October 2021

Back on the road! 2021 Essential Ireland Tours

Essential Ireland Tours are back on the road in 2021. Happy Days

"Oh its great to be back touring, my biggest daydream during lockdown" - Stephen McPhilemy, Essential Ireland Tours

Essential Ireland Tours are back on the road in 2021.

Happy Days!

Delighted to be back on tour in October 2021.

Our 'Essential Ireland' Tour consisted of 6 intrepid travellers (3 couples from across the US), Dave O'Malley from Donegal at the wheel driving, and my good self (Stephen McPhilemy) guiding, singing and quenching everyone's thirst for knowledge!

Normally our signature 'Castles and Classics' tour has 12 tour-guests, this one had 6!

Of course the global pandemic is still impacting and we were simply over-the-moon to be able tour at all. Besides, 6 tour-guests is a dream-come-true for any professional tour-guide, especially one like me who's been on the road for 25 years! It was truly blissful.

"Failte Abhaile" (welcome home) - Stephen and our 'Essential Ireland' Tour-Guests enjoying a Champagne welcome from Noli at world-famous Ashford Castle

All 6 tour-guests had signed up in 2019 to enjoy this tour in 2020. Once the global pandemic hit we offered a full refund to all tour-guests who wanted or needed one. Remarkably, most of our guests were happy to keep their money trusted with us and expressed their strong desire to enjoy an 'Essential Ireland' tour at the earliest opportunity possible, little did we know it would not be possible until October 2021! Worth waiting for.

Excellent Irish experiences.

We enjoyed fairly good weather throughout, and even some days of glorious sunshine, and in true Irish fashion there was even a category-Orange storm one one of our days in Dingle, and by God did it pour down from the heavens with ferocious Irish winds! All in all giving our tour-guests an authentic feel for the Irish weather.

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