Private Tour Blarney Kinsale and Cobh Viator Badge of Excellence

My wife and I booked the Private Tour of Cork City, Blarney Castle, and Kinsale and had an incredible experience from start to finish. Our guide, Darren, made the entire day feel effortless, personalized, and genuinely fun. He struck the perfect balance between guiding and great conversation — sharing local history, interesting stories, and plenty of humor along the way. What really made the day special was how much of a true local insider he was. He pointed us to the best dishes at the restaurants we visited, steered us toward spots we never would’ve found on our own, and tailored the pace of the tour exactly to what we wanted. The itinerary itself was beautiful, but Darren is what made it memorable. If you’re considering this tour, do it — and if you can, ask for Darren. You’ll have a fantastic day. Highly recommend!

It was an absolute amazing tour . Derek was a great tour guide with his sense of humor,excitement and information,yet gave us plenty of time to just experience the beautiful surroundings and the moment . Highly recommended this tour !!

What an amazing day. Darren was an incredible driver. When he picked us up at our hotel, I asked him of we could add a stop, reduce time somewhere else. He told me he was here to help us see what we want. We moved things around a little and got to see everything. He made sure each stop, he took us in and made sure we knew where to go to get tickets, even would show us some things before the tours. He was so knowledgeable and very interesting. If and when we go back, my first call will be here to book rides. On our way home, my wife told me this was her favorite part of the trip and it was as much about Darren as what we saw.

We had an great tour experience with Derek visiting key areas of Kinsale, Cobh and The Blarney Castle. Derek was an extremely engaging tour guide, worked well with all of our family and made great recommendations for our lunch in Kinsale as well as dinner when we got back to Cork. Derek gave us some great history, told interesting stories and it was really evident that he loved his work. We appreciated that he used a headset to project his voice so that those in the far back seat could easily hear him. We were pleased that he joined us for lunch in Kinsale. Derek made our day, even though we experienced some strong rain later in our trip. Working with Derek in advance was smooth and he accommodated our various thoughts around planning our day. We felt very well cared for throughout the process.

We had booked and were arriving on a cruise ship which changed itinerary due to bad weather. Derek was so polite and acted with lace and called me personally. I just want to write a review how organised and polite they are. As said we had booked, we were looking forward to our first trip to Ireland. We are visiting by cruise ship and at short notice the ship cancelled the port and amended itinerary. Derek called personally quickly organised a refund, and was very personable and attentive. We do hope to get to Cobh and Cork one day. Thank you.

Derek O’Keefee gave our family the best private tour tailored to all our wishes! He designed a tour just for we were looking for. He told us to enjoy and relax because it was vacation time. It was a wonderful peaceful vacation for our family! There’s so much detail and care that went into our trip! Derek’s fun loving personality touched us all!! He took us places that typical tour guides don’t go. He knows so many of the local folks and we were treated with “too shelve service” but truly felt that everyone we met that they were our friends immediately! If you are looking for once in a lifetime experience to see Ireland, than Derek is your experience & delightful guide!! He touched our hearts with the beauty of his country and his kind and fun professional manner! This wad the best trip she had ever been on as a family! It will be forever in our hearts!! Thank you Derek!!!

Three generations toured from Cork, and Derek's expert advice is all the difference. First class service saved us time, and his relationships and insights with the destinations we visited enhanced our experience. Highly recommend.

Derek was awesome! Very knowledgeable and easy to understand. Very funny as well! Would highly recommend this tour and if you get him you will have a wonderful time!

This tour was amazing. Derek met and exceeded all of our expectations! He is so knowledgeable and funny. He taught us a lot about Irish history and the Gaelic language. He seems to know every other guide in the country and can skip every line because he is so well-known and loved. He customized our tour to our wishes. He took us to a lunch spot where we had some delicious food. He also took us to some "bonus" stops that we would not have seen otherwise. Thanks, Derek, for an amazing day! You are the best and we are grateful to have met you! We highly recommend this tour company!

Derek was wonderful. Waiting for us at the cruise terminal, flexible and helpful when we wanted to change our tour itinerary, and exceptionally knowledgeable/friendly. We travel a lot. This was simply our best experience with a tour guide.