The Story of Wonderful Ireland Walking Holidays

My name is Peter Galvin and I set up Wonderful Ireland walking holidays over 20 years ago. Born in Dublin in 1974, I lived most of my life in Ireland and first walked the long distance trails as a young adult in the 1990s. After a number of years working in London, I travelled and hiked in Australia, New Zealand and South and North America before returning to Europe. When I returned to Ireland in 2003, I began hiking with every spare moment I had. Having fallen in love with the mountains of Ireland, I could not wait to share my joy and passion for hiking with visitors from around the world. 

In 2003 I walked across the whole of Ireland from Coast to Coast, became a qualified hiking guide leader and then decided to establish Wonderful Ireland walking holidays. We were delighted to have our first customers with us in 2003. In 2005, we became a Failte Ireland Approved Tour Operator. As well as hiking all of our native walking trails, I cycled the entire 4,000km coastline of Ireland. In 2022, I studied at the world famous Ballymaloe Cookery School in East Cork to further enhance our knowledge of Ireland’s wonderful cuisine, food heritage and hospitality.

Initially starting with guided and self guided tours on the Wicklow Way, over the years we have grown to welcome visitors to all parts of Ireland, but especially on the Wicklow Way, Dingle Way, Kerry Way and Beara Ways. We have welcomed thousands of visitors from dozens of countries. It gives me and my team great joy to meet both our new and returning visitors each year. Each year I walk each of the trails and I get to meet as many of our visitors as possible. We can’t wait to welcome to Ireland and look forward to help you plan your walking holiday in Ireland soon.

1. Guesthouses & Accommodation That We Work With On the Hiking Trails

We make sure that you stay in very comfortable guesthouses that are full of character and either on or very close to the walking trail. We also make sure that they are less than 5 minutes walk to the local pub or restaurant serving dinner in the evening.  In one or two locations (eg. Black Valley or Kells) there are no local restaurants so we arrange for dinner to be provided at your guesthouse. We are always available to help and support you during your holiday, we are just a phone call away. Should your phone not work in Ireland we can provide your group with a local SIM to make sure you can contact us for backup & support.

In each of the villages we select the best guesthouses with factors such as friendly hosts, level of comfort, location and feedback from our previous guests. We visit each of our guesthouses regularly as we re-walk the trails each year. We are very proud of the guesthouses on our holidays. They are all run by local families that take great pride in their homes. They offer very comfortable en-suite accommodation, as well as a delicious breakfast each morning. Your friendly hosts are a wealth of knowledge on the local area, and are delighted to help you.

2. Quality Walking Trails

All of the walking holidays we have put together have given us great joy. From the dramatic mountain scenery, wide Atlantic panoramas to the heart warming lakes and forests. Nature provides these wonders and we feel obliged to do our bit, with routes that let you experience the most stunning parts of Ireland. All of our self guided walking holidays are along signposted trails and we also provide you with weatherproof walking notes, maps (and GPX tracks if you need them).

3. Local Food and Drink

In designing your holiday we have sought out the best places to eat and drink each day. Each village along the route allows you to enjoy a great dinner and a cosy pub for a drink after your walk.. The Dingle Way, Beara Way, Wicklow Way and Kerry Way are blessed with many fine pubs and restaurants. In recent years there has been a growing trend for local breweries and distilleries and it is possible to visit some of these (eg. Powerscourt Whiskey on the Wicklow Way, Dingle Gin or Tom Crean Brewery at Kenmare).

4. Backup & Support Support During Your Walking Holiday

Both before, during and even after your holiday we are here to help and answer any questions you may have. On all of our walking holidays we are available at all times to assist and support you. Having hiked all over the world, we appreciate the importance of a well organized holiday. 

5. Navigation Along the Trail

We understand the importance of clear, good quality navigational notes and also GPX if using a hiking app. We use high quality waterproof maps with a scale of 50,000 to 1 and 25,000 to 1. Our walking notes are clear, weatherproof and informative, giving you the trail notes but also the best places to stop for a picnic, where to find shelter and also the best places to eat, drink and visit. We regularly re-walk each of the routes and update our walking notes.  We are proud of our intimate knowledge of each of our hiking routes and the local areas that they pass through.