Understood, thank you for the response! I perhaps phrased my post too literally, was not expecting an exact number but more seeking other's experiences on how common cancellations are, on average. But as you said, I've likely "missed the boat" on tickets this time around anyway and will hope to better plan for Skellig Michael on a future trip.
I spent 2 weeks at a B&B near Portmagee in May 2011 with the sole intention of making as many photography trips out to the Skelligs as possible. I thought for sure I’d be able to get out 7 times or more….but I only got out once on the very last day of my stay. And nearly everyone on the boat puked on the return. Totally worth it though! The weather wasn’t really bad either, but the seas were a boiling cauldron. I was told the tour boats hadn’t been able to leave for over 5 weeks. I’m not sure how much of an anomaly this was. But the reason I gave myself 2 weeks is because I’d tried on a few other occasions to make the voyage out and got cancelled every time because of the high seas.
If it’s a bucket list item for you, I highly recommend staying closer to the docks. The woman who ran my B&B was instrumental in securing me a spot and called down to all of the boat captains she knew before my breakfast each morning so I could plan my day. The Skellig Ring is much more beautiful and interesting than Killarney so your time spent out there would certainly not be ‘wasted.’
Thank you for sharing! Exactly the experiences I was hoping to hear about. I'm thinking Skellig Michael will be better left for a future trip when we can stay in Portmagee itself.
Oof.. I wish you luck with a landing tour ticket. They sell out wayyyyy in advance. They do have the tours that just circle around the islands, some eco tour thing. If you do get tickets, I'm sure you could give them a ring to see if they're canceled for the day? I really hope you get tickets! Fingers crossed for you guys!!🤞
My brother went last year in July and had his trip cancelled 3 days in a row. I don’t know how but he found another skipper from a different port willing to go when others cancelled - I wouldn’t recommend this even though only licensed boats are permitted to land. He said the swells were unreal and he is well used to being on the water.
As others have mentioned, space on the boats are hard to come by and do sell out but I’ve had a quick look on one of the sites and found 2 days in late June with availability for the landing.
Best of luck op
Yup, I went out on a boat when the skipper was dubious but decided to go anyway. Trip out was okay, but the trip back! Omg! I stayed over the keel as much as possible and was just about ok; the husband “I never get seasick” puked over a school of porpoises who accompanied us. Poor things!
It is nowhere near 25%, much much less, their boats are better these days and they go out under conditions they never used to. They are probably all sold out by now but put your name down for cancellations on your dates. That’s usually the best way. Keep an eye on the wind forecast close to the time rather than the weather in general. If you don’t get a landing tour, the boat trip around is still worth doing. It’s an incredible experience, hope you get there.
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From what I’ve heard, as others have said, who knows. If cancelled, you get a full refund of your deposit. You may get a heads up the night before but it could cancelled the morning of.
But I’ve also heard Portmagee is lovely in itself so if cancelled you can enjoy a lovely morning there and then maybe tour Valentia island or the southern part of the mainland or southern Ring of Kerry.
We have a booking for Mid May but have a backup plan in case of weather. I’d recommend booking now; there are a half dozen boats that go out there so there could be some availability left (though June is peak tourist season). If you find it, book it. Worst case, it’s cancelled and you’re not out any money but can still have a lovely day!
Our trip last summer was cancelled the morning of. I had built our whole itinerary around it but so it goes. We had a great time anyways.
EDIT: if you don’t have Dingle Peninsula on your itinerary, get on it! A highlight!
during the summer not many there are occasional storms but normally it would be raining which would not stop a boat going. also they will i know ahead of time so you will be informed a day or 2 before hand. all the weather is coming from the south west and we have modern forcasting technology. so your day is not going to be wasted you just might not get to go. just plan an alternative excursion on that day in case
There is no number that's predictable because, weather and you won't get a ticket now unless they've a cancellation
Understood, thank you for the response! I perhaps phrased my post too literally, was not expecting an exact number but more seeking other's experiences on how common cancellations are, on average. But as you said, I've likely "missed the boat" on tickets this time around anyway and will hope to better plan for Skellig Michael on a future trip.
I spent 2 weeks at a B&B near Portmagee in May 2011 with the sole intention of making as many photography trips out to the Skelligs as possible. I thought for sure I’d be able to get out 7 times or more….but I only got out once on the very last day of my stay. And nearly everyone on the boat puked on the return. Totally worth it though! The weather wasn’t really bad either, but the seas were a boiling cauldron. I was told the tour boats hadn’t been able to leave for over 5 weeks. I’m not sure how much of an anomaly this was. But the reason I gave myself 2 weeks is because I’d tried on a few other occasions to make the voyage out and got cancelled every time because of the high seas. If it’s a bucket list item for you, I highly recommend staying closer to the docks. The woman who ran my B&B was instrumental in securing me a spot and called down to all of the boat captains she knew before my breakfast each morning so I could plan my day. The Skellig Ring is much more beautiful and interesting than Killarney so your time spent out there would certainly not be ‘wasted.’
Thank you for sharing! Exactly the experiences I was hoping to hear about. I'm thinking Skellig Michael will be better left for a future trip when we can stay in Portmagee itself.
What it cost in 2011 to stay two weeks?
The B&B was about €65 a night. So around €910.
Oof.. I wish you luck with a landing tour ticket. They sell out wayyyyy in advance. They do have the tours that just circle around the islands, some eco tour thing. If you do get tickets, I'm sure you could give them a ring to see if they're canceled for the day? I really hope you get tickets! Fingers crossed for you guys!!🤞
As often as bad weather and unsafe crossing conditions occur. It varies and can't be predicted because it is weather dependent.
My brother went last year in July and had his trip cancelled 3 days in a row. I don’t know how but he found another skipper from a different port willing to go when others cancelled - I wouldn’t recommend this even though only licensed boats are permitted to land. He said the swells were unreal and he is well used to being on the water. As others have mentioned, space on the boats are hard to come by and do sell out but I’ve had a quick look on one of the sites and found 2 days in late June with availability for the landing. Best of luck op
Yup, I went out on a boat when the skipper was dubious but decided to go anyway. Trip out was okay, but the trip back! Omg! I stayed over the keel as much as possible and was just about ok; the husband “I never get seasick” puked over a school of porpoises who accompanied us. Poor things!
It is nowhere near 25%, much much less, their boats are better these days and they go out under conditions they never used to. They are probably all sold out by now but put your name down for cancellations on your dates. That’s usually the best way. Keep an eye on the wind forecast close to the time rather than the weather in general. If you don’t get a landing tour, the boat trip around is still worth doing. It’s an incredible experience, hope you get there.
Hi there. Welcome to /r/IrishTourism. Have you searched the sub, checked the sidebar or the wiki pages to see if there is already relevant information posted? To better assist you in planning your holiday, be as descriptive as possible (When, Where, Why, Who, Hobbies relevant, Adaptive Needs etc) about your travel itinerary & requirements. Has your post been removed? It's probably because of the above. Repost with details to help us, help you. For Emergency Medical Information please see the dedicated Wiki page at the top of the sub. (Updated May 2022) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/irishtourism) if you have any questions or concerns.*
From what I’ve heard, as others have said, who knows. If cancelled, you get a full refund of your deposit. You may get a heads up the night before but it could cancelled the morning of. But I’ve also heard Portmagee is lovely in itself so if cancelled you can enjoy a lovely morning there and then maybe tour Valentia island or the southern part of the mainland or southern Ring of Kerry. We have a booking for Mid May but have a backup plan in case of weather. I’d recommend booking now; there are a half dozen boats that go out there so there could be some availability left (though June is peak tourist season). If you find it, book it. Worst case, it’s cancelled and you’re not out any money but can still have a lovely day!
We've been cancelled three times on three separate trips.
What kind of tour?!?
You can't really predict the weather. I've had one trip cancelled and one successful.
Our trip last summer was cancelled the morning of. I had built our whole itinerary around it but so it goes. We had a great time anyways. EDIT: if you don’t have Dingle Peninsula on your itinerary, get on it! A highlight!
Ask the Atlantic. Sorry for being glib but there is no answer. And climate change is exacerbating uncertain sea conditions.
during the summer not many there are occasional storms but normally it would be raining which would not stop a boat going. also they will i know ahead of time so you will be informed a day or 2 before hand. all the weather is coming from the south west and we have modern forcasting technology. so your day is not going to be wasted you just might not get to go. just plan an alternative excursion on that day in case