Today, March 10th marks a significant day in my life. Here’s why.
At 19, I moved to Munich as part of my university. Great city, great people but dang is it expensive! I spent the first few months being a complete tourist which allowed me to experience Munich through fresh eyes. Nevertheless, I was running out of money (fast) and needed to get a job… quickly.
Having tried and failed miserably at countless german interviews, I eventually got an interview for Radius Tours, a wonderful family-run tour company in the heart of Munich. To my surprise, it was an Irish guy called Brendan who interviewed me and I don’t know what he saw but he gave me a chance. He told me to go on as many tours as I like to learn and he would give me a tour when he thought I was ready. It was very loose and I really wasn’t sure if that day would come but nevertheless, I found myself studying Bavarian history like I should have studied for my leaving cert in Ireland.
One day, Brendan asked if I wanted to give a tour of Neuschwanstein castle this coming Thursday. I jumped at the opportunity. That Thursday was March 10th, 2016. I gave the tour and gave over 100 more throughout that year before returning back to Ireland to start Ollie’s Tours.
I had always known that Ollie’s Tours would start in Ennis but grow to be in so many other places. I just needed to know how to do it. I wanted to learn from the best, somebody who started small that has grown a tour company into something huge. I found my answer with Walks. Walks or TakeWalks as they are also known offer a wide range of tours in over 14 different cities all around the world. I applied for a job there and was lucky enough to be offered a position.
I temporarily closed Ollie’s Tours for the remainder of that year, packed up my things, and move to Dublin. I worked on a busy street in Dublin with an amazing team of people. The job itself I can safely say, I was average at, but boy did I love the company. Everybody was friendly, full of helpful tips and advice. I spent most of my time there talking to people and convincing them that Ennis is heaven on earth (and for anyone who has ever visited Ennis, you would know this to be true of course).
Sadly, having only spent 9 months working there, COVID-19 had entered mainland Europe and was causing massive disruption to our Italian and Spanish markets. I was asked to come to speak with my manager and my job at Walks was no more. The ironic thing about this is that it was March 10th at 9:30 am, the exact time and date of my very first tour in Munich 4 years before.
Today, March 10 spawns yet another important day. Today, Ollie’s Tours has opened bookings for two additional locations in Co Clare. We will now be offering a wide variety of walking tours and foodies experiences in Ennis, Doolin, and Bunratty. This is our first major scale-up in operations and hopefully, the Irish people will get behind us and allow us to make their Staycations to Clare unforgettable.
Book Now… no seriously, it would really help.
