viking boat tour dublin

See Dublin differently

An unmissable experience

Roar your way through Dublin City in a unique Land and Water experience provided by one of Ireland’s most unique sightseeing experiences.

Let Viking Splash Tours take you around Dublin on one of our WW2 amphibious DUKWs. Our guides provide a fun, informative and unforgettable experience for all ages and groups taking in our cathedrals, Georgian Dublin and much more before splashing into the Grand Canal basin for a short cruise by the iconic U2 studios.

Voted as one of Dublin’s best tours, this is an experience you won’t want to miss.

Please note; children under 3 years old are not permitted on the tour.

All bookings can be made online by clicking BOOK NOW!

Please see our Frequently Asked Questions for all Tour Information.

Departure Point

Frequently asked questions.

St. Stephens Green, Dublin 2- D02 N960

There are 28 seats on each DUKW, and every Viking must have their own seat.

No, seats are not allocated. It is a first come first serve basis.

YES! It does go on the water.

You are free to disembark the DUKW for the water section, then reboard.

Only if it is raining!

Poncho’s can be purchased at St Stephen’s Green – Adults and Children’s sizes available. They are €2 per Poncho.

*Tours run as scheduled in the rain*

No.  Dress for the weather. Do not bring your own life jacket as we must insist that you wear one of ours.

Approximately every half an hour from Stephens Green during high season. (High Season is Jun-Sept)

Booking is advised as seats are limited and we are, after all, one of Dublin’s most famous and best loved tours.

One hour and fifteen minutes is what we aim for – this will vary depending on city traffic.

You will be charged the full price of your tickets with no refund.  We do ask customers to be at our departure point 15 minutes prior to departure. 

We spend approximately 15-20 minutes in the Grand Canal Docks.

Children under 3 years are not permitted on our tour for safety reasons. 

Come on board and find out!

The vehicles we use are called ‘Dukws’.  They were built during World War II as amphibious trucks to carry soldiers and equipment to aid the war effort.

No – unfortunately we cannot provide toilet facilities at our departure point nor on our vehicles.

No.  No.  No.

The DUKW is not Wheelchair accessible.  However, a wheelchair can be stored at the rear of the vehicle if the passenger has enough mobility to board the vehicle, via the back steps.

Yes – so long as the buggy or pram is collapsible it can be folded up and put behind the back seats on board. Limited to two buggies per tour.

Unfortunately not! 

Not at present.

Yes you can! Once you are mobile, and can wear a life vest on the water.

We will facilitate a change of date 48 hours prior to your tour, depending on our availability.

Head office: Unit 5, Knockmitten Lane, Dublin 12, D12 HD68

[email protected]

00353 1 224 3852

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Viking Splash Dublin

• Family friendly

Let Viking Splash Dublin, in Dublin City, show you the wonderful sites and scenes of the capital city from a DUKW. First built by General Motors during World War II, a DUKW is an amphibious six wheel drive vehicle shaped like a boat. They were once used for transporting goods and troops over land and water.

The Viking Splash Dublin tour ensures you not only hear about Viking Dublin, but also see historic sites including, St Patrick’s and Christchurch Cathedrals, Trinity College Dublin and Georgian Dublin. The climax of the tour sees the DUKWs splash into the water at the Grand Canal basin for a short cruise, passing by the recording studios of U2. The Viking Splash Dublin tour guides provide a fun, informative, engaging and unforgettable tour experience.

Group tour bookings are also welcome. Children under three are not permitted on a Viking Splash Dublin tour.

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Viking Splash Tours

Dublin - ireland.

Book Tickets

Join Viking Splash Tours on a thrilling tour around the main sights of Dublin City - by land and water!

Let the Vikings show you the sites and scenes of the capital city from a World War II amphibious vehicle – all whilst our Viking guides deliver an informative, entertaining and engaging commentary, ensuring all are captivated on this thrilling tour!

Ticket Prices

There’s no better way to explore the beautiful and historic city of Dublin than on board a Viking themed City Splash Tour! Take in the stunning vistas like never before on an epic voyage across land and water all in one thrilling and entertaining tour. Let the locals show you around, all Viking Splash tour guides are from the area and offer unique insight into the little known aspects of the mysterious city.

The road section of the tour takes you deep into the heart of the city, immersing passengers in both Celtic culture and comical craic! Some of the fascinating landmarks which you will take in include historic sites such as Viking Dublin and Saint Patricks Cathedral as well as stunning views of Dublin culture and natural environment. 

The climax of this epic adventure comes when the vehicle launches into the Grand Canal basin with a supreme splash! From the rare vantage point on the whispering waters of the blissful basin you will experience Dublin unlike on any other tour! From here you can take in the marvellous city landmarks including the harbour and the South Dublin docklands. It’s sure to be a wildly entertaining experience which you’ll never forget!

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Contact Details

The Viking Splash Tours Crew of Savage Miscreants RGI House 18 Mill Street Dublin 8 Ireland

T : +353 1 707 6000

W : http://www.vikingsplash.com

My friends back home told me this was a must do when you are in Dublin.They we're so right.It was pouring rain but we didn't care because we had our ponchos and most importantly!! Our viking helmets.The guide was hilarious,he knew how to entertain the kids and us adults felt like kids,especially when we would scream out the occasional Viking roar at the people on the street.All in all,great family fun,would highly recommend.

A fantastic trip full of laughter and so much fun. Our tour guide/ driver Kevin should be on the stage. His ad-libbing was second to none and was interspersed with interesting facts. His talents know no bounds and made the trip even more enjoyable. Our children were with us so the jokes were kept tongue in cheek but just as hilarious. Kevin's interaction with the people on the streets was genius and there were some fantastic sports there too. I would highly recommend it to natives and tourists alike.

I've been to Dublin a few times before but we decided to embrace our tourist side and take this tour. I want to go back and do it all over again! We laughed the entire time and still find ourselves randomly chuckling remembering parts. Not the most educational tour but we did actually learn more than we did on several other trips throughout the country and had a WAY better time. Ask for one of the rides with Kevin! We wish he led all of our tours! Definitely book your tickets in advance, they often sell out.

City Splash Tours

City Splash Tours, C/O RGI Equity House Upper Ormonde Quay Dublin 7, Ireland

Tel: +353 (0) 15242540

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Dublin – Viking Splash Tours of Dublin

Family Attractions , Kids & Teens Activities In Dublin , Party Venues , School Tours

Viking Splash Tours

Viking Splash Tours Dublin have been entertaining and educating adults and kids alike, native and foreign for the last ten years with their unique fun tour of Dublin. For family sight- seeing with a difference, book yourself and your family a seat on the Viking Splash Tour.  You will see Dublin as you have never seen it before and be guided by a tour guide unlike any you are likely to have met before either.

You will be taken around Dublin, not on a bus but on an amphibious vehicle called a Dukw. A what? Yes a Dukw – Pronounced ‘duck’ it is an authentic World War Two American land to sea vehicle which was built by the General Motor Corporation. These Dukws played a huge role in landing Allied Troops on the Beaches of Normandy during the D Day landings. Originally there were approximately 22,000 of these work-horse vehicles in service with the American forces, but only a few hundred have survived ’til today. And you and your family could take a trip on one. Living history before you ever see Dublin at all.

Nowadays in Dublin these Dukws have been pressed into service as unique tour vehicles and for some reason are ‘piloted’ by Vikings. Hence the Viking Splash Tour.

Although the Viking Splash Tour is all about having a bit of fun as you tour the city, it is important to note that the vehicles are all licensed by the Dept of Marine and Transport and all guides and drivers are fully qualified and experienced.

For tickets, groups, and private hire enquiries please email  [email protected]

•  You can also book over the phone on (01) 2243852. Bookings are advised at all times to avoid disappointment
• You must take note that tickets are non-refundable and non-transferable to other tour times or dates.

Please mention Familyfun.ie when Booking

Viking Splash Tours Departure

Viking Splash Tours Departure Times

• Tours begin from 10am daily and run approximately every half hour to 90 minutes. During weekends and high season, tours will run more frequently.

Viking Splash Tours operate seven days a week during high season.

Viking Splash Tours last 1 hour and  15 minutes.

Please call (01) 2243852 to confirm tour times as they operate more frequently during the high season and less frequently during the low season.

Family Fun Tip:- All departure times are subject to change and they always advise to book in advance.

The Vikings

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Viking Splash Tour

Review Highlights

“ This was a great fun tour , Dara the guide kept an informative and humorous narrative going throughout. ” in 3 reviews

“ But in that water area, U2 's recording studio as well as some renovations to make that area better. ” in 3 reviews

“ Everyone on the tour wears a Viking hat and they encourage roaring at tourists as we drive past. ” in 2 reviews

Location & Hours

Suggest an edit

St. Stephen's Green

Republic of Ireland

South Inner City

About the Business

Book a trip with Viking Splash Tours for a unique Dublin sightseeing experience by Land and Water. Our Viking captains will guide you a fun and witty tour of Dublin City taking in all the top sights including Viking and Medieval Dublin, Trinity College, Christchurch Cathedral, Georgian Dublin and much more! Viking Splash Tours can be enjoyed by all the family and is ideal for parties, re-unions, corporate events, sightseeing excursions or if you are just looking for some good fun in Dublin City. …

Recommended Reviews

• 1 star rating Not good
• 2 star rating Could’ve been better
• 3 star rating OK
• 4 star rating Good
• 5 star rating Great

Select your rating

Overall rating

The Viking Tour was one we were looking forward to while planning our first trip to Ireland. We were scheduled to arrive in Dublin in the morning so we had booked a 1:00pm tour weeks in advance of our trip, leaving us plenty of time. Our flight was delayed and we were not getting into Dublin until late morning. I contacted the Viking office via email while still in New York to explain and asked them if they could push it to 2:00pm, which they accommodated. Unfortunately our flight was delayed again so we didn't arrive in Dublin until the afternoon and I knew we would miss the 2:00pm tour, we were still at the airport. I again reached out and explained our situation and asked if we could switch our tour for the following day. We received a NO, they told me they had already accommodated our previous request and they have a strict 48hr cancellation policy. I explained that it was out of our control and would they please reconsider but once again we received a NO. They accepted our money but wouldn't make the change, yet as we were walking around Dublin you could see the car/boat around town with loads of empty seats. Really too bad they would not accommodate our request. We were very disappointed......

Date: October 2016 This was such a fun amazing tour! I love amphibian tours! Our tour guide was so funny! Unfortunately my BF & I were the last ones to board. We left the Guinness storehouse a little later than expected. They actually called us as they did not want to leave us. As they called our taxi pulled up right behind the bus. Due to being late there were just two seats available directly behind the driver not the prime seating and certainly very uncomfortable as we are tall! Knees were hurting a bit after. We still had fun but wish we would've had some leg room the back and other seats definitely had more. We still had a cool fun time so I won't take stars off for our seating as it was our fault!

See all photos from Cary R. for Viking Splash Tour

A Viking tour of Dublin wasn't on the original checklist of things to do however I'm so glad we did it! On a Sunday morning, our group met up near a local park and was driven around Dublin. Hoot'n and holler'n we breezed by a few local attractions getting the gist on the basics of Dublin. Our energetic and eccentric tour guide gave us just the right amount of historical information that was insightful but perfectly laced with humor that eluded to the Vikings being hosed by Dublin. It was great! Being a splash tour we obviously we went in the water which was a great way to see Dublin from a different perspective. Overall I'm so glad we did the Viking Splash tour. I think it's a great alternative to the many many (many) hop-on-hop-off tours around the UK. My favorite part was yelling "Arrhhh!!" at any passerby because the entire group was involved! As a tourist I highly recommend this tour because it was truly a memorable.

We had the best time ever on the Viking Splash Tour!! We got to see the historical sites of Dublin, roar at crowds while wearing our viking hats!! Our driver Liam and guide Brenden were very funny and professional on this tour and made it a lot of fun. We will definitely do this again our next time to Dublin!!!

From land to sea, in a 1941 Duky made in Philadelpia, PA! still going after 77 years!

Our guide Brenden, he was hysterical!

I'm not a huge fan of tours, but the Dublin Viking Splash tour was a real treat while visiting the beautiful Ireland for work in August. Two colleagues and I took a 5:30pm tour one Sunday evening, and had an absolute blast. We had the fantastically enthusiastic Daryl as our tour guide. He gave us quite a few laughs while sharing the history (I use that term somewhat loosely) of Dublin. I loved the Viking roar that he encouraged us to scream at residents and tourists alike walking along the street. You could tell people were used to these tours, and would really get into roaring back at us in good fun. I haven't laughed that much in quite some time! It gets really interesting when they take these WWII amphibious vehicles into the water. They always have safety in mind, adding floatation devices along the sides of the vehicles, and requiring you to wear life jackets. Two things you should note to prepare yourself - 1) You should reserve in advance if you want to take a weekend tour, since they book up fast! 2) The tours are a bit pricy for what they are. Even so, I'd most definitely do this again if my husband and I get a chance to visit Dublin together.

Sometimes it's nice to be a tourist in your own city and when the sun is shining, I can't think of anything more fun. So we hopped on the Viking splash tour. Firstly it is pricey, 20 euro each for about an hour and twenty minutes. The novelty is in the by road and by water tour. You travel around Viking Dublin, but you learn very little about the Vikings. Instead the guide pointed out he typical tourist hotspots such as St. Patrick's Cathedral, Christchurch, Trinity etc with no mention of when the Vikings arrived, Wood Quay settlement etc. I guess the Viking part of the tour is wearing the historically inaccurate horned helmet. Anyway, it's fun. You can't deny that. The boat part around Grand Canal was lovely but again not very historical or Viking related. The guide was full of wit but also a lot of factual inaccuracies, calling Westland Row DART station Tara Street etc. But as the only Irish people on board, I guess that didn't matter. If you would like a historical guided tour, there are probably better ones. But if you want to throw on a horned helmet and shout at unsuspecting passers by, go for it. We had a good laugh but perhaps rebranding it as a splash tour and ditching the Vikings might be more accurate.

Where else can you wear a viking helmet and yell at tourists? That's what you get to do on this tour. It leaves from the north side of St. Stephen's green and you board the vehicle in the order in which you booked-you can book online any time. There is a helmet for everyone and you get to practice your best viking roar before setting off. You will see the main city sites before heading to the water area. They put pontoons on the vehicle and give you life vest and then you cruise in a large circle type of area where you see where Bono's recording studio is and facebook and google headquarters. It was fun.

Don a helmet, jump into the amphibious WWII vehicle and prepare to ROAR your way around the streets and waterways of Dublin. An interesting way to tour the city (and canal) - this gives a different perspective from the usual tour bus. Sense of fun and sense of humour needed to enjoy this to the full.

Ah it's just great craic really isn't it. What can be said that hasn't been said before? - Have a sneaky drink before you go on - merriness will help the cause ;-) - Wear warm clothes even if it's not cold outside - you'll thank me for this advice! - Sit up front if you can - it can be quite difficult to hear the (perennially hilarious) driver / guide up front if you're near the back - Have your camera ready for the water part. It's rare to see Grand Canal Dock from this vantage point, and it really is a sight to behold. - Resistance is futile. Embrace the RRRAARRRRR!!! - Go get yourself a nice cosy drink in the Dawson Lounge afterwards, or some nosh in Hatch & Sons that's right across the way from the drop off point. If you can't have fun on the Viking Splash, you can't have fun anywhere. Fact. Job done!

Grand aul view there

Fun tour through the city! Besides the obvious gimmicks, this tour sets itself apart by having some fun and keeping the guests entertained. Not a boring moment. A little pricy, but worth it.

7 other reviews that are not currently recommended

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Viking Splash tour

A thrilling, educational, and amphibious ride through the south of Dublin

Time Out says

The 75-minute Viking Splash Tour delivers an overview of many major city sights, like Trinity College, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and several government buildings. Guides also reveal what the city was like during Viking, Medieval, and Georgian periods with a nearly constant flow of historical information, local folklore, and wisecracks. Keep in mind you’ll be wearing a plastic Viking helmet and shouting to pedestrians during much of the drive. The tour’s true highlight, though, comes when your vehicle (a World War II DUKW) splashes into the water at the Grand Canal Docklands for the aquatic portion of the programme.

Time Out tip: The vehicle’s roof cover only reaches twenty of the twenty-eight seats, so choose your spot wisely in case of rain or sunburn. They do distribute rain ponchos on tours with inclement weather. Viking requests participants convene at the meeting point 15 minutes before their scheduled tour. That’s St. Stephen’s Green North, opposite the Dawson Street junction. You will be mocked if you’re the last one to show up.

Nearby: Peruke & Periwig: For creative cocktails and simple bar snacks in a gilded Victorian lounge Little Museum of Dublin: For an educational and entertaining look into Irish life in the twentieth century Sun Bear: For freshly made gelato with vegan flavour options

Been there, done that? Think again, my friend.

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Your Viking Adventure

Step back 1,200 years and join the vikings on a replica viking ship. cruise up the river shannon to lough ree or down river to the monastic settlement and round towers of clonmacnoise whilst hearing live commentary on viking hoards, the beauty of the river, its flora, fauna, bird and fish life. fun and excitement for all the family..

Step back 1,200 years and join the Vikings on a replica Viking Ship. Cruise up the River Shannon to Lough Ree or down river to the monastic settlement and round towers of Clonmacnoise.

Daily Lough Ree Cruise

Adult €20 | Child €10 | Family* €60 Tickets can be purchased onboard

Cruise to Clonmacnoise

Adult €30 | Child €15 | Family* €100 Tickets can be purchased onboard

Sailing Season

Easter – Halloween

Main Departure Point

Athlone Castle, The Quay, N37 V593

Dog Friendly

Our Lough Ree Cruise is Dog Friendly

*A family ticket is for 2 adults and up to 5 children

Fun and informative

“As a family of six we went on the Viking Boat Trip and it was a great family experience. It was a very relaxing, informative and enjoyable trip with beautiful scenery. The kids purchased their Viking hats and swords and had great fun playing with their swords.”

A hidden history tour

“Michael gave a very informative talk as we travelled on the river into the lake. There was just the right amount of history and local nature to make it a very interesting morning. I learned things about the Shannon that I didn’t know before. The complimentary coffee warmed us up on a chilly morning.”

“ Great captain who makes the voyage fun for children and really interesting for adults. Why Vikings? Because Lough Ree was once the base for these, who raided monasteries around the area, including Clonmacnoise, and buried their treasure trove on Hare Island on the lake. Five stars.”

Viking Tours from the Hodson Bay 

“Had some time during a visit to the Hodson Bay hotel on Lough Ree so we took the Viking Tours boat down to Athlone. Well worth the trip, plan to do the longer tour down to Clonmacnoise.”

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