West cork tours is a thing to do in clonakilty, county cork, ireland. These productive coastal waters provide critical feeding habitat for a diversity of species including cetaceans whales, dolphins, and porpoises, basking sharks, seals and sea birds, along with prolific fish life. Whale watching in west cork, ireland with colin barnes. Our experienced, professional skippers know the best locations. Cork whale watching is amazing and defo worth doing, colin our guide was brillant, we left the dock at 10am and arrived back at 2. With a guide at the wheel, travelers are free to take in the scenic wild atlantic way, following adaptable routes along the west cork and kerry coastlines with stopovers.
Whale watch west cork who operate from baltimore harbour, is one of the best in the business and is west corks only dedicated responsible whale watching operator. It began on an island in the swampy estuary of the river lee and gradually climbed up the steep banks on either side. Humpback whales off west cork photo by p whooley, iwdg. You can walk around the house and grounds throughout the summer from wednesday to sunday each week while guided tours of. Whale watch west cork baltimore updated may 2020 top tips. There will be 20 landbased, guided whale watches open to the. West cork and kerry tours avoid renting a car and driving on remote rural roads while still enjoying the freedom to explore at your own pace on this customizable private tour. Dolphin and whale watching in west cork golden moments. Dolphin and whale watching in west cork is an experience that is weather dependant. Whale watching and marine wildlife tours in west cork aboard the holly jo with irelands most experienced whale watching skipper, colin barnes. Jan 02, 2009 in december 2008 don conroy, chris wilson and alan mcguire set out to record a radio show for their new series wildside. Each tour endeavours to link up with our resident pod of bottlenose dolphins. Luxury tours of ireland and scotland discover the best.
If you are driving around the west coast of ireland, its worth your while planning your journey and checking the maps ahead of time. Since then it is one of the must dos when visiting the south west coast of ireland. The first of its kind in europe, this paved the way for whale watching. Visitors to your site will appreciate you offering them help with planning their vacation. Whale watching in ireland irish whale watching west cork ireland. West cork tours guided tour in county cork, ireland. The irish whale and dolphin group are holding a whale watching event on sunday, august 24th to celebrate national whale watch day. Bridgets on your left as you head away from village. All tours depart from baltimore, harbour, west cork on board voyager daily between april and november sea conditions permitting. The all ireland adventure activity tour is for groups of up to 7. Cork whale watch offers wonderful opportunities to observe whales and dolphins and a host of other marine wildlife in west cork. Cork cobh shore excursions cork is irelands third city after dublin and belfast, and has always been an important seaport.
From clonakilty, leap or glandore direction, go into union hall village and drive through the main street until you reach a large church, st. Ferry through the pristine atlantic to the island while enjoying a panoramic view of the cobh harbour behind and the plush green island ahead. Whale watch west cork boat tour agency baltimore, ireland. Behind the doors of big houses in irelands ancient east. Frequently asked questions about whale watching in west cork. Since that time according to the irish whale and dolphin group, 25 species have been recorded, ranging in size from the small harbour porpoise to the giant fin whale. Minke whales may be seen from may through to december. Visit ireland eire, take a whale watching vacation to ireland eire, and enjoy a whale watching trip in ireland eire. Kerry is the only other county that really competes with cork on the whale watching front. Dingle bay eco tours is a 4 hour boat tour of the blasket islands and dingle bay with the opportunity to see whales, dolphins, seals, basking shark in season, puffins and other marine wildlife and view the wonderful seascapes and landscapes off the west coast of ireland along the wild atlantic way. It explores the extensive and rich history in and around the harbour, looking at martello towers, forts camden, carlisle and mitchell, st colmans. Nic slocum divides his time between west cork, ireland and other iconic whale watching destinations around the world. Four porcupines in the north east atlantic and a dolphins barn in dublin.
Back in 1991, ireland s biologically diverse waters were declared a whale and dolphin sanctuary, the first of its kind in europe. Whale watching and marine wildlife tours in west cork aboard the holly jo with ireland s most experienced whale watching skipper, colin barnes. Humpback whales feeding massive pods of dolphins off. Whale watching ireland whale dolphin watching cork. The irish government declared the coastal waters of ireland a whale and dolphin sanctuary during the early 1990s.
The waters off west cork, in turn hold some of the highest relative. I am a cofounder of ocean research and conservation ireland. Please phone the location on the morning of the experience to check the conditions. The humpback whale is one of the most spectacular of the great. All our whale watching trips depart from reen pier which is 4 kilometres outside of union hall village, west cork. Whales, dolphins and marine wildlife tours in west cork, ireland. Late spring whale watch update, west cork, april 2016 whale.
Apr 27, 2016 with at least one fin whale now in the area, along with plenty of minkes and common dolphins, sightings shouldnt be an issue. He is the director of whale watch west cork which runs boat based tours to watch and photograph whales and dolphins off the coast of southwest ireland. Responsible tourism award winner whale watch west cork runs responsible whale and dolphin watching tours led by zoologist and conservationist dr nic slocum. Each tour takes you around the beautiful islands and headlands of west cork,stopping at cape clear island affording visitors an insight into the unique lifestyle of the islanders of roaring water bay. Cork excursions ireland, shore excursions, pre and post tours. This action is part of project wildsea europe and project waoh route, which have received funding from the european unions cosme programme 20142020 and the european maritime and fisheries fund emff. Multiaward winning whale watch west cork runs responsible whale and dolphin watching tours led by. Whale watching in ireland irish whale watching west kerry ireland. The content of this website represents the views of the authors only and is their sole responsibility. Whale watch west cork baltimore all you need to know. After free time, you visit blarney castle, one of the most famous sites in all of ireland.
Ireland s small size makes it possible to see much of the country on a multiday tour, and doing so with a guide allows you to maximize your time on a read more 6 days. Please visit our comprehensive testimonial section. Irish whale watching boat tours in county cork ireland. Day tours from cork day tours of ireland paddywagon tours. Best place in ireland to go on holidays west kerry, ireland s. Abundant marine wildlife, from whales to storm petrels, is just an hour from the wild atlantic way. Whale watching ireland whale dolphin watching cork dolphin tour. Whale watching tours cork whale dolphin watching cork. Baltimore wildlife tours took a trip 22 km offshore to film the humpback whales. Whale watching in west cork, ireland with colin barnes cork. You enjoy a cork city driving tour to see the main sites including visits to the famous cork city jail and the english market. Wicklow, avoca ballykissangel and glendalough travel along east coast. Common dolphins and harbour porpoises are resident all year round off west cork.
Whale watching west cork we offer a 34 hour whale watching trip from the harbour of courtmacsherry, west cork, ireland. Best place in ireland to watch whales dolphins 2017 whale watch season the best places in ireland to watch humpback whales. Private shore trips offers cork cobh shore excursions and. Fantastic tour well worth a visit spike island, cork. Whale watching trips ireland whale watching day trips ireland cork. Whale watching holiday to ireland whales worldwide. Nic is no stranger to adventure and leading groups to remote places on earth. We are the number one ireland and scotland vacation company, with a proven track record of very satisfied customers, but dont just take our word for it.
Private luxury tours of scotland and ireland at ireland and scotland luxury tours we provide bespoke tours of ireland and scotland that. The whales and dolphins of courtmacsherry bay and west cork. Tours of the harbour are on a personal level with a skipper and guide with a maximum of 12 passengers at any time. You can also create your own selfguided walk to visit the city attractions which interest you the most. Blarneycobh tour from cork this great half day tour from cork city visits the two most famous towns in the cork region. Spike island is located off the coast of cobh harbor and is known as the boarding place of the legendary titanic. About whale watch west cork responsible tourism award winner whale watch west cork runs responsible whale and dolphin watching tours led by zoologist and conservationist dr nic slocum. Visit cork whale watch on your trip to union hall or ireland. Marine whale watch tour boat blasket islands ferry dingle ireland. Irish counties particularly counties cork, kerry and clare see map below. We provide whale watching and dolphin watching tours in courtmacsherry, west cork, ireland. Great lighthouses of ireland inishtearaght lighthouse 150 yrs 18702020. They hoped to see whales off the coast of county cork, ireland. The best whale watching in ireland discovering cork.
Whale watching in west cork, ireland with colin barnes cork whale watch. Whale watching in ireland and whale watching in west cork in particular has now reached a high point for whale and dolphin watching enthusiasts the world over. Follow these 10 expertdesigned selfguided walking tours to explore cork, ireland on foot at your own pace. The irish government declared the coastal waters of ireland a whale and dolphin sanctuary during the early 1990s, the first of its kind in europe. Whale watching and dolphin watching tours in west cork ireland provided by atlantic whale wildlife tours experienced and professional. The iwdg is marking a decade of ireland s whale and dolphin sanctuary with a call for the government to implement the eu habitats directive out. Irelands rocky cliffs provide excellent vantage points for shorebased whale watching, and. Your handy guide to whalewatching in ireland breakingnews. Cliffs of moher, giants causeway, blarney castle, ring of kerry, dingle bay and many more.
For best results, use the customized trip planning widget for about cork taxi tours day tours on your website. It has all the advantages mentioned above, plus users to your site can conveniently access it directly on your site. I am a co founder of ocean research and conservation ireland. Our whale watching tours are a fantastic way for families to enjoy the whales and dolphins on ireland s west coast. Whale watching in ireland irish whale watching west cork.