Day trips from Dublin: train, bus or tour, what each costs and how long it takes, from Howth in 25 minutes to the Giant's Causeway in 12 hours

💡 The Short Version: Howth and Malahide are 25 minutes from Dublin Connolly on the DART, Glendalough is 1 hour 20 by St Kevin’s Bus (€23 return), and Kilkenny is 1 hour 27 to 1 hour 52 by train from Heuston. Those work on public transport. The Cliffs of Moher are a 12 to 13 hour tour and the Giant’s Causeway a 12 to 14 hour tour, and a tour is the practical way to do either. Newgrange tickets come only from the OPW, online, 30 days ahead from April to 1 November. Belfast, the Causeway and the Game of Thrones Studio are in the UK: US, Canadian, Australian and EU visitors need a UK ETA, £20 a person, before they go. Or book a tour: Cliffs of Moher, Burren & Galway Cityad is from €78 for 13 hours, Giants Causeway, Dark Hedges, Dunluce & Belfastad from €80 for 12, and Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough & Kilkennyad from €45 for 9. A tour adds the guide and the connections, and the long days are the ones it saves most on (GetYourGuide).

The day trips compared

Train, bus and entry prices are the operators’ own. Tour prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices for one adult, in euros for tours that leave Dublin. Prices in pounds are for Northern Ireland.

A Belfast train at its platform in Dublin Connolly station. Photo: MOs810, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.

When a tour is worth it

A tour pays where the day is long and the connections are poor. The price is set against the public-transport option and the entry tickets.

• The Cliffs of Moher. Cliffs of Moher, Burren & Galway with Entryad is from €68.25 for 12 hours and lists the ticket as included. By train and bus the travelling alone is 9 to 10 hours.
• The Giant’s Causeway. Giants Causeway, Dark Hedges, Dunluce & Belfastad is from €80 for 12 hours. The trains take about 4 hours each way, with two changes.
• Glendalough with something more. Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough & Kilkennyad is from €45 for 9 hours, against €28 for the bus and the OPW admission to Glendalough alone.
• Howth. Half-Day Guided Coastal Tour to Howth Villagead is from €42 for 4 hours and adds a guide on the cliffs; by DART the waymarked loops are self-guided.
• The Rock of Cashel. Blarney Castle, Rock of Cashel & Cahir Castlead is from €85 for 12 hours with all entry fees included, and it stops at the Rock.
• Newgrange. No tour can sell the entry. Book the OPW slot first: see the Newgrange guide.

The trips with their own guides

Cliffs of Moher

Tour 12 to 13 hours · operator ticket from €8 · from €68.25

The cliffs in County Clare, with the Burren and Galway on the tours. The Cliffs of Moher guide has the train and bus, the ticket prices, the paths and the closed coastal walks.

Giant’s Causeway

Tour 12 to 14 hours · stones free · Visitor Experience £16 · from €60

The basalt coast in Northern Ireland. The Giant’s Causeway guide has the tours, the route by train and bus and the UK ETA.

Belfast

Enterprise 2 hours 8 · coaches from €12 · Titanic Belfast £24.95 online

The Belfast guide has the train and coach times, the Titanic Belfast tickets and the tours that stop in the city.

Glendalough and Wicklow

St Kevin’s Bus €23 return · OPW €5 · tours from €33

The monastic valley an hour and a half south. The Glendalough guide has the bus times, the admission and seven tours.

Howth and Malahide

DART about 25 minutes · cliff loops free · Ireland’s Eye ferry €30 return

The Howth and Malahide guide has the DART, the four waymarked cliff loops, the ferry and the castle tours.

Newgrange

OPW only · €18 for the main tour · 30 days ahead from April to 1 November

The Newgrange guide has the booking windows, the prices, the bus from Drogheda and the Boyne Valley tours.

Kilkenny and the Rock of Cashel

Kilkenny

Train 1 hour 27 to 1 hour 52 · Kilkenny Castle €8 · closed 2 to 5 November 2026

Irish Rail runs from Dublin Heuston to Kilkenny’s MacDonagh station. On Monday to Saturday the 07:20 reaches Kilkenny at 09:05, and trains back leave Kilkenny at 15:33 and 19:18 among others. Some trains to Waterford do not call at Kilkenny, so check the train. Fares are on irishrail.ie. Kilkenny Castle is run by the OPW: €8 for an adult on the self-guided tour, €6 for a senior or group, €4 for a child or student and €20 for a family. It is open 09:15 to 17:30 from April to September and 09:30 to 17:00 from October to March, with last admission 30 minutes before closing. The castle is closed from 13:00 on Monday 2 November 2026 until 9:30 on Thursday 5 November 2026 for filming, and the parkland stays open (heritageireland.ie). Wicklow Mountains, Glendalough & Kilkennyad and Kilkenny, Wicklow & Glendalough with a Sheepdog Showad both stop in the city.

Kilkenny Castle from the courtyard. Photo: Berthold Werner, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

The Rock of Cashel

Train to Thurles 1 hour 5 to 1 hour 15 · OPW €8 · tour €85 with entry

The OPW’s Rock of Cashel is €8 for an adult, €6 for a senior, €4 for a student or child and €20 for a family. From 17 March to 15 October it is open 09:00 to 17:30, with the last guided tour at 15:45 and last admission at 16:45; from 16 October to 16 March it is open 09:00 to 16:30, with last admission at 15:45 and the last tour at 14:30. It is closed 24 to 26 December, and the OPW allows 1 to 1.5 hours for a visit. The site is exposed and can close at short notice, and tour times can change with the weather. The OPW’s directions are the X8 bus to Cashel and a 500 m walk from the town centre, or the train to Thurles, the nearest station; Irish Rail’s direct trains from Heuston to Thurles take 1 hour 5 to 1 hour 15 (heritageireland.ie). Blarney Castle, Rock of Cashel & Cahir Castlead is from €85 for 12 hours (1,439 reviews) with all entry fees included.

The Rock of Cashel from the air, with the round tower behind the cathedral. Photo: Jonjobaker, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Powerscourt

On Wicklow tours · Powerscourt’s own site has the prices

Powerscourt Estate is in County Wicklow, and its gardens and waterfall are stops on two Wicklow tours: Wicklow, Powerscourt, and Glendalough Day Tourad is from €65 for 8 hours (776 reviews), and Wicklow, Glendalough, Waterfall & Sheepdog Showad is from €50 for 7 hours (569 reviews). Admission and hours are on powerscourt.com.

Pansies on the terrace at Powerscourt, with the pond fountain and the Sugar Loaf beyond. Photo: Dieglop, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Game of Thrones Studio Tour

Coach from Dublin 90 minutes each way · 6.5 hours · from €57.86 · UK ETA needed

The Game of Thrones Studio Tour is at Linen Mill Studios in Banbridge, Northern Ireland, 30 minutes from Belfast and 90 minutes from Dublin. It is open daily from 10:00 to 18:00, with last admission at 16:00, and parking on site is free (gameofthronesstudiotour.com). From Dublin: Game of Thrones Studio Tour with Coach Transferad is provided by the studio itself, includes the entry ticket and a return coach from Suffolk Street in Dublin, and is from €57.86 for 6.5 hours (2,199 reviews); there is one departure a day, and the return leaves the studio at 3:00pm. The studio also sells a Dublin coach package on its own site. Banbridge is in the UK, so the ETA rules below apply.

Northern Ireland and the UK ETA

Belfast, the Giant’s Causeway and the Game of Thrones Studio are in Northern Ireland, part of the United Kingdom, so the UK’s electronic travel authorisation (ETA) applies on a day trip from Dublin. There is no border post, but the UK’s entry rules apply.

The ETA is £20 a person, babies and children included, valid for 2 years or until the passport expires, whichever is sooner. Apply in the UK ETA app or at gov.uk/eta; a decision usually arrives by email within a day and can take up to 3 working days. A Dublin hotel is not residence: the exemption is for people who live in Ireland. The sister site London Travel Geek has a UK ETA guide, and what to book before you go to Dublin has the entry rules for Ireland.

Before you choose a day

Dublin Airport to the city and Leap card and Dublin public transport cover the first and last day. What to book before you go to Dublin has the city tickets and the entry rules for Ireland, 3 days in Dublin shows where a day trip fits between them, and where to stay in Dublin compares the areas. Edinburgh is the nearest other city guide here. For the month, see the best time to visit Dublin. In the city, Kilmainham Gaol, the Guinness Storehouse and the free sights fit the days between trips.