NOVEMBER 2024
On our Ireland trip we tried to do an original activity and went on an Alpaca walk! I had seen gorgeous pictures of a pack of Alpacas on a typical green Irish landscape and had romantic images in my head of myself surrounded by Alpacas. Of course, this was an unrealistic expectation, but it was a fun activity nonetheless. In this blogpost I will give you some insight into our experience, helping you decide whether this is something you would like to do.
Practical information
Wild Alpaca Way is located in the North of Ireland, County Donegal. We booked Wild Alpaca Way through their website. No need to make reservations weeks in advance, I noted that most days there were sufficient time slots if you would book the day before. Tours are usually available at 11AM, 1PM and 3PM. We waited for the weather forecast before we made our booking. We paid € 24 per adult including an Alpaca. You can also join the tour without an Alpaca, which makes it cheaper. As Hugo is only 3, he joined the tour in the carrier and we didn’t have to pay for him. The tour lasts about one hour and includes very little walking, as you are with a big group and the Alpacas are really slow. Please note that you will meet in the meadows and that there is no toilet or food available. We arrived a little early and there was nowhere to hang out.
Our Alpaca experience
The Alpaca experience was fun and weird. You only do a very short walk with the Alpacas and the group was quite big. The Alpacas have a leader of the pack and tend to follow that leader, otherwise they do not really want to move, they will cuddle though! The surroundings are absolutely lovely and you get beautiful views over the water and hills, definitely worth a visit for the views alone. The Alpacas are very well taken care of and you can see that the staff really cares about them. Plenty of staff joins you on the tour and they also offer to take family pictures with the alpacas. I was very happy that Hielke was my photographer, because the staff was not very good at this… like cutting alpacas out of the frame etc. Some of the Alpacas are a bit spicy and unpredictable, so toddler Hugo didn’t love the tour. It was quite windy, so he was happy to stay in the carrier. Better to do this activity with older kids (6+). At the end of the tour we got to join for feeding time which was fun.
All in all… the Alpacas were really cute, the views were beautiful, the tour was a bit weird. I would have loved to learn more about the Alpacas and how to care for them. I guess this was difficult for the staff to explain because of the winds. The tour is an absolute must for Alpaca lovers, and otherwise you can better hike the surroundings yourself.
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