Howth Coastal Boat Tour (Ireland's Eye Ferries 50 mins trip)
Recommended by 96% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Dublin, Ireland
- 1 hour (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
Why travelers loved this
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Overview
Keep your eyes peeled for guillemots, puffins, seals and more as you cruise the water in the Dublin Bay Biosphere near Howth. This small-group, hassle-free tour takes you from Howth pier along the coastal cliffs, where your captain tells stories about the history of the peninsula while Irish music plays in the background. Get your cameras ready for wild photos of the Howth Cliffs and Ireland's Eye.
- Easily meet your guide and group at the pier in Howth
- Enjoy this intimate cruise with your guide and group (max 11)
- Learn all about the area’s history and nature from your captain
- Easily reach Howth on your own by train or bus, about 40 min from Dublin
What's Included
- All Fees and Taxes
- Snacks
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Ireland's Eye Ferries (Howth Coastal Boat Tours and Island Voyages)1 W Pier, Howth, Dublin 13, D13 H2V4, Ireland
From the train station: Turn left and after 50m take a left turn down unto the West Pier. Continue down the pier with trawlers on the right and restaurants to your left. Near the end of the pier, just past Aqua Restaurant you'll see ferry boats on the right in the harbour.
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Itinerary
1
Howth
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Most travelers can participate
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 22 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Mauri_Q
We stayed in Dublin and took the DART train for 8 euro round trip per person, 30 min. each way to Howth. This was a great tour. Harry, our captain, was kind and funny. He was also very informative and answered our questions. I highly recommend this tour. Great way to see the coastal Howth.
Reviews
4.8
based on 254 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Jennifer_C, Jul 2026
Great way to spend time off the usual tourist activities. Learned a lot about jewelry making. Made beautiful keepsakes with my daughters- very special!
Wendy_S, Jul 2026
Loved it beautiful weather and the crew were so informative, easy to locate and it took around 50 min, even saw a puffin
MaryF_E, Jul 2026
Local tour company is very disorganised . I was not allowed on the boat of my original booking. Sent to a different boat? Then thrown off that one (the orange boat beginning with”P”) by a very nasty man. I am 75 and use a cain.
Anne_K, Jul 2026
This was a fantastic experience! We loved being on a smaller boat (only 11 people were on it). We got to get up close to the cliffs and see lots of birds and also seals. The cliffs were incredible and the skipper told us interesting information about Ireland's Eye and the wildlife. Exactly as described!
Darren_P, Jul 2026
The captain was great! We learned do much. Great experience.. we would come back anytime. I recommend this trip to anyone
Andrea_F, Jul 2026
Really lovely tour of the island and the exciting ocean birds & seals. Great afternoon getaway from the city.
loretta_p, Jun 2026
Loved this tour! We took dart rail from Pearse station to Howthe. The tour company gave great directions to go from rail station to end of Pier 1. The hour tour and guide was excellent. We saw puffins, Irish penguins and several other species of birds, along with seals. Fantastic tour! Would definitely do again!
Ellen_L, Jun 2026
Our guide Maria was very informative, I won't ruin it by telling you here, only that you should go
I was blessed with lovely weather too.
Jennifer_M, Jun 2026
Great tour! We learned very much about the history of the area and saw an amazing amount of wildlife. So beautiful, easy and perfect way to spend an hour!
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you so much Jennifer. Your feedback means a lot to us! We are thrilled that you learned and saw a lot whilst on board with Irelands Eye Ferries!
Carrie_K, Jun 2026
There were not as many puffins as we expected, but we did see a couple. There were a LOT of other birds. Bring binoculars, if you have them.
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Hi Carrie,
Thank you for the review. The birds are pretty spectacular at this time of year! And our smaller puffin colony makes them an even more special sighting.
What could we have done to get the 5th star?
Angelica_A, Jun 2026
This was such a great experience! I was on a small boat with only 4 other passengers, plus the two employees. We saw puffins, seals, and tons of other birds. It was a beautiful part of Ireland we saw, and the town itself (Howth) was a very easy train ride from Dublin. The employees were super friendly and even let us take shelter with them from the rain. Totally worth it
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Hi Angelica,
Thank you for leaving us a review. Sounds like a nice quiet, almost private trip! We always keep our group sizes small to ensure a comfortable and spacious trip for everyone on board and avoid overcrowding.
Glad you found us and got to spot some of the wonderful wildlife that is nesting on Irelands Eye at this time of year.
Rachael_F, Jun 2026
We last minute decided to take a 30 minute train from Dublin to see more wildlife/rural areas before our trip ended and I’m so glad we did! This boat tour was relatively short but we got an intimate look at Ireland’s Eye and the inhabiting wildlife like various birds and seals. The boat ride felt safe, well paced and Harry our tour guide was very informative and engaging! Definitely worth visiting Howth and partaking in this tour!
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thanks Rachael!
Harry is extremely knowledgable about the area so we love to hear that you learnt something and felt engaged.
Intimate is what we go for, up close and personal to the nature and wildlife. It is a magical place and we are delighted that you felt so too.
Aryana_S, Jun 2026
This was such a beautiful and amazing tour to take, it was so worth it and i’d highly suggest adding this to your trip. The tour guides were so informative and even went backwards to make sure that we saw the puffin birds. It definitely gets chilly, so make sure to bring a jacket!
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Hi Aryana,
We love to hear that you got to see the puffins! One of Howth's seasonal highlights for sure, and our guides will always go the extra mile when possible to make sure they aren't missed!
Great advice with the jacket - that sea breeze can be chilly.
Thank you for taking the time to leave us such a wonderful review, it means so much.
David_H, Jun 2026
Never got to go. Sadly it was scheduled by my husband for us (two grandmas and our granddaughter) to follow the Dublin Coastal Hike so time was tight.
But due to my age and lack of experience climbing hills (from Florida and it’s flat where I am, I couldn’t complete the hike. So we stayed at a pub as the other people on the hike tour continued climbing.
But trying to get to the Howth boat tour location proved difficult to achieve. I called the boat tour company telephone number and only got a recording saying they only answer the phone on the days they have tours. Well… I thought that was a day since we were scheduled to go. I attempted calling a few times to let them know we were trying to be get to their location BUT getting a taxi proved just plain impossible. One company said they didn’t go to the pub/restaurant we were calling from… Howth taxi - Howth restaurant but not in their area? Still trying to call the boat tour office with no luck and less luck on transportation our scheduled time came and went.
Very disappointed as we were really looking forward to this tour… rain or no rain.
Finally found and ice cream shop where two extremely nice young girls helped us get a taxi back to our hotel.
So….. I will assume the boat tour would be fantastic… but I have no idea….
Lena_W, May 2026
Fantastic experience, the tour was magnificent and the host was enthusiastic and vibrant. We absolutely recommend this tour!
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you Lena!
Delighted that you enjoyed your tour with Irelands Eye Ferries and the stunning coastal scenery. Hope you learnt a lot.
Susan_L, May 2026
The 50-minute boat tour trip to Ireland's Eye definitely exceeded my expectations! The scenery and the bird colonies on the rocks were incredible. What really stood out were our guides, Captain Kim and Ryan. They were knowledgeable, friendly, and engaging, sharing history, wildlife facts, and local stories in a way that kept everyone interested the entire time. I would definitely recommend this tour to anyone visiting Howth.
Response from Host, May 2026
Susan,
We couldn't be happier to hear that our Howth Coastal Boat Tour exceeded your expectations! Thank you for the lovely review, Kym and Ryan will be absolutely delighted.
Maggi
Skipper
Jodi_H, May 2026
This was an amazing experience! Our guide was so good at pointing out all the animals!! (We saw seals and PUFFINS!!!) Do not hesitate to book this!!
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you very much Jodi! Glad you got to see the puffins and of course the seals too.
Bharati_J, May 2026
Very prompt, boat was just right for 8-9 people. Maggie was very informative. We started off with rain and it was cold but we sat with skipper and the sun came out. We saw puffins, gnats, gillets. I would go on this tour again!
Response from Host, May 2026
Hi Bharati,
Thank you for leaving us a 5 star review! Even in the rain, we always do our best to create magical and worthwhile experiences. I really enjoyed sharing Irelands Eye with you and am so happy to hear that you also enjoyed. Hope you guys had a wonderful time in Belfast and safe travels home.
Maggi
Skipper
50luckycharms, May 2026
The captain was very good - he was a good driver since the water was choppy. He explained the history very well and brought us close to the penguins. The island was so beautiful, and the small town's fish and chips were so good. It was a nice little 1/2 day trip from Dublin. The taxi was a bit hard to find on the way back since there were not many taxis out in that area. We got lucky; however, the Dart is available if you are good at navigating other countries' public transit.
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you for the kind review!
Upclose and personal is what we aim for every time, and the Irish penguins are just magical this time of year. It's always good to hear that the captain made the experience extra special too.
Great tip for future visitors too, the DART is ideal for transport, or alternatively UBER is reliable for taxis.
Maggi
Skipper
Tammie_S, May 2026
While it was fun to be out on the water, the waves made it a little bit difficult to get around to the backside of the island that we are going to see so we hung out mostly in the harbor. For the amount of time that we were out there we didn't see as much as we had hoped. The crew was great!
Response from Host, May 2026
Hi Tammie,
Thank you for leaving a review and we apologise that the experience wasn't 5 stars for you. We (rarely) have to alter routes for the safety and comfort of the passengers, but always try our best to provide a top quality experience regardless.
If you are back in Howth anther time, please reach out and let us make it up to you!
Alyssa_L, May 2026
Small group boat tour around the island. What a great way to spend an hour. We saw puffins, seals, and a variety of other birds. Getting up close to the island and viewing it from the boat was really nice.
Great time!
Response from Host, May 2026
Hi Alyssa,
Upclose and personal to the island and its unique wildlife is what we aim for every time! We are so glad to hear that you appreciated that.
Good job spotting the puffins too, hope you made a wish.
Maggi
Skipper
Raven_H, May 2026
This was such a fun experience, and I couldn’t believe how close we were able to get to Ireland’s Eye. What made it especially memorable was seeing so many puffins. I wasn’t sure we’d spot any, but we ended up seeing at least 30! The other seabirds were absolutely beautiful as well, and the seals were incredibly cute.
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you so much for taking the time to write such a promising review!
Sounds like you had a good day with the puffins, they are truly magical - along with all the other wildlife on the island at this time of year.
We are honoured that you found our experience to be so memorable, if you find yourself back in Howth sometime, come again! No two days are ever the same.
Lauren_B, May 2026
Very informative, didn’t see any puffins, but saw lots of other native birds to Ireland and lots of seals.
Response from Host, May 2026
Hi Lauren,
Thank you for the 5 star review! Glad you learnt a lot and spotted some of our magical wildlife and migratory birds.
Sorry you missed the puffins, they must have been hiding in their burrows that day!
JASON_S, Apr 2026
The skipper was very friendly and knowledgeable, but the tour didn't allow her to share much, but when she wasn't seeing the ship we learned a lot. The views we great, we especially enjoyed the Irish penguins.
Madeline_B, Apr 2026
This is more of a casual excursion, as you can wander around the boat and take photos of the wildlife as you please. The crew was knowledgeable and pointed out different sea birds (including the famous puffins!) as well as explained the various watchtowers seen across the country's coasts. Prepare for rain and wind, but mostly just enjoy a laidback boat trip around Ireland's Eye! Thank you to the boat crew for making the ride pleasant.
Diane_H, Apr 2026
Whole boat experience was exceptionally well done. We had a small group but that made it easy for taking pictures and hearing the guide
Francisco_S, Apr 2026
We had fun on the boat tour. It was entertaining and educational. I just wished it was a little longer. We will pass this on to our family and friends.
Megan_S, Apr 2026
The tour was easy to find, and smooth to get onto the boats. Our skipper, Mikey, was fantastic and kept an eye out for any animals and pointed them out. My husband and I had a fantastic time on this tour and would absolutely recommend it. We were lucky to see puffins and seals!
Massiel_P, Apr 2026
Absolutely beautiful experience. Definitely one of the highlights of our trip to Ireland. I highly recommend this experience.
April_H, Apr 2026
Had a great time! Got to see a variety of birds. The landmarks were beautiful. Even saw a seal before we left the port!
From $29.03
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Howth Coastal Boat Tour (Ireland's Eye Ferries 50 mins trip)
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