Which tour company or travel agent: CIE, Lally, small groups?

What most people said

• CIE Tours gets the most recommendations: long-established, with good drivers and guides, including tours based in one place with day trips.
• For small groups, Vagabond & Driftwood and Rabbie's come up repeatedly; Rabbie's lets you request your own accommodation.
• For train-based touring, Railtours Ireland is the name most give; many sights still need a coach or driver from the station.
• Many replies are agents and drivers promoting themselves; a few suggest a private driver for small groups or more control.

What people said

• CIE was our introduction to Ireland many years ago. We did the southern loop with extended stays in Galway, Killarney and Dublin. Highly recommend as they have great drivers and tour guides.
• Rabbie's does small group tours out of Dublin or Killarney. You can use their accommodation options and enter a special request or choose your own accommodation options at the destination location.
• The only company for package train tours is Rail Tours Ireland. They are operated by CIE that contracts out the buses to take you from the station then on to the touring part of the day.