This Cork shore excursion travels from Cobh to County Kerry, the scenic center of tourism in Ireland and part of the famous Ring of Kerry driving route. If your ideal day combines dramatic Irish landscapes with small local villages, this is the tour for you.
After meeting your private driver-guide, you begin the drive to County Kerry in the extreme southwest of Ireland. Kerry is traditionally known as the Kingdom and has two contrasting types of terrain: a mountainous south with small peninsulas jutting into the sea, and smaller plains stretching north to the Shannon estuary. Wherever you approach from, the central spine of the Kerry mountains draws you in, and the fretted coastline and deep bays of the Atlantic constantly change the light and texture of the landscape.
Your first stop is Kenmare, whose name in Irish, Neidin, means "little nest," a reference to its setting between the mountains and the sea. Kenmare is an important example of a planned town, laid out on an X-plan by the first Marquess of Lansdowne in 1775, with a wide main street and square. Set on the Ring of Kerry, it is known today as an attractive tourist town with fine restaurants and craft shops, and it retains links to a more ancient past through its Bronze Age stone circle of 15 standing stones, once a burial place and site of sun worship.
Next are photo stops at Ladies View and Moll's Gap. Moll's Gap is a well known viewpoint on the Ring of Kerry, offering a view over Black Valley and the Lakes of Killarney surrounded by the Kerry mountains. Ladies View, a different perspective on the same countryside, takes its name from Queen Victoria, who was so taken with the view that she insisted her ladies-in-waiting see it too.
You then continue into the town of Killarney, where you have free time for lunch, meal not included, at a traditional Irish pub. Afterward you relax with a jaunting car, a horse drawn carriage, through Killarney National Park. Your driver, known locally as a jarvey, takes you through the park's scenery to spots you might not otherwise see on your own. The park became Ireland's first national park in 1932, when the Muckross Estate was presented to the nation by Senator Arthur Vincent. Today the park covers more than 26,000 acres of mountain, moorland, woodland, and waterways.
After your visit to the park, you return to the pier in Cobh.
If you cannot find what you are looking for, our Cork shore excursions can also be customized to fit your needs. If you have a larger group, we can offer you a private Cork tour using a mid-size bus or full size coach. Please contact us with any questions or to receive a customized quote.
Review Location- Cork 
