I highly recommend the Mary Gibbons Newgrange tour from Dublin. She gives informative and entertaining commentary on history, culture, architecture etc. on the trip from Dublin to the Boyne Valley sites. She is very informative regarding all aspects of Hill of Tara, Knowth and Newgrange. Very enjoyable day.
Posted by
Placerville, ca, us
136 posts
Agreed, that is a fantastic tour of a jawdropping site.
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, US
23 posts
Thanks, several have recommended this, as well as guidebooks. I will book for my 2024 trip, but they don't start taking bookings until Nov 1.
Posted by
Colorado USA
73 posts
It's a great tour for sure! After visiting the Hill of Tara, depending on how fast everyone gets back on the bus, you'll head to Newgrange visitor center where you'll need to eat lunch and be ready to walk a short distance across a foot bridge over the River Boyne to catch the shuttle to the first stop, Knowth. If the cafeteria is crowded, it could be a quick lunch as the shuttle doesn't wait for stragglers, especially if you want to browse through the shop. We had a little less than an hour to eat, which was due mainly to traffic driving out of Dublin (some road construction) and leaving Hill of Tara a little late. (Stragglers!) I recommend bringing a snack or light lunch to eat on the bus. All that being said, Mary does a great job as do the OPW guides at Knowth and Newgrange!
Posted by
Westland, MI
727 posts
The Newgrange Tour has plenty of outdoors time. We have 3 full days that are free in May 2024 (9th, 10th, 11th) before the RS BoI tour. I sure hope I don't choose a day full of rain! I suppose it could be interesting enough to do it twice on different days. I've often done that for important art exhibits. Did rain ruin ruin any of your Newgrange tours?
Posted by
Mountains of S. Oregon
610 posts
We were there in May so it may have been less crowded, but we went with an early morning tour (drove from Dublin), took the Knowth and Newgrange package, ate lunch, drove to Hill of Tara and then ended the day at the Battle of the Boyne Museum, which we enjoyed. We had a car even in Dublin as the rental wasn't much more to fill out whole weeks of rental and our AirB&B had secure parking. I think you could do it if you pick up the car on last day in Dublin although making the 9am tour might be impossible. If you're not planning to rent a car, all this is probably moot.
Posted by
TX, USA
4113 posts
Thanks for a reminder and information. I just booked for mid-June and the Saturday I had hoped for was already full, so I booked the Friday before.