We just returned from two weeks in Ireland, including the ten-day Ireland Unplugged tour with Dezy and Clare, and we had such a wonderful vacation!!

The photos from their B&B overlooking the coast cannot capture the true scope of the views from the place. You have gorgeous sunsets overlooking islands and shore and even watching the tide roll in and out from the beach below is a delight to see. All this, with yummy traditional Irish breakfasts prepared by Clare and private rooms and baths, is so relaxing, even before you tour the countryside with Dezy at the wheel.

We saw spectacular view after spectacular view from the southwestern peninsulas of Ireland. We traveled roads with grass growing down the middle to the peaks of the real mountains of Ireland, walked the beaches, traversed hiking trails near waterfalls, and saw several picture-perfect towns along the way. With Dezy’s knowledge of the country and roads, the road trips were great fun and definitely not the stultifying drone of big tour buses prone to stopping at tourist traps–instead, we stopped at an array of authentic sites and were able to really immerse ourselves in the culture.

Plus, Dezy and Clare arranged for us to see exceptionally talented musicians, including Dezy himself!!

And, we explored an array of pubs and restaurants, enjoying great seafood and other local treats, and I had time to shop for several unique treasures to bring home.

This is not a sedentary vacation but an enlightening and invigorating one with Ireland Unplugged. Clare and Dezy arranged a variety of options for us to explore and included “down time” to rest and relax at the B&B as well.

They even arranged a side tour for us as we were arriving early. That was the only downside of the trip, which is that we felt we needed to see the Aran Islands and did a separate tour of the biggest island and it was not as enjoyable as the tours of SW Ireland that Dezy and Clare led. However, they did locate a true expert on the Burren region and we had a truly unforgettable experience learning about the flowers and plant and geologic history of that part of Ireland.

So, if you want to see Ireland “unplugged” from big tour buses and tourist traps and you don’t want to take your chances driving on the wrong side of the road and showing up in random towns without the advice of a local to guide you to hidden gems (like the sculpture garden in Sneem or the wood-turning tour near Kenmare), then definitely book with them.

We had a really wonderful time and will definitely plan to come back to explore more of Ireland with them again!!
[Lisa G. Madison Wisconsin June 2015]