St Patrick's Cathedral, Book of Kells and Dublin Castle Tour
Description
Embark on a privileged journey through Dublin's historic center on this exclusive priority timed access tour. Gain entry to iconic landmarks, including St. Patrick's Cathedral, where you'll have ample space to admire its architectural wonders. Next, you'll enter Trinity College Library to witness the Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript of unparalleled beauty before visiting Dublin Castle & Gardens. Packed full of incredible insights and up-close historical visits including a visit to the must-see St Patrick’s Cathedral & Garden Park. Learn about Ireland’s patron saint and his incredible life story while your expert first-class local friendly guide offer a fully guide tour of this Dublin top landmarks. This tour continues to the Trinity College established in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth 1. Enjoy priority timed access ticket entry to the Book of Kells. Next, continue this fascinating walking tour to explore the 13th century Dublin Castle and Gardens.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Enjoy Skip the Line access and avoid the long lines for a fully comprehensive tour of Ireland's most famous Cathedral and Gardens where you will learn about the works of Johnathan Swift, Dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral as well as Bram Stoker, author of Dracula and student of the 16th century Trinity College.
Continue on this fascinating fully guided tour to Dublin Castle. Originally built in the 13th century on a site previously settled by the Vikings it functioned as a military fortress, a prison, treasury, courts of law and the seat of English Administration in Ireland for 700 years. Rebuilt in the 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, Dublin Castle awaits to enthrall all who enter her gates. On this fully guided exterior tour, see the original 13th century Record & Octagonal Towers, the Upper & Lower State Yards and their architectural highlights. Led by an expert local English-speaking guide who will unveil incredible secrets including tales of intrigue and mystery, this tour is a "must do" for anyone interested in the history of Ireland. Enjoy and added bonus on this magnificent tour of the 13th century Castle to visit the Castle Gardens, which is the very location where the first Vikings landed in Dublin in 795 AD. Today it is a magnificent Celtic inspired landscaped lawn.
Visit Dublin's mascot 'Molly Malone Statue' where your local guide will introduce you to Dublin's heroine and her famous song. The song's tragic heroine and her barrow have come to stand as one of the most familiar symbols of the capital. As well as being known and sung internationally, the popular song 'Cockles and Mussels' has become a sort of unofficial anthem of Dublin city.
Visit the 9th century Book of Kells, described in the 1007 Historical records off Ulster as 'the most precious object in the western world'. The cultural and historical value of the Book of Kells has only increased in the millennium since - this exquisite work of art has stood for 1,200 years as the greatest example of medieval illumination. This tour starts by delving into its rich ornamentation and explores its dense symbolism and meaning and its merit as an artistic masterpiece.
After your visit to the Book of Kells and Library enjoy 10 minutes at the venues souvenir shop.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Please wear comfortable shoes as this tour involves a fair amount of walking, including over uneven surfaces, cobblestones, hills, inclines, declines and stairs.
- Participants should be in good health - consult first with your doctor if you have any medical condition or are not used to regular exercise.
- Wheelchairs, motorised scooters or any other device to assist mobility are not recommended, as we cannot guarantee: that all footpaths/sidewalks/curbs will have suitable ramps.
- Anybody under the age of 18 years must be accompanied by somebody aged 18 years or older.
- Not recommended for travellers with limited mobility
Reviews(1,244)
Very interactive and engaging. Not too long of a day.
A most informative and enjoyable walking tour. Our tour guide Maura was very knowledgeable, witty and kept us all interested and immersed in the tour. She was excellent.
We were unable to approach the castle, lot of walking involved, not a particularly enlightening tour. Book of Kells was a let down. Would not repeat this tour or tell family to use it.
This was a great tour! Our tour guide was so lovely and knowledgeable! I did this day one of my trip in the city of Dublin! It was a great start for my trip!
Our tour guide, Mary, was amazing and explained the tour really well. We learned a lot and had fun. Highly recommend
The cathedral was nice to see but if you're not into the history parts of this leg of the tour were a bit long. The castle was unfortunately closed so the tour consisted of stopping at police checkpoints to peek a view. Trinity College Library was fantastic despite the ongoing restorations. Overall, would definitely do it again.
Ferguson was a true wealth of knowledge, had a great personality, and took awesome pictures for all involved. Definitely learned more and spent less time doing it with a guide as opposed to solo.
We hit the jackpot with Fergus! We appreciated his deep knowledge of the history of Ireland, most especially of our specific stops on this tour. Highly recommend!
Anna lead us through beautiful parts of Dublin while giving us fun folklore and history of everywhere we went
Anna was a fantastic guide — smart, knowledgeable, witty, energized, and kind.
