All aboard!!- Donegal Bay Waterbus

People will enter the new waterbus mid-ship, which is also fully wheelchair accessible. The bow of the boat is like a jumbo tour bus, fully air-conditioned and centrally heated. Full-Bar facilities are provided.

The crew comprises of retired publicans, self-employed businessmen and local characters who do not get paid for their work.

The company runs tours around Donegal Bay all year-round. Local shops, hotels and bed and breakfasts keep a list of the times of each sailing which is dependent on the rise and fall of the tide.

Each tour leaves the waterbus pier at Donegal Bay and traverses the inner bay as far as a native seal colony near the mouth of the Laghy River. A running commentary is given by a local guide throughout the 80 minute tour which leads on then to the McManus estate, the area where the coffin ships left for America during the famine, St Ernan's and Bell Island.

"Most our customers are tourists staying in the local hotels and coach tours but, we have had schoolchildren who never knew about the local wildlife, Donegal town residents who have never seen our very own seal colony and people interested in our local heritage and history,"

The next major area for development by the waterbus company is to install a new wheelchair accessible gangway and boarding pontoon. It is expected the civil works for this project will cost in excess of  €300,000.

We hope to tie in with all the local restaurants when we make snacks available on board and have the boat hired out for parties. The local hotels offer a waterbus tour as part of a holiday package to their premises and all the shops keep a copy of our times and rates, so the waterbus really has become part of the community.

"We already get a fantastic response from our customers whether they are local or from further afield every time we finish a tour. It's an amazing trip and a wonderful experience.

All aboard the Waterbus!

To get the full benefit of your visit to Donegal Town,  a trip in the waterbus is a “must”. The boat is warm, weatherproof, and completely safe. The 80min cruise explores the history, environment and wildlife of this unique estuary, which is renowned for its vistas of mountains, town and  sea.

From the helm, Skipper Billy Bustard gives a lively commentary on the sights of special interest, freely illustrated with his own humorous asides and anecdotes. His witty observations bring to life events which shaped our country’s destiny. The waterbus passes the battle-scarred ruins of the Abbey – once the home of the legendary chieftain Red Hugh O’Donnell, and his saintly wife Nuala -  where the first history of Ireland was penned by the scholars called the Four Masters. St Ernan’s island is linked to the mainland by a causeway, built as a thank-you from his tenants to a benevolent landlord who saved many from starvation. 

Nearby is Belle’s Isle, named by a local banker in honour of his wife, and whose lurid adventures thereafter will be disclosed by Skipper Billy. His passengers will see the mooring point where the refugees from the terrible Famine 150 years ago clutching their pathetic bundles of skimpy clothing and scraps of food, boarded the “coffin ships” which took the lucky ones to a new life in the Americas. Unhappily, many ships were lost on that arduous journey, and the death toll of the emigrants, from shipwreck and starvation, was horrendous. Descendants of the survivors are especially welcome when they fly in from the United States and Canada to rediscover their roots and to introduce their offspring to the Old Country. Skipper Billy introduces the abundant bird-life – cormorants, herons, and waders. 

He  explains how the wild salmon are netted by local men, whom you might well see at work…how a farmer grows and harvests oysters and mussels.And how the colonies of Atlantic and Harbour seals are encouraged to live in the bay, and to bask in safety on a sandbank, totally unafraid, as the waterbus glides by only a few metres from their noses.

A great (but not guaranteed) sighting is of the mother seal swimming by with her cub perched on her back as she glides through the clear waters of the bay. Billy is always glad to answer any questions, and he usually allows some members of his young “crew” to take the wheel for a spell. Visitors will see from the letters on our notice board how they enjoy the experience. Donegal Town is famous for its welcome to visitors, and you are assured of warm and understanding hospitality.

Skipper Billy and his mates will be glad to talk to you on the telephone  at +353 074 9723666 or correspond by email (info@donegalbaywaterbus.com) and answer any points you wish to raise, and to explain our special rates for parties, pensioners and youngsters. We look forward to sailing with you!