This is our third trip with A Rural Experience and I will never travel to Ireland with any other company. Rebecca’s planning has made every trip special, from pickup at Dublin Airport to all the hidden gems Ireland offers.
Mike, our driver this summer, further personalized our 10-day trip throughout our journey. He led us away from some of the more touristy places we thought we wanted to go and instead took us inside the real Ireland. From amazing pub lunches to chatting up the locals in unique gift shops, Mike never led us astray.
What makes A Rural Experience different from other tour companies is their painstaking effort to individualize each trip to please each of the travelers in the group, taking into consideration age and interest. Rebecca is a master at asking the right questions and getting the itinerary started. After several emails back and forth, she tweaks the trip to include a bit of everything for everyone. And Rebecca can book any type of accommodations you wish—B&Bs or the most exclusive castle hotels.
The personalization continues when a driver collects your group from the airport. The drivers know every inch of Ireland and happily suggests other stops or alternate places your group might enjoy. On all of our trips, Rebecca and the drivers made changes on the fly to please us all.
I have been traveling to Ireland for over 40 years and I have used large tour companies, very exclusive, smaller tour companies and done self-drive vacations. None can compare to A Rural Experience.
This summer I recommended A Rural Experience to my friends. They have no stopped raving about their incredible trip. I cannot wait for our next trip in July 2023!

All the previous reviews say it all but our guide, James deserves his own rave reviews!! The journey begins with Rebecca who is wonderfully easy to communicate with and shares her ideas on what she feels would meet your travel interests. She sets the ground work and then a few emails later you have the trip that you are looking for! My family (actually three adult children travelling with my husband & I) met James at Dublin airport and all the way to Galway, as the banter began, we really knew it was going to be a wonderful week. In a typical Irish way, James really got to know our family and our interests by just enjoying a few laughs . He offered recommendations for food & entertainment & itinerary changes whenever we asked and all were terrific experiences. Myth buster, Irish cuisine is no longer only Irish stew, pub food & Fish & Chips. The new generation of Irish cooks are embracing & challenging the Old World thought that Ireland has limited cuisine. Every restaurant that Rebecca or James recommended was a 'foodie' experience! Rebecca's attention to accomodations are outstanding as all hotels/guest houses were impeccable with service that made you feel like royalty. The name of the company defines the vacation; it is a Rural Experience. James drove through rural roads almost the entire trip allowing us to enjoy the local beauty & experience small villages and towns. It was difficult to choose 'a favorite' (although, my family being from Kerry, I had to admit its beauty!) Thank you for showing us the entire Ring of Kerry & then, when our family said that they wanted to hike the Gap of Dunlow, James had no problem adjusting our day! Because, in the Irish world according to James, "you have all the time in the world"! And isn't that the way you want to enjoy such a beautiful country. Thank you both for the experience. We will meet again!

Our family recently had the great joy of experiencing a 12-day tour of Ireland with Tom, and we can’t say enough about Tom, Becky, and A Rural Experience! We were travelling with my husband and myself, our two teenage children, and my 85-year-old mother. All of us had an incredible experience!!! I had so much fun working together with Becky to plan the trip, letting her know the places we were interested in seeing and learning from her about places she thought we should be sure to visit. She then put together a perfect trip, down to the very last detail! She arranged for a wheelchair for my mom, and was even able to find a place for us to stay in Dublin at the very last minute when, due to unexpected complications on our end, we needed to add three days to the front of our itinerary. No small feat during a very crowded tourist season in the city! We had wonderful accommodations all along the way, the flow of our trip was absolutely perfect, and we saw all the places we had hoped to see, and more! Becky is a consummate professional! Thank you, Becky, for caring so much about what you do, and for going the extra mile to make sure every last detail is in place, giving your clients an experience that is truly wonderful in every way!

We love Tom so much! He is an amazing host, and was so wonderfully engaging with all of us! We so appreciated his humor, kindness, and expertise! We felt incredibly cared for throughout our entire 12 days with him. Tom is a wealth of knowledge about the country’s history, the land, the people, cities, towns, and the very best places to see. We loved our conversations with him! He took us to places that you would not see if you were travelling on a large tour bus, and introduced us to talented artisans and other wonderful folks along the way that he knows from his many years of experience as a driver and guide in this beautiful country of his! Every day was a new experience – Glendalough Monastic site and other monasteries, castles, stone circles, the Rock of Cashel, beautiful towns, the Cliffs of Moher, the Aran Islands, stone forts, Muckross House, traditional farms from the early 1900’s, the Dunbrody Famine Ship, Waterford Crystal, holding baby lambs, sheep dog trials, The Burren, the Ring of Kerry, the Dingle Peninsula, beehive huts, traditional music, Connemara – so much beauty, and so much laughter, history, learning, and joy along the way! Taking a trip to Ireland has been my mom’s dream for her entire life, and Tom and Becky fulfilled that dream in the most amazing, wonderful way possible!!! Not just for my mom, but for all of us! Thank you, Tom and Becky, for giving us this incredible gift! We are so happy to have you as friends for life!

If you, or anyone you know, is planning a trip to Ireland, use A Rural Experience! You will be SO HAPPY you did!