Blarney Castle & Kinsale: Half-Day Scenic Tour

Discover Blarney Castle and Kinsale on a half-day tour from Cork. Kiss the Blarney Stone, explore vibrant Kinsale, and return by lunchtime.

Duration: 5 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Blarney Castle & Gardens - At Blarney Castle, visitors enter a realm where history, legend, and natural beauty come together. With 75 minutes to explore, there is ample time to immerse oneself in the essence of this renowned landmark.
  • Kinsale - Discover Kinsale, often referred to as the “Irish Riviera” for its coastal allure and lively…
What's Included
  • Driver/guide
  • In-vehicle air conditioning
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
Additional Information

Set off on an enchanting half-day journey from Cork to visit two of Ireland’s most renowned sites: Blarney Castle and Kinsale. This thoughtfully designed tour provides an ideal mix of history, culture, and stunning landscapes in just a few hours.
Begin your adventure at the legendary Blarney Castle, where you can kiss the famous Blarney Stone and receive…

Location
Paddywagon Tours Cork
Bridge Street
We meet in front of Paddywagon Tours at 9 Bridge Street, T23 KW89 - right in the very heart of Cork.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
3.9
(19 Ratings)
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1 star
Kelly_b
Aug 26, 2025
Blarney, Kinsale , cobh - Awesome history and scenery. Wonderful driver/ guide Zico, who made it even more fun/ funny and great recommendation on food and sites! Dinos fish and chips in kinsale wa amazing.
Review provided by Viator
Robertwr1500gj
Aug 4, 2025
The best way to tour around Cork. - Our tour fortunately was converted to a full day experience. We thoroughly enjoyed the experience and it is really the best way to learn about an area. This was especially true because the driver had a fantastic amount of knowledge to share with us. We were able to visit Blarney Castle, Kinsale, and Cobh. It was a full day with no time to be bored. We recommend the tour if you want to learn about the areas around Cork.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Brandi_b
Jul 12, 2025
Great tour - Our guide Tommy was great. We did this excursion from a cruise. We docked in Cobh/Cove and took the train right at the ship into the Cork station and it was about a 10ish minute walk to pick up the tour bus. The tour dropped us off in the town of Cove which was cute with shops and food. We walked back to the ship from there while the other non-cruise passengers reborded the bus and went back to Cork where the tour started. Having to only have to catch the train one way was nice and getting to see the town of Cove was great as well. The tour itself was pretty long. We had 2.5 hours at Blarney but due north o the ship being in and all the visitors the line to kiss the stone took almost 2 hours so we didn’t end up having much time outside of kissing the stone. Tommy knew off the parking lot and gave us an idea on the line time so we could budget our time. The other stops were great as well. It was a very hot day and we had the bus air blowing but it wasn’t exactly cold AC due to the heat. It wasn’t miserable tho and a few people were complaining but I have a feel nothing would have made them happy. My group of 2 adults and 2 kids had a great time. I would recommend.
Review provided by Viator
Dallas_o
Jul 7, 2025
Great experience! The... - Great experience! The driver was helpful and entertaining and the blarney castle is a must see! Would definitely recommend
Review provided by Viator
Annemarie_r
Sep 4, 2025
This tour was canceled... - This tour was canceled and we were notified only by PaddyWagon tours, not Viator. Luckily we were able to pay the difference and join the full day tour which included Cobh. We really enjoyed Blarney Castle, especially because our driver got us there early and there were no lines to kiss the Blarney Stone! Kinsale and Cobh were beautiful towns. Wish we had more time to explore, but we’re able to see how wonderful each town was on a gorgeous day! Our driver Tom was very informative and fun!
Review provided by Viator
Sarahsanoja
Jul 24, 2025
Unreliable - I purchased the half day tour but when we arrived, myself and several others were told we were emailed (none of us received an email) stating the tour had been cancelled and we had been “upgraded” to a full day tour. I specifically chose NOT to purchase the full day tour because I was in town on a cruise and didn’t want to push the timing, nor was I interested in what the full day “tour” offered which wasn’t much of a tour at all. Blarney Castle was great and the part I chose and paid for but the rest was the guide merely dropping us in two different, very crowded towns and telling us to “shop and eat and make sure to come back to the bus happy”….what???! It was a waste of a day in port. Posting also states bus is air conditioned. It was not. It was a muggy day as most are here and the bus is as moist and hot, making several of us very uncomfortable and even nauseous with as much driving as he did. Really disappointed. Will not be purchasing from this company again.
Review provided by Viator
Richard_s
Aug 25, 2025
The bus broke down and we... - The bus broke down and we had to secure a private taxi to return us to the cruise ship Without the help of a private taxi, we would have missed the departure of the cruise ship, which would’ve been a major disaster
Review provided by Viator
Chriscj279vb
Aug 11, 2025
Thanks for nothing - Well, I’d give them a 0 star review if I could. They canceled the trip with less than 18 hours before we were supposed to take the trip. Got to Cork on Sunday evening and at 6pm the day before they canceled and refunded (the only positive thing I can say about them). We had to improvise and booked the tickets online and took Uber/taxi on our own. Didn't get to see Kinsale this go around but the trip to Blarney Castle was great. Book your own tickets and spend as much time as you want there. Completely unprofessional company.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Janetl_w
Jul 24, 2025
Tour operator cancelled! - Tour operator cancelled at the last minute and gave no other options. He said he would refund money but just couldn’t do the half day tour,
Review provided by Viator
Robin_f
Jul 11, 2025
Tour canceled just the day before - If you book this tour, you should know that Viator contracts with a local tour company who is unreliable. They canceled the day before and only when I got off the cruise ship and had phone service, did I receive a voicemail of the cancellation….and with no reason. Now I’m just hoping I get a refund as promised. Two other people were left behind by another tour company, who was contracted by Viator, who told them the start time changed to an hour later.
Review provided by Viator
From $55
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).