10 Best Distillery Tours in Ireland (2026): Whiskey, Gin & Booking Tips

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By Tomiko Harvey, luxury travel writer and safety expert who has traveled to 65+ countries.

The best distillery tours in Ireland are Drumshanbo Distillery in County Leitrim for gin, Jameson Bow St. and Teeling in Dublin for a first whiskey tour, Bushmills in County Antrim for history, and Tullamore D.E.W. for the most hands-on cask tasting.

Most tours run 60 to 105 minutes, cost €15 to €35 (Bushmills in Northern Ireland charges in pounds), and sell out in summer, so book at least a week or two in advance.

I did not plan my first Ireland trip around distilleries.

Last year I spent 12 days moving between Dublin, Donegal, and Leitrim, looking for good food, kind people, and a little luxury at a slow pace.

Then I walked into Drumshanbo, watched the copper stills hiss, smelled citrus and botanicals in the air, and the trip took a different turn.

By the time I flew home, I had toured six of the distilleries in this guide.

I went back for seven days this past June, slept at Kinnitty Castle in County Offaly, and added Malahide and the Rock of Cashel to the route. The route tips below come from two trips on the ground.

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Below are my 10 favorite tours for 2026 with prices, tour times, addresses, and booking links, plus 6 more distilleries worth a stop, Ireland’s whiskey passport programs, and routes that keep you from zigzagging across the country.

Look for the note under each photo to see which distilleries I toured myself.

Best Distillery Tours in Ireland at a Glance

Prices and tour times change seasonally, so confirm on the booking page before you go.

Map of the Best Distilleries in Ireland

My top 10 and the extra stops worth adding show in two different pin colors. Tap any pin for the address.

1. Drumshanbo Distillery, County Leitrim: Best Gin Distillery Tour in Ireland

I toured this distillery in person in June of 2025.

I didn’t expect Drumshanbo to be one of the highlights of my Ireland trip, but it completely stole the show.

I was there for the castles and the countryside. But this small-town distillery in County Leitrim ended up being one of the best experiences of the entire 12 days.

We arrived a little early for our tour and had lunch at the Jackalope Café on site.

The food is locally sourced, the atmosphere is warm, and even though it’s a distillery, we weren’t rushed.

I had a soup that I still think about. I never caught the name, but it was the best soup I’ve ever eaten anywhere.

That alone is worth the drive.

The tour itself costs €15 per person and runs about 75 minutes, enough time to actually understand what you’re looking at, not just walk through and nod. Book ahead, especially on weekends.

This place fills up, and for good reason.

Inside, the space tells a story. Old artifacts, copper stills, vintage tools, and the unmistakable scent of botanicals in the air.

This is where Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin is made, a gin that gets its distinct flavor from gunpowder tea and a combination of Asian and Irish botanicals.

The guide walked us through every step without rushing us, and the pride in the room was real.

After the tour, we moved to the Honey Badger Bar, a botanical glasshouse where they serve cocktails made with their own gin and whiskey.

Sitting there with greenery overhead, holding a drink I’d just watched being made, that’s the kind of moment that makes travel worth it.

I had 3 cocktails because they were all so beautiful. My favorites were the Curious Margarita, PJ’s Pineapple Parade, and one in a tall tea glass that I don’t remember the name of, but it was both delicious and beautiful.

If you’re only doing one distillery outside Dublin, make it this one.

Make a night of it in Leitrim. My Lough Rynn Castle Hotel review covers the castle stay, and Drumhierny Woodland Hideaway is about 20 minutes from the distillery.

Add a morning exploring the castles in Leitrim before you head back toward Dublin.

I book all of my tours through Viator because they handle the confirmation instantly and cancellation is easy if your plans change.

You can reserve your Drumshanbo tour here or book directly on The Shed Distillery website. Either way, do it before you arrive in Leitrim because this tour sells out, especially in summer.

📍 Carrick-on-Shannon Road, Drumshanbo, Co. Leitrim, N41 WR22 | ☎ +353 (0)71 931 7000

2. Jameson Distillery Bow St., Dublin: Best First Whiskey Tour

I toured this distillery in person in 2025.

Jameson was my first distillery stop in Dublin, and after touring it, I understand why it stays at the top of every list.

The building alone is worth the visit. John Jameson established this distillery in Smithfield back in 1780, and when I stood in that courtyard, I felt every bit of it.

My tour was part history lesson, part tasting, and entertaining from start to finish. I am big history buff so it was really interesting learning the history.

I finally understood how triple distillation works and why Irish whiskey tastes different from Scotch, and we sampled aged blends along the way.

Now, I am not a big brown liquor fan, so all of them were a little harsh to me, and they were so strong it put hair on my chest, but this is from a novice, so take what I say with a grain of salt.

If you want to take it further, they offer a whiskey blending masterclass and a cocktail making class that are worth booking if you have a full afternoon free.

Tours run about 60 minutes and start at €28 per person for the standard experience.

The masterclasses run longer and cost more, but if you’re the kind of traveler who likes to go deeper into an experience rather than just check a box, they’re worth every cent.

I book all my tours through Viator because they confirm instantly, and cancellations are easy if your plans change.

You can reserve your Jameson tour here or book directly at jamesonwhiskey.com/visit. Book ahead.

This is one of the most visited attractions in all of Dublin and weekend slots go fast.

My practical tip: if you’re combining Jameson with other Dublin distilleries like Teeling or Roe and Co, plan Jameson first.

Smithfield is easy to get to, the tour sets up a great foundation for understanding Irish whiskey, and everything else you taste afterward will make more sense because of it.

Staying a few nights in the city? Here are the best boutique hotels in Dublin close to Smithfield and the Liberties.

📍 Bow Street, Smithfield, Dublin 7, D07 N9VH | ☎ +353 1 807 2355.

3. Teeling Whiskey Distillery, Dublin: Best for Bottling Your Own Whiskey

I toured this distillery in person in 2025.

I went to Teeling after Jameson, and the energy was completely different. That’s exactly the point.

This is Dublin’s first new distillery in over 125 years, and from the moment I walked in, I could feel that it was built by people who had something to prove.

It’s stylish, modern, and buzzing with the kind of confidence that comes from making really good whiskey.

The tour walked us through the small-batch production process right in front of us. I could smell the grain, watched the copper stills at work, and finished with a tasting flight across their full range.

If you want to make it a proper experience, book the Bottle Your Own option where you fill a bottle directly from the cask to take home.

It’s the kind of detail that turns a tour into a memory. I was going to do this for my husband but I changed my mind at the last minute.

Tours run about 60 minutes and start at €16 per person.

The Bottle Your Own experience costs more but if you’re a whiskey lover it is worth every cent.

Teeling sits in the heart of the Liberties and draws a serious crowd on weekends, so reserve your Teeling tour before you fly or book directly at teelingdistillery.com.

If you’re planning a Dublin distillery day, pair Teeling with Roe and Co, both are in the same neighborhood, and the contrast between the two makes each one more interesting.

📍 13-17 Newmarket, Dublin 8, D08 KD91 | ☎ +353 1 531 0888

4. Bushmills Distillery, County Antrim: Best for History Near the Giant’s Causeway

Bushmills traces its license to distill back to 1608, when King James I granted this village on the north Antrim coast the right to make whiskey. More than 400 years later, they are still at it.

The whiskey is made with water from the River Bush, which runs through the village. It is triple distilled with no smoke and no peat, so you get a smooth, honeyed Irish malt. The 40-minute tour goes from grain to glass, including the bottling hall, and ends with a tasting. At £20 per person, it is good value.

Here is the real tip: the Giant’s Causeway is less than 10 minutes away by car, and most visitors drive right past the distillery without stopping. Book ahead between May and September, when Causeway crowds fill the tour slots.

Pair it with the Giant’s Causeway and book your Bushmills tour for the morning, or go direct at bushmills.com. Summer slots go fast.

📍 2 Distillery Road, Bushmills, County Antrim, BT57 8XH | ☎ +44 (0)28 2073 3218

5. Tullamore D.E.W. Distillery, County Offaly: Best Small Group Cask Tasting

I toured this distillery in person in 2025.

Before I visited, I thought of Tullamore D.E.W. as the bottle I see in every airport duty-free shop. The distillery in County Offaly changed how I see it.

This is a working, purpose-built distillery spread across 58 acres in the heart of Ireland’s midlands, producing 11 million litres of whiskey every year.

The tour takes you behind the scenes of all of it: the still house floor, the maturation warehouse where 50,000 oak casks are sleeping, the blending lab, and a moment in the distillery experience that nobody forgets.

It is called “Dip the Dog” and it means exactly what it sounds like. You lower a glass pipette directly into a cask and taste whiskey straight from the barrel in what they call the Secret Warehouse Snug.

That single experience is worth the drive from Dublin.

And the drive is easy. Tullamore is about one hour from Dublin and one hour from Galway, just off the M6.

That makes it the most practical distillery on this list if you are road-tripping across the country and want to break the journey with something genuinely worth stopping for.

The tour runs 105 minutes, groups are capped at just 12 people, and it includes a welcome Irish coffee on arrival, a still house visit, three premium whiskey tastings, and the cask experience.

Book well ahead because the small group size means availability disappears fast, especially on weekends.

One important note: this tour is strictly for adults over 18. If you are travelling with family, you will need to plan around that.

Where I would stay: Kinnitty Castle, at the foot of the Slieve Bloom Mountains, is about 30 minutes from the distillery.

I stayed there on my June trip, and a castle night makes the drive to the midlands feel like part of the experience.

I stayed in a King Suite. While it was really nice, the rooms were kind of small but still very nice. The Bathrooms stole the show vs the room itself but staying a castle is a must if you are in visiting Ireland.

📍 Clonminch, Tullamore, Co. Offaly, R35 E027 | ☎ Check tullamoredew.com for current pricing and availability

6. Dingle Distillery, County Kerry: Best Stop on the Wild Atlantic Way

Dingle is not on the way to anywhere, and that is the point. Founded in 2012 in a converted sawmill, it was one of Ireland’s first modern craft distilleries, opening before craft distilling became a trend. It sits on the Wild Atlantic Way, about a 15-minute walk along the harbor from the center of Dingle town.

The 75-minute tour covers mashing, fermentation, distilling, and maturation, all done on-site, with the single malt aging in bourbon, sherry, and other seasoned casks. The tasting goes beyond whiskey to their gin and vodka, and the gin has built a following well beyond Ireland.

Know before you go: tours are strictly 18 and over, including infants, and the tour is not wheelchair accessible, with long periods of standing and a flight of stairs. Bottles are not sold on site, but staff will point you to shops in town. Afterward, walk to Dick Mack’s pub for one of the best whiskey selections in Kerry. Book ahead in peak season.

📍 Milltown, Dingle, Co. Kerry | ✉ tours@dingledistillery.ie

7. Powerscourt Distillery, County Wicklow: Best Luxury Distillery Experience

I toured this distillery in person in 2025.

Every distillery on this list has a good story. Powerscourt has something most of them do not: a setting that stopped me before I even walked through the door.

The distillery sits on the Powerscourt Estate in Enniskerry, County Wicklow, on 1,000 acres of ancient woodland, championship golf courses, a luxury hotel, and Ireland’s highest waterfall.

The distillery itself occupies a converted historic mill house, a 22,000-square-foot visitor center that has been fully operational since 2018.

And here is the detail that separates Powerscourt from every other distillery in Ireland: the pure mineral water used in production filters into the estate’s aquifer directly from Powerscourt Waterfall.

The water that makes the whiskey comes from the landmark on the property.

The whiskey itself is called Fercullen, named after the ancient territory that once encompassed this land.

Master Distiller Noel Sweeney, a member of the World Whisky Hall of Fame, oversaw the first distillation in 2018 and was instrumental in establishing the Fercullen range.

The people making the whiskey here have serious credentials.

Two tour options are available. The standard tour is one hour, takes you through the production floor and the bonded warehouse, and finishes with a tasting of three Fercullen Irish Whiskeys at €25.

The food pairing tour runs 90 minutes at €35 and adds Irish cheese, charcuterie from the Wooded Pig, and Fercullen whiskey chocolates to the tasting.

If you are going to be on the estate anyway, the food pairing tour is worth the extra ten euros.

Between October and March, self-guided tours and walk-in whiskey tastings are available in the Whiskey Lounge without a booking, running Monday through Saturday from 10:30 am to 5:00 pm and Sundays from noon.

Summer visits require advance booking, and the standard tour does occasionally have walk-in availability if you call ahead.

After my tour, I had an entire estate to explore. The gardens cover 47 acres, the Wicklow Mountains frame the horizon, and Powerscourt Waterfall is a short drive away.

Plan to spend at least half a day here. It earns it.

Powerscourt is also one of my favorite day trips from Dublin, so you can easily pair the distillery with the gardens and waterfall in one outing.

You can reserve your Powerscourt Distillery tour here or book directly at powerscourtdistillery.com.

📍 Powerscourt Estate, Enniskerry, Co. Wicklow, A98 A9T7 | ☎ +353 1 506 5656 | ✉ tours@powerscourtdistillery.com

8. Kilbeggan Distillery, County Westmeath: Best for Families and Road Trips

Founded in 1757, Kilbeggan calls itself Ireland’s oldest licensed whiskey distillery, and it still runs on its original equipment. The 19th-century water wheel on the River Brosna still turns, and the steam engine that backed it up when the river ran low is still fired up on special occasions.

The tour walks you through mashing in oak mash tuns, fermenting in Oregon pine vats, and spirit flowing from old pot stills. The Gold Medal tour at €26 includes four whiskeys: Kilbeggan 8 Single Grain, Kilbeggan Irish Whiskey, Tyrconnell Single Malt, and Connemara Peated Single Malt, Ireland’s only heavily peated single malt. For a gift nobody else will have, book the Distillery Exclusive and fill your own 70cl bottle from the cask.

Kilbeggan is also the most family-friendly stop on this list, with free entry for children under 18. It sits about an hour west of Dublin off the M6, almost exactly halfway to Galway, with free parking out back and the Citylink 763 bus stopping in town. Plan two hours so you have time for the Warehouse Bar.

You can reserve your Kilbeggan Distillery tour here or book directly at kilbegganwhiskey.com.

📍 Lower Main Street, Kilbeggan, Co. Westmeath | ✉ info@kilbegganwhiskey.com | ☎ +353 57 933 2134

9. Midleton Distillery Experience, County Cork: Best for Whiskey History and Scale

Midleton is 23 minutes from Cork City and is really two distilleries in one. You tour the restored Old Midleton Distillery, a 15-acre site with buildings dating to 1795, while the modern facility next door produces around 24 million bottles of Jameson, Powers, and Paddy every year.

The old site holds the world’s largest pot still, a 150-year-old water wheel, and the original malting houses and still houses that made whiskey here for 150 years. The scale is unlike anywhere else in Ireland.

The standard 75-minute tour ends with a glass of Jameson and a tasting that compares Irish whiskey with other styles from around the world. For more depth, book the Behind the Scenes and Premium Whiskey Tasting, or the cocktail masterclass if you are traveling with a group.

A free shuttle runs from Cork City from April through October, and the shop, Whiskey Vault, and Malthouse Café are open without a ticket. Book ahead, especially on summer weekends.

You can reserve your Midleton Distillery tour here.

📍 Distillery Walk, Midleton, Co. Cork, P25 Y394 | ☎ Check jamesonwhiskey.com for current pricing and tour times

10. Roe & Co Distillery, Dublin: Best Cocktail Making Experience

I toured this distillery in person in 2025.

Built inside the former Guinness Power Station in the heart of the Liberties, Roe and Co opened as a fully operational urban distillery focused on cocktail exploration and modern Irish whiskey.

The building stopped me before the tour even started.

The industrial bones of the old power station are still visible throughout, and the contrast between the original architecture and the working distillery inside creates an atmosphere that none of the rural distilleries on this list can replicate.

Lonely Planet named Roe and Co one of the ten best new openings in the world when it launched.

The reason is not the whiskey history. It is the experience design. Where most distillery tours end with a tasting, Roe and Co is built around making something.

Our guides were bartenders, and they walked us through distilling and blending before building a cocktail around what each of us liked.

I left with a drink I made myself, using whiskey I had just learned how to blend.

Groups are kept small, with a maximum of four people per session, which meant our guide paid attention to what I liked instead of running through a script for a crowd of twenty.

The location makes Roe and Co easy to combine with a full Dublin day.

It sits directly across from the Guinness Storehouse on James’s Street, and from Temple Bar, it is a 1.4km walk that takes you past Christ Church Cathedral and Dublin Castle.

All three Dublin distilleries on this list, Jameson Bow St., Teeling, and Roe and Co, are within a short distance of each other in this part of the city, making them straightforward to combine in a single afternoon if you plan it well.

One practical note: there is no on-site parking. Public transport or walking is the right call here.

You can reserve your Roe and Co tour here or book directly at roeandcowhiskey.com.

📍 92 James’s Street, Dublin 8, D08 DNA7 | ☎ +353 1 643 5999 | ✉ hello@roeandcowhiskey.com

6 More Distilleries in Ireland Worth a Stop

The 10 tours above are my top picks, but Ireland has more distilleries than most travelers have time for. If your route takes you near any of these six, they are worth adding to your plans.

Slane Distillery, County Meath

Slane makes its whiskey with a triple-distilled and triple-casked method, and the distillery sits in County Meath in the Boyne Valley, an easy day trip north of Dublin.

The standard tour runs 75 minutes, costs €25 per person, and includes a tutored tasting of Slane Irish Whiskey and Slane Extra Sherry Wood, plus a Slane Highball at the end. Guests must be 18 or older to book.

Book directly at slaneirishwhiskey.com.

Pearse Lyons Distillery, Dublin

Pearse Lyons operates inside the former Church of St. James on James’s Street, and every tour begins in the graveyard outside, which dates to the 12th century.

Inside, the original stained glass windows were redesigned with whiskey-making imagery. It is a short walk from Roe and Co, so you can add it to a Liberties distillery day.

Tours range from the Trilogy at €20 with three tastings to the Legacy at €30 with five. Children aged 10 to 17 pay a reduced rate and can join the tour, but tastings are 18 and over. Book at pearselyonsdistillery.com.

📍 121-122 James’s Street, Dublin 8, D08 ET27

Titanic Distillers, Belfast

Titanic Distillers makes its whiskey inside the historic pump house at Thompson Dock in Belfast’s Titanic Quarter, the dry dock where the Titanic last sat on dry land before her maiden voyage.

If you are pairing Bushmills with a few days in Belfast, this is the city stop to add, and it sits close to Titanic Belfast, so you can do both in one day.

Book directly at titanicdistillers.com and check current tour times and prices there.

The Ardara Distillery, County Donegal

Sliabh Liag Distillers, the team behind An Dúlamán Irish Maritime Gin, built The Ardara Distillery to bring back Donegal’s tradition of smoky, peated whiskey.

If you are heading to Donegal, as I did on my trip, this is the distillery to plan around.

Check tour availability at sliabhliagdistillers.com before you go, since smaller distilleries keep shorter seasonal hours.

Clonakilty Distillery, County Cork

Clonakilty sits on the waterfront in West Cork and offers a grain-to-glass tour with a tutored tasting that can include limited cask releases you will not find anywhere else.

Gin lovers can book the Minke Gin School and distill their own bottle to take home. Pair it with Midleton for a full Cork distillery trip.

Book at clonakiltydistillery.ie.

📍 The Waterfront, Clonakilty, Co. Cork | ☎ +353 23 887 8020

Micil Distillery, Galway

If you are driving the Wild Atlantic Way, Micil in Galway is the stop for something different. This family-run distillery is known for poitín, Ireland’s traditional spirit that was illegal to make for more than 300 years, and it was Galway’s first legal distillery in over a century. The tour pairs that history with tastings of their poitín, gin, and whiskey.

Check current tour times and prices at micildistillery.com before you go.

📍 226 Upper Salthill Road, Salthill, Galway, H91 N9WK

Irish Whiskey Trails: How to Get Your Passport Stamped

If you plan to visit more than a few distilleries, collect stamps as you go.

The IrishWhiskey360 Passport is the Irish Whiskey Association’s tourism program, and you can pick up a paper passport at member distillery visitor centers across the Republic of Ireland.

Collect stamps from distilleries in different regions, and you can apply for an IrishWhiskey360 Champion pin and other rewards.

The stamp requirements have changed over the years, so ask at the first visitor center you stop at. Details are at irishwhiskey360.com.

Northern Ireland runs its own Distillery Trail Passport covering 10 distilleries and spirit experiences, including stops near Bushmills and Belfast.

Download it from Discover Northern Ireland or pick one up at a participating distillery, collect a stamp at each one, and you receive a souvenir when you complete the trail.

In Dublin, you don’t need a car or a formal trail.

Jameson Bow St., Teeling, Roe and Co, and Pearse Lyons are all close enough to walk between, which makes the city the easiest place in Ireland to build your own whiskey route.

Tips for Visiting Irish Distilleries

Bring your ID. Tastings are 18 and over, and some distilleries, including Tullamore D.E.W. and Dingle, do not allow anyone under 18 on the tour at all.

Book at least a week ahead, earlier in summer. Small group tours like Tullamore D.E.W. and Roe and Co sell out first.

Know your currency. Bushmills and Titanic Distillers are in Northern Ireland, which uses pounds sterling. Everywhere else on this list uses euros.

Do not drink and drive. Ireland’s limit is 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood, lower than the 80mg U.S. limit and stricter still for new drivers. Pick a designated driver, ask about take-home samples for drivers, or book a tour with transport.

Plan one or two distilleries a day. Most tours end with three or four tastings, and you will enjoy the second tour more if you are not rushing to it.

Leave room in your suitcase. Several distilleries sell bottles you cannot buy anywhere else, like the fill-your-own cask bottle at Kilbeggan and Bottle Your Own at Teeling.

Where to Stay Near Ireland’s Best Distilleries

Dublin: Jameson Bow St., Teeling, and Roe and Co are all in the city, so one hotel covers three tours. These are the best boutique hotels in Dublin close to Smithfield and the Liberties.

County Leitrim: For Drumshanbo, read my Lough Rynn Castle Hotel review if you want a castle stay, or book Drumhierny Woodland Hideaway, about 20 minutes from the distillery, for an eco-luxury cabin.

The Midlands: For Tullamore D.E.W. and Kilbeggan, I stayed at Kinnitty Castle in County Offaly this past June. It is about 30 minutes from Tullamore and puts both distilleries within an easy drive.

Everywhere else: For Bushmills, Dingle, Midleton, Powerscourt, and the midlands distilleries, I compare hotels and rentals here so I can see prices and locations on one map before I book.

Visiting Irish Distilleries Over St. Patrick’s Day

St. Patrick’s Day is one of the busiest weeks of the year to tour Irish distilleries, especially in Dublin.

The St. Patrick’s Festival runs for several days around March 17, and visitors from all over the world are booking the same whiskey tours you want.

If you are planning your trip around the holiday, here is how I would do it.

Book your tours weeks ahead. Jameson Bow St., Teeling, Roe and Co, and Pearse Lyons fill up first because they are in the city. Lock in your time slots as soon as your flights are booked, not when you land.

Check holiday hours before you go. Some distilleries run special events or change their schedule on March 17 itself. Confirm your tour time on the booking page the week before your trip.

Walk, don’t drive, in Dublin. The parade closes roads across the city center, and taxis get hard to find. The four Dublin distilleries on this list are close enough to walk between, which makes March 17 the one day a car is more trouble than help.

Book your hotel early. Dublin hotel prices jump the week of St. Patrick’s Day. My list of the best boutique hotels in Dublin has options within walking distance of the Liberties distilleries, and the sooner you book, the better your rate.

Plan your rides home. Holiday week puts more drivers on the road who should not be driving, so line up transport before your first tasting.

Ireland’s drink-driving limit is lower than in the United States, so if you are heading out of the city to Powerscourt, Kilbeggan, or Tullamore, book a guided tour with transport or name a designated driver before the first tasting.

Celebrating at home this year? Bring Ireland to your kitchen with my hot toddy recipe. If you are shopping for a bottle, start with what I tasted on my tours: Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin, Teeling Small Batch, or a Jameson blend.

Distillery Tours in Ireland: Frequently Asked Questions

How to Plan Your Ireland Distillery Route

Ireland’s whiskey and gin story does not live in one place.

These 10 distilleries stretch from Kerry on the Wild Atlantic Way to the Antrim coast in Northern Ireland, so the smart move is to pick a region and build your route around it instead of trying to see them all.

Based in Dublin? Start with Jameson Bow St., then head to Teeling and Roe and Co in the Liberties. All three fit into one long afternoon, or spread them over two days if you add a masterclass.

With an extra day, take the DART north to Malahide for the castle and the seaside village. I did on my June trip. Find more ideas in my day trips from Dublin guide.

Driving from Dublin to Galway? Kilbeggan and Tullamore D.E.W. sit right off the M6, and both deserve a real stop, not a quick photo.

Heading north? Pair Bushmills with the Giant’s Causeway, and remember that Northern Ireland uses pounds sterling, not euros.

Want a luxury day out? Powerscourt earns half a day on the estate. Driving the Wild Atlantic Way? Dingle is non-negotiable. In Cork?

Midleton is 23 minutes from the city, and if you are driving down from Dublin, stop at Cashel on the way. I visited in June, and the Rock of Cashel is worth breaking up the drive for.

Love gin? Go to Leitrim for Drumshanbo. It was my favorite stop of the entire trip, and I would plan a night at Lough Rynn Castle around it again.

Whichever route you choose, book ahead. The small group tours on this list sell out first, and a five-minute reservation saves you from a sold-out sign at the door.

When you get home with a bottle, put it to work in my hot toddy recipe.

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