If you're thinking about a tour of Ireland and trying to decide between a shared or a private version, then this article is for you. Rather than just giving you our opinion, we've crunched the numbers on costs, durations, group sizes, and popular attractions to help you figure out exactly which option is the best fit for you.

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Which is more popular: package tours or customised private tours?

Ireland tours broadly fall into two categories:

  • Package tours: You book seats on a pre-arranged, shared itinerary.
  • Private tours: You design a custom trip specifically for your own group.

Our own in-house data here at My Ireland Tour shows that approximately 70% of our customers choose shared tour packages, while the remaining 30% opt for private, customised tours.

What are the differences between shared and private tours?

  • Tour package: Depart and arrive on preset dates and adhere to a set itinerary with little deviation. You'll typically be touring on a bus with people you have not met before - a cost-effective way to see Ireland and Britain, and great for meeting new people. Best for price and meeting people.
  • Private tour: Depart on any date and visit almost any location in Britain and Ireland. You set the pace, the destinations and the budget. Private tour guests usually won't meet other travellers, but they typically enjoy more free time to meet local people. Best for freedom and flexibility.

Which is more expensive: shared or private tours?

Although there are several differences, the decision between a shared tour and a private tour often comes down to cost. For all but the very largest private tour groups, a shared tour usually works out better value.

Groups of 2-3 people

For small groups of 2-3 people, private tours are typically more expensive than shared tours. In our data, we see that 97.3% of private groups this size have chosen a budget of over €350 per person per day. By contrast, most shared tour guests pay around half that amount.

Private tour groups of 2-3 people pay significantly more than they would per day if they booked seats on a standard (i.e. non-luxury) shared tour package.

Groups of 4-6 people

For medium-sized groups of 4-6 people, private tours are still generally more expensive than shared tours, but there is more overlap in price bands. In our data, we see that around three-quarters of private groups this size have chosen a budget of €300-450 per person per day. By contrast, most shared tour guests pay approximately half that amount.

Private tour groups of 4-6 people chose to pay roughly double per person per day of what they would have paid if they had booked seats on a standard (i.e. non-luxury) shared tour package.

Groups of 7-10 people

For larger groups of 7-10 people, private tours start to offer better value. In our data, we see that the most common price band for private tours in this group size is €250-300 per person per day. This is still more than the €150-250 paid by most shared tour guests, but less drastically so.

Private tour groups of 7-10 people pay slightly more per person per day than they would on a standard (i.e. non-luxury) shared tour package, but the difference is less pronounced than for smaller groups.

Groups of 11+ people

For groups larger than 11 people, private tour prices start to compete with those paid by shared tour guests. In our data, we see that two-thirds of private groups this size have chosen a budget of €200-300 per person per day. When you allow for the fact that some of the private tour groups will have chosen a luxury rather than a standard package, these prices become quite comparable.

Private tour groups of 11+ people pay roughly the same per person per day as they would on a standard (i.e. non-luxury) shared tour package, making private tours a cost-effective option for larger groups.

So are private tours just more expensive then?

Not necessarily. Although private tour guests generally pay more per person per day, that doesn't mean they always pay more overall. In reality, private tour guests often opt for shorter stays that focus more directly on their specific interests and preferences.

Tour duration: Pre-arranged Tour Packages

Based on 2025 My Ireland Tour data, 56.5% of shared tour package guests stayed for 10 days or more. 85.9% of guests stayed for over a week. The shortest tour duration we offered was six days.

Tour duration: Private & Customised Tours

In general, private tour guests favoured shorter stays. Almost half (45.1%) of private tour guests stayed for a week or less. Less than a quarter (23.4%) stayed for 10 days or more.

Private tour guests spend more per day but stay for fewer days

So, private tour guests typically choose to spend more per day but they reduce the total spend by staying for fewer days. The two don't quite cancel each other out: most private tour groups still spend more in total than a typical group would by booking seats on a shared tour. But, by opting for a shorter stay, private tour groups go some way in offsetting the higher per-day spend.

Do shared tours and private tours visit the same attractions?

Although most tours of Ireland, whether shared or private, will inevitably include the most popular tourist destinations (such as the Cliffs of Moher, Blarney Castle and the Guinness Storehouse), a customised private tour is more likely to explore off-the-beaten-track than a shared, off-the-shelf tour package.

While shared tours focus mostly on the greatest hits of Ireland, private tours have greater freedom to explore the hidden gems that appeal to specific individual groups.

On shared tour packages, 87.91% of all guest visits are to top-20 attractions. In other words, fewer than 1 in 8 visits are to an attraction which is not in the top 20 most-visited destinations.*

By contrast, on private tours, over a third of visits are to attractions which do not make the top 20.* No fewer than 33.75% of private tour admissions were to more niche destinations which did not feature in the top 20.

* For simplicity, and to allow like-for-like comparison, we are defining a top 20 attraction as any of the 20 most visited destinations across all of My Ireland Tour's shared tour packages (2025). Private tours, domestic travel and self-drive tourism would each yield a similar but slightly different top 20 destinations list.

So what are the most popular attractions then?

There are big similarities but also notable differences between the top 20 attractions on shared tours versus private tours.

The biggest points of overlap are at the top of the lists where Ireland's most popular five attractions stand out as The Cliffs of Moher, Guinness Storehouse, Kylemore Abbey, Blarney Castle and The Rock of Cashel. These make up the unmissable greatest hits that every visitor to Ireland wants to see.

Top 20 attractions: shared tour packages

Shared tours follow fixed itineraries built around the most in-demand sights. Guinness Storehouse tops the list, with Blarney Castle, the Cliffs of Moher and Kylemore Abbey all scoring close behind.

Relative popularity of top attractions on shared tour packages. Guinness Storehouse scores 100; all others are shown proportionally.

Top 20 attractions: private & customised tours

Private tours show a notably different pattern. The Cliffs of Moher ranks first, and the list includes several less mainstream attractions such as Gallarus Oratory, Muckross House & Gardens and Old Bushmills Distillery that rarely feature on shared tour itineraries.

Relative popularity of top attractions on private customised tours. Cliffs of Moher scores 100; all others are shown proportionally.

What about overnight stays?

Despite the differences in which attractions they visit, shared and private tour guests show a strikingly similar pattern when it comes to the regions in which they choose to overnight. Dublin, Kerry and Galway account for the vast majority of hotel stays on both tour types (65.3% on shared tours and 71.53% on private). This is followed at a distance by Cork, County Antrim and Donegal.

The data below shows each county as a percentage of total guest nights on each tour type. Counties where both tour types recorded fewer than 0.50% of nights are omitted for clarity.

Percentage of total guest nights spent in each county, compared across private and shared tours. Sorted by combined average.

Conclusions

Shared tour packages are best suited to smaller groups who are looking to share the journey with others and take advantage of the better value that's available from an off-the-shelf option.

Private tours offer greater flexibility and more scope for personalization. They are ideal for families or larger groups of friends who share interests and are looking to socialise with one another rather than make friends with a wider group.

Shared Tour Packages

  • Pre-arranged Itineraries: Tried and tested routes and attractions have been hand-picked by the experts in advance.
  • Social Experience: Tour with other guests, ideal for solo travelers or those looking to meet new people.
  • Best for: Smaller groups or solo travelers seeking a cost-effective way to explore Ireland.
  • Cost: Generally more affordable per person per day compared to private tours.

Private Tours of Ireland

  • Customization: Tailor-made itineraries based on your interests, pace and budget. Great for multi-generational groups.
  • Flexibility: Depart on any date and explore off-the-beaten-track destinations.
  • Best for: Extended, multi-generational families or larger groups of friends.
  • Cost: Generally more expensive per person per day, especially for smaller groups.

Methodology

All data in this article is drawn from My Ireland Tour's own internal booking and operational records. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, all figures reflect vacations that took place during the calendar year 2025, regardless of when the booking was made.

Sample size

The dataset covers multiple thousands of guests across both shared and private tour types. Figures are expressed as percentages throughout to allow like-for-like comparison between the two groups.

Attraction visits

An attraction visit is counted as one person being admitted to one attraction on one occasion. For example, a group of eight people visiting Blarney Castle counts as eight visits.

Overnight stays

Overnight stay figures are expressed in guest nights: one guest night is one person sleeping in a bed space for one night. A couple sharing a room for three nights in Dublin contributes six guest nights to Dublin's total.

Price per person per day

All pricing data is based on fully inclusive tour packages covering accommodation, transport, the services of a professional driver-guide, and entrance fees to included attractions. Flights and most lunches are excluded. Price per person per day is calculated by dividing the total package cost by the number of guests and the number of tour days.

Top-20 attractions

For the purposes of the visit concentration charts, the top-20 list is defined as the 20 most visited attractions across all My Ireland Tour shared packages in 2025. This fixed list is used as the benchmark for both tour types to allow direct comparison. Private tours, self-drive itineraries and domestic tourism would each produce a similar but slightly different top-20 ranking.