Wild
Atlantic Way and Customised Tours
See Ireland the way that suits you. Forget
renting a car, and driving down the narrow country lanes
Our customised tours are like going into a
great restaurant and selecting bits from each course, a bit
of this and a bit of that. Let's see the Fastnet, or maybe the Hook,
must see Loop Head, and we will add in Gougane Barra, and Hill of
Tara, then let's do Dublin, and I've heard lots of great things
about the Beara Peninsula. The Giant's Causeway, and maybe
Tory Island where there's a hotel to stay in. Also let's add in
some great Irish traditional music, and walk along the Clffs of
Moher. You decide, and we can help you find the best places to stay.
Because we run tours all the time we know the better places to stay
Tommy Hartnett drives all the back roads, always
smiling, never under pressure
Photographer John Eagle author of 2 books knows
the country well
Together Tommy and John will take care of you, and
treat you like one of the family
Tommy takes a delight driving down narrow country
lanes like this one, which tend to scare visitors who are used to
big wide roads. Tommy always drives carefully, never rushed and
forever happy.
Small narrow country lanes and bridges, not a
bother to Tommy
I have heard visitors to Ireland say they wouldn't
drive a car down many of our roads, and yet Tommy thinks nothing of
taking his buses down them. If there is an obstacle he just reverses
and finds a way round it. In Connemara this past Summer he drove the
Sky Road for clients of our's which is full of twists and bad turns,
many times he had to reverse, and at the end of it he was asked if
he would go back along the road. Not a bother to him. He just turned
the bus round and we went back along the road.
And I am there to tell you all about the
things we see
We don't put on an act for anyone. We will treat
you as part of the family so you can sit back, hear some stories,
some true some a bit stretched,
some humour,
visit some great pubs and be pampered all day long. You're on
holiday, and we help you have a great one. So come along and enjoy |
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| Rounding the Fastnet |
Meeting the locals
in Connemara |
From the Fastnet in the south to Inishowen in the far north of Ireland I take people on tour, up close and personal with lighthouses. I began doing this in 2009 and have never looked back. I enjoy meeting people and welcoming them to Ireland. There's so much to see, not just lighthouses,
also castles, animals, wildlife too.
Many of the roads we travel visitors don't know exist. If you know
exactly what you would like to see, or if you have ideas but not
sure, we can put together your tour. I will discuss it with you,
suggest things and work round your ideas to make it all work for
you. In July 2015 a couple of Americans wanted to see as many
castles as we could squeeze in so we went all round Ireland showing
them the best ones. Then in August 6 from Southern California wanted
to go round Ireland with me staying in lighthouses and seeing as
much of Ireland as they could. We went to as many Irish music sessions
we could find for them, sheep dog trials, boat trips, donkeys....
Traditional Irish music session in Austies at Rosses Point, Sligo
Traditional music in Donegal town
Thanks again for all you did. You don't know how much it
meant and how it is appreciated. Dave Reid August '15
customised tour
If you would like me to show you Ireland please tell me what you
would like to see, or maybe you know what you would like and just
need me to be your guide. I use Tommy Hartnett as my driver. His
motto is 'Pressure is for Tyres' a man who is marvellous at staying
calm. We carry your bags for you, we stop wherever you want, in fact
we take pleasure in making sure you have a carefree holiday here
The rules are simple. Tommy must take a day off after 6 days
of driving by Irish law. So when you plan your holiday with us
please take this into consideration. A day spent away from the bus
is good for everyone anyway, put your feet up, read a book, write
postcards, go to Church, sunbathe on the beach
Read my
blog to see the tours we've been doing
I look after the websites for Beara Tourism and Discover Beara.com. I have contacts all over Ireland
Thanks again for all you did to make this trip so wonderful!! Greg Steffenson Southern Lighthouse Tour 2013 |
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| My tour bus at Loop Head lighthouse |
Myself and my bus |
| I run the Southern Lighthouse Tour in June because that is when the puffins are at Skellig Michael, but we can also run it in July should it suit your plans better. They don't leave until late July, and the Northern Tour does not have to be at the end of August, it could just as easily be in July. Should you wish to take a tour of the Southern or Northern lighthouses at a different time of the year to advertised please contact me. I need 5 people to make the trip viable, or I can take less for a higher fee. The most I can take in the above mini-bus is 9, but only 8 can stay at the lighthouses so it's a case of 1 person missing out. I can acquire a bigger bus, then we stay at hotels and B&Bs in place of the lighthouses. |
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| Photographing Ardnakinna lighthouse from the high speed rib |
Going through the Bull Rock tunnel (Please click on pic to watch video) |
If there are certain lighthouses you would like to visit I can put together an itinery for you with places to stay. And I don't just take you to the lighthouses, you can also see local historical sites, maritime scenes, ships, harbours, caves. Like this church on Inisheer that is below ground level (below) If it's on the coast of Ireland we get to see it
And we stay in the best B&Bs in Ireland, I go to them to make sure they are good
My favourite places to stay
Josephine Geraghty's Brú Clann Lir in Blacksod
Hook Head B&B
The Railway Tavern, Donegal
Abbeyglen Castle Hotel, Clifden
Strand End House, Cahirciveen
Fortfield, Kilrush
Glendine House B&B, Co. Wexford
Atlantic Villa, Valentia Island, Kerry
Blackhead lighthouse, Co. Antrim
Galley Head lighthouse, Co. Cork
My favourite places to eat
Imperial Hotel in Youghal, impressive menu and portions
The Gateway, Belmullet
The Bistro, Eyeries. Great food
Beara Coast Hotel, Castletownbere
Fuchsia Cafe, Castletownbere
The Creamery, Bunratty
Kilbaha Craft Shop, Loop Head
Whitehead Golf Club, Co. Antrim
Organico, Bantry
Taste, Castletownbere. Sit outside at the table eating really
healthy food
If you would like your cafe or restaurant to get on this list
then introduce me to what you serve
your enjoyment is my pleasure ..John Eagle |
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