Inisheer: Private Aran Island Tour with Horse & Trap Lunch

5.00

(1 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

Ever wondered what it’s like to step off the ferry onto Inisheer and just… slow down? I didn’t really know what to expect — maybe some windswept silence or a couple of stone walls. But right away, our guide (she waved before I even spotted her) pulled us into her world. There was this salty tang in the air and the sound of fishing boats clinking against each other. She started telling us about growing up here, leaving for a while, then coming back — something about the way she talked made me feel like I’d known her forever.

The island itself is small but feels bigger than you’d think. You can see the Cliffs of Moher across the water if you squint through the sea haze. We rode in a horse-drawn carriage — “trap,” they call it — with the leather seat creaking under us and the horse’s mane flicking in the wind. Our guide pointed out O’Brien’s Castle sitting above everything, built inside an ancient ringfort (I never knew those were that old). At one point she stopped so we could try saying “Caisleán Uí Bhriain.” Li laughed when I tried to say it in Irish — probably butchered it.

I still think about the warmth of that homemade soup at lunch (it had this earthy flavor I can’t quite describe), plus thick slices of brown bread that tasted like someone’s grandmother made them. Tea came with scones and jam — proper comfort food after all that fresh air. We heard stories about the Plassy shipwreck and how locals rescued everyone using a breeches buoy (I had to Google what that was later). There was something grounding about hearing these stories from someone who actually lived them or knew those who did.

The lighthouse looked almost lonely out there on its limestone perch. Our guide told us how it used to be manned before automation took over — she said sometimes you can still hear old voices on windy nights, though she winked when she said it. Time felt weirdly stretchy on Inisheer; hours went by but I wasn’t watching my phone for once. The day ended without any big moment, just a quiet walk back toward the pier as gulls circled overhead and someone waved from a tractor rolling past.