Traveling in Ireland (and Scotland)

From Belfast, we had a private guide/driver for the Antrim Coast (Giants' Causeway, Game of Thrones sites, castles, etc.). We booked him through http://www.glenaraelitetravel.com/ , and it was a wonderful experience.

We used the bus between Belfast and Dublin, because the station was just around the corner from our hotel in Belfast. It was fine, but quite busy, so I'd recommend booking in advance if you choose this option.

From Dublin, we had 2 small group day tours through https://www.irishdaytours.ie/ Both were really good.

Within Belfast and Dublin, we mostly walked but sometimes took a bus or cab.

You can read my trip report here, in case you might find it helpful: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/countryside-castles-and-celts-croatia-and-ireland-trip-report-part-2-ireland

We've also booked private drivers through My Day Trip in other countries. I can't remember why we didn't do that in Ireland. It may have been more expensive there. However, we've always had excellent experiences with them.

In Scotland, we travelled outside of Edinburgh only once, on a day tour to the Scottish Highlands with The Hairy Coo. https://www.thehairycoo.com/ It was excellent. Otherwise, within Edinburgh, we walked or took the city bus.

A single day or multi day tour with Rabbie’s is another good option. I have taken 2 of their Scotland tours and am signed up for a 3-day Ireland tour with them in May. It’s really a great option for those of us that don’t like to drive and don’t want a longer tour.

You can find info. on their tours from Scotland and Ireland here:

https://www.rabbies.com/en

From Dublin, I went to Glendalough, Wicklow, and Kilkenny with Collins Day Tours. It was well-done and a good way to see quite a bit in one day. The DART rail is really useful for DIY day trips. My favorite destinations are Howth and Dalkey.

If you go to Galway, use Lally Tours. I took two different day trips (Cliffs of Moher and Connemara), and they were both excellent. I highly recommend them.

You will see Paddywagon Tours offered in several different cities. They have multi-day options. I used them to visit the Ring of Kerry from Cork, and they did a solid job. I would rank them below the other two companies I mentioned.

I agree with Carrie; Rabbie's is a great choice. I used them for a day trip to the Scottish Highlands from Edinburgh.

On all my travels, I use the train to get between cities. The Irish rail system is okay. It is easy to get to places from Dublin, but trying to go from place to place without going back to Dublin is not an easy task. All my time in Scotland was based in Edinburgh, so I can't comment on the logistics of train travel from other locations. I did greatly enjoy a DIY rail day trip to Stirling.

We didn't want to drive in Scotland, only one of us drives and he is a timid driver. We looked at public transportation but DH wanted to learn as much as possible about the places we hoped to visit and he felt that goal would best be realized with a tour.

We toured with Inverness Day Tours during both our visits to Scotland. Yes, it's not an inexpensive way to visit however the private tours designed especially for us were exceptional and could not have been more perfect for us. Although they are based in Inverness they will collect you from wherever.

https://invernesstours.com
https://www.trustindex.io/reviews/invernesstours.com

Laura & Ian are lovely people, a joy to work with. We can not recommend them highly enough.

In the West of Ireland, the bus (coach) is much more available than the train.
I was in Ireland this summer for 12 days, no car. We mostly used long-distance coaches to travel between destinations. We ended up blowing a whole Sunday getting from Killybegs to Sligo, but it was a combination of lack of planning and a kind of confusing system with several different companies providing coach services. It rained that whole day, so we weren't too busted up over it, but we were tired when we got to Sligo.
We did a Paddywagon day tour out of Belfast to the Giants Causeway. Twice we hired a taxi to take us to more remote locations (including a heritage visit to a very small village in Mayo and to see the Dambo Trolls in the Sperrins Mountains). The Sperrins trip was booked ahead out of Omagh (and probably cost more than all other transportation combined--totally worth it!), but the other was done on the fly. Other than Giants Causeway, we did not visit the marquee sites, which are all well served by public transport and day tours.
A great day trip from Dublin is to Newgrange/Boyne Valley. Mary Gibbons, I want to say, is the provider folks on the forum recommend.

We had a very bad experience twice using bus service in Ireland in Aug. unfortunately the train service is not as robust as other countries in Europe. We liked Wild Rover tours for a one day tour of NI. And of course the RS 7 day tour

I used Custom Irish Tours (f/k/a Beautiful Meath Tours) for a one day trip to Glendalough, Avoca and Powerscourt in 2018. Derek, the owner, was recommended to me by a former RS Ireland tour guide. We had a wonderful time. I cannot remember our driver's name but he was very knowledgeable and we were able to go at our own pace. We spent more time at Glendalough because University College Dublin was there doing an archeological dig and we talked to the students about what they were doing and finding. A set organized tour would not have had that flexibility. https://www.customirishtours.com/

For all public transport modes planning in Ireland use the Transport for Ireland website- https://www.transportforireland.ie/

Bus services are being introduced or improved at a dramatically fast pace, especially in Rural Areas.