did you use rain gear pants in Ireland on your Rick Steves' tour?

When are you going? Which tour are you going on?

We experienced light rain most days during our RS tour of Ireland. No rain pants, light raincoats, small & lightweight umbrella, layers. Got a bit soggy once or twice but dried out quick enough. No regrets on not having better foul weather gear.

We had a great time! Incredible trip!

Happy travels!

We did not go on a RS tour but did a walking tour in Ireland last Sept. DEFINITELY bring your rain gear. It is so nice to be able to keep dry while walking about.

That's great advice for a walking tour, Badbie, but she's not going on a walking tour. She's taking one of the RS tours, which do not involve full days of walking. It's unlikely that she needs rain pants unless she's going in the winter. Even then.

It is almost certainly going to rain during your trip. Whether you need rain pants is dependent upon your comfort with being wet.

When I was a child and complained about getting wet during a rain storm, my mother would say "Rain never hurt a beautiful flower." I just got used to being wet.

Safe travels.

I spent nine days in Ireland in July, four in Killarney and five in Dublin. Not on the RS tour but independently after the South of England tour. It rained all nine days, either a light or steady rain, only downpour was at night. I think I saw a streak of blue sky one day. I wore a knee length hooded rain coat with a sweater or jacket beneath. I also wore waterproof Keen shoes. If your jacket is short, I'd take the rain pants.

To stay warm and dry on this trip, I packed more than usual. I barely made carry-on limits outbound with creative packing. I checked my suitcase on the way home.

Enjoy your trip. Ireland is wonderful! Sláinte!

We traveled independently in Ireland in May and were SO glad we had packed rain pants and waterproof shoes! Even on a tour you’ll have free time and time outdoors on tour. With proper rain gear you can enjoy the beauty of Ireland in the rain regardless of the weather. We spent hours outside on the Dingle Peninsula in torrential rain and loved it. Almost no one at Slea Head, and at least some who didn’t make the trip did so because they weren’t prepared for rain. We crossed paths with a couple in soaking wet jeans and they said “we wish we’d thought to pack rain pants.” I rolled mine up tight for the suitcase and they added very little bulk/weight. Would not return to Ireland without them.
Ireland is wonderful—have a fantastic trip!

I took the RS 2-week Ireland tour in May.

You definitely need a raincoat with a hood. I personally don’t think rain pants are necessary for the tour unless you plan to spend time hiking during your free time. I mostly wore jeans, but I did have one pair of quick drying hiking pants and those were useful on the days where it rained hard.

I went on the Ireland tour in September. I did have my rain pants and jacket. We were EXTREMELY lucky according to our guide. We had one day of light rain for about an hour, and the day we left Ireland it rained. Be prepared. That's the best way to guarantee you might not need it! ;)