About Killarney Day Tour

Killarney Day Tour is a family run business. Brothers Dermot and Donal O’Donoghue have been running the boat tours together for nearly 50 years. Dermot and Donal are second generation boatmen, oarsmen and fishermen. Dermot’s sons; Ger, Niall and Rory as well as Donal’s son Donal have all grown up driving the boats each summer.

The company operates 11 boats and this unique business provides tours of the Killarney National Park and more specifically the world famous Gap of Dunloe Tour.

Today, the Killarney Day Tour team continue the traditions and stories that have been passed down through the generations. Each of our drivers are local and themselves second and third generation fishermen and boatmen.

The Gap of Dunloe Tour consists of 3 seperate parts; bus, boat and jaunting car ride/walk. The bus section is that which brings guests to Kate Kearney’s Cottage each morning and collects passengers at Ross Castle each afternoon at the end of the tour. It’s from Kate Kearney’s Cottage that the walk or jaunting car ride through the Gap of Dunloe mountain pass begins. This section is 11km and is on a sealed road. This walk will take roughly 2 – 2.5hrs but the jaunting car ride takes around 1.5hrs. At 2pm each day the boat tours depart.

Dermot, Donal and their team will expertly guide guests through the 3 lakes and 2 rivers of the Killarney National Park. The tours are in boats which carry a maximum of 12 passengers and commentary is provided by the driver. Every day on this tour is different as the weather can change in minutes. Warm clothing is advised as the boats are uncovered.

During the boat tour, guests will see and hear the history of such sites as: Ross Castle, Dinis Cottage, Tomies Wood, The McGillycuddy’s Reeks and Lord Brandon’s Cottage. The Gap of Dunloe is the main tour that we operate but there are shorter tours which can be arranged for groups of 6 or more and fishing tours can also be arranged when in season.

For more information, email us at info@killarneydaytour.com or call Dermot on +353 6466 31068.