Connemara and Kylemore Abbey from Galway: Which Day Tour?
4 min read
For most visitors, book the Connemara and Cong full-day tour: €45 per person, 8 hours, 4.7 stars from 2,314 reviews, with the Inagh Valley, Killary Fjord, two hours at Kylemore Abbey and 45 minutes in Cong. If you want the abbey entry ticket in the booking, the 7.5-hour guided tour says it is included. If you want a choice between the abbey and a national park, the 9-hour day tour offers both as a three-hour main stop.
The three tours side by side
| Tour | Duration | From | Rating | Main stop | Abbey entry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connemara and Cong Full-Day Tour | 8 hours | €45 | 4.7 (2,314) | Kylemore Abbey, 2 hours | Optional, paid to the driver |
| Connemara & Kylemore Abbey Full-Day Guided Tour | 7.5 hours | €65 | 4.7 (1,311) | Kylemore Abbey, 2 hours | Included, per the description |
| Connemara and Kylemore Abbey Day Tour | 9 hours | €50 | 4.7 (1,167) | Abbey or National Park, 3 hours | Not included |
All three leave from Galway and have a live English-speaking guide. The first and third start at the Kinlay Hostel on Merchants Road by Eyre Square; the second starts at the Lally Tours pick-up point.
The Cong route
This is the most-reviewed Connemara tour. Its itinerary runs from a photo stop in the Inagh Valley to Kylemore Abbey, a 10-minute photo stop at Killary Fjord and 45 minutes in Cong. At the abbey the itinerary marks the stop as an extra fee, and the Includes list gives the entry as optional, €14.00 per person payable to the driver (in cash, per the description), so you can decide on the day. In Cong the page names Cong Abbey, an Augustinian abbey from the early 12th century, and the woods on the shore of Lough Corrib.
The shorter tour with the entry ticket
The Lally Tours trip is half an hour shorter. It stops for 30 minutes in Leenane, with a view of Killary Fjord, spends two hours at Kylemore Abbey with a walk in the Victorian walled gardens, and on the way back stops in An Spidéal, a Gaelic-speaking village. The description says the entry ticket is included. Choose it if you do not want to handle the abbey entry yourself.
The 9-hour tour with a choice
This one leaves at 9:30 am daily and follows Galway Bay, then stops at the Screebe waterfall, Clifden for 30 minutes and the Sky Road viewpoint. The main stop is yours to choose: three hours at Kylemore Abbey and its walled gardens (entry fee not included) or three hours in Connemara National Park, where the page lists four marked walking trails from the visitor centre. After that it returns through the Inagh Valley and stops at the Connemara Giant in Recess.
Choose the abbey if you want the building and gardens. Choose the park if you would rather walk. The page marks the park as optional and the abbey as an extra fee.
Before you book
Pickup is listed on some of these pages but the lists do not separate what is included from what is not, so confirm yours. On the Cong tour the description says you can buy lunch at the abbey’s café and restaurant. The other two lists mix included and excluded items, so ask whether lunch is in the price; the Lally Tours itinerary places lunch at the abbey. The first tour holds up to 53 people. The Lally Tours page and the 9-hour tour list wheelchair users as not suitable.
Comfortable shoes and weather-appropriate clothing are worth packing in Connemara. If you would rather drive yourself, you can compare rental cars for Galway.
All options are on the Connemara tours from Galway page.
