[Tbird58]

We're on the NCL Pearl in April-May 2024 and also have a stop in Le Havre.  I just booked a tour to the American Sector D-Day tour with Overlord Tours.  My FIL has some mobility issues and they suggested we do the private tour (up to 8 people) and even offered a foldable wheelchair, which will help for a long day.  The private tour is 995. EUR for an 8 hour tour.  They also have a group tour if you want to join one that's booked.  Doing research I found ACSM & Overlord to be the best tour companies.  Make sure you book from the port, not from a town.  

[Ashland]

We used "Tours By Locals" when we ported in Cork.

[bobolz]

We used Dublin Chauffer. The driver and vehicle were wry nice and had room in the back for my dads foldable wheelchair that we rented from Scootaround. Scootaround delivered the wheelchair to my dads room in Southampton and picked it up from the ship when we disembarked in Southampton. It worked out seamlessly. 
 

good luck and enjoy! 
 

 

[MississippiMom]

Lots of great information on this thread.  Thanks to all for sharing.

[Jodrell]

The downside to cruising around Ireland is that you could end up with several Tender Ports which are susceptible to being cancelled if the weather isn't calm.   Also the tender might be difficult  for someone with mobility issues.