Tour Includes:
Airport transfers at start and end of tour
Sightseeing by luxury coach
Professional tour director
11 nights in hotels listed above
Full breakfast daily except on day 1 (B)
9 dinners (D) including
- Traditional Irish evening with dinner/show at the Abbey Tavern
- Dinner and Irish step-dancing display at Cabra Castle Hotel
- 7 table d'hote dinners
Welcome get-together drink
Tours of Dublin and Belfast with local guides
“The Quiet Man” walking tour of Cong
Walking tour of Derry with a local guide
Dublin open-top bus tour with a visit and drink at Guinness Storehouse or Old Jameson Distillery
Visits and admissions to Kilmainham Gaol, Boyne Valley Visitor Centre & Newgrange or Knowth Tomb, Dunbrody Emigrant Ship,
House of Waterford Crystal, Blarney Castle, Blarney Woollen Mills, Blasket Centre, Foynes Flying Boat Museum, Cliffs of Moher,
Kylemore Abbey Visitor Centre, Museum of Country Life, W. B. Yeats' Grave, Belleek Pottery Factory, Giant's Causeway,
Tower Museum and Titanic Quarter
Deluxe carry-on backpack, ticket wallet, luggage tags & strap
All local taxes, hotel service charges & porterage for one suitcase per person
Highlights:
Dinner/Show at Dublin's Abbey Tavern
Titanic Belfast
Dingle Peninsula Tour
Blarney Castle
Giant's Causeway
Overnight at Award-Winning Cabra Castle
Irish Odyssey - Day-By-Day Itinerary
Day 1: Dublin City Tour & Kilmainham Gaol
Start your tour at Dublin Airport with a group transfer to your hotel between 7:00 am and 12:00 noon. If your flight arrives later, transfer to the hotel at your own expense. At 2:00 pm join a local guide on a tour of Dublin's highlights to view Trinity College, General Post Office, St. Patrick's Cathedral and the Famine Memorial. Visit Kilmainham Gaol where many of Ireland's leaders, including Robert Emmett, Eamon DeValera and Padraig Pearse, were imprisoned during the 19th and early 20th centuries. In the evening meet your tour director and travel companions over a welcome drink.
Day 2: Megalithic Tombs & Abbey Tavern
This morning visit the Boyne Valley Visitor Centre to learn about the passage burial tombs of Newgrange and Knowth, both over 5,000 years old. Tour one of the tombs to see how primitive people managed to align huge boulders precisely with the sun or the moon. Return to Dublin for a free afternoon for shopping or sightseeing on your own. Drive to the Abbey Tavern for dinner with Irish specialties and an Irish coffee followed by a lively show of music, songs and step-dancing. (B, D)
Day 3: Dunbrody Famine Ship & Waterford Crystal
Drive to New Ross to visit the Dunbrody Famine Ship. This is a replica of a sailing vessel built in 1845 to transport emigrants away from Ireland to a better life. The visit will give you an insight as to what life on board ship was like as well as filling you in on the history of the 1840's Famine. In nearby Waterford tour the House of Waterford Crystal for a demonstration of glass blowing and cutting and see some magnificent trophies on display. Continue along the south coast for your next overnight stay in Cork. (B, D)
Day 4: Blarney Castle & West Cork
A few miles outside Cork, visit Blarney Castle and climb to the battlements to kiss the famous “Stone of Eloquence.” Also visit the Blarney Woollen Mills where you can find quality Irish-made goods of all types, conveniently displayed under one roof. Drive along the lovely coast of Cork via Skibbereen to the attractive town of Kenmare. Stop at Moll's Gap for great views and continue along part of the Ring of Kerry route into Killarney. Check in to your hotel and relax before dinner. (B, D)
Day 5: Dingle Peninsula Tour & Killarney
Explore the scenic Dingle Peninsula, made famous by two movies - “Ryan's Daughter” and “Far & Away.” Admire views of heathery mountains, sandy beaches and rocky headlands. Pause in Dingle before continuing to the Blasket Centre in Dunquin to learn about the offshore Blasket Islands, inhabited until 1953 by hardy farming and fishing families. Return to Killarney and have time to relax or shop. After dinner you may like to visit local pubs featuring live music. (B, D)
Day 6: Flying Boat Museum & Cliffs of Moher
Travel north to Foynes Flying Boat Museum to learn about the early days of flight, during the 1930's and early 1940's, when aircraft landed on the River Shannon Estuary. Drive to the village of Bunratty and look around Durty Nelly's Pub or the Bunratty Folk Park. Head to the coast to view the Cliffs of Moher, an impressive wall of rock that rises 700 feet above the Atlantic Ocean. Continue to Galway for a panoramic city tour before checking in to your hotel, which overlooks Galway Bay. (B, D)
Day 7: “Quiet Man” Walking Tour & Connemara
Drive to Cong where “The Quiet Man” movie was made in 1952. A guided walk will show you places featured in the production. Travel through Connemara for sweeping views of misty mountains and shimmering lakes. Stop briefly at Kylemore Abbey Visitor Center before continuing to Clifden, a delightful market town set between the Twelve Pins Mountains and sandy bays. Return to your hotel to relax before dining in your hotel once again. (B, D)
Day 8: Country Life Museum & Belleek
Travel north to Castlebar to the Museum of Country Life which displays articles used in everyday life during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Continue to County Sligo and pause in Drumcliffe Churchyard at the grave of the writer, W. B. Yeats. Follow the shoreline of Donegal Bay to visit the Belleek Pottery Factory where craftspeople shape and decorate clay, creating the world-famous fine china. Continue your drive through the majestic Barnesmore Gap to Derry. Enjoy free time to relax or take a walk before dinner. (B, D)
Day 9: Derry Walk & Giant's Causeway
Join a local guide for a walking tour around the ancient city of Derry to see the Guildhall, St. Columb's Cathedral, the Diamond and the 16th century walls. Visit the award-winning Tower Museum. Drive along the north coast, stopping for photos at the ruined Dunluce Castle and explore the Giant's Causeway, huge hexagonal basalt columns formed over 60 million years ago. The oversized rocks have given rise to many legends. Return to Derry for leisure time. (B, D)
Day 10: Titanic Belfast & Cabra Castle
Drive to Belfast for a panoramic city tour followed by a visit to the newly-opened Titanic Belfast to learn about this famous liner through state-of-the-art displays. Travel to Kingscourt and your castle hotel, built in 1760. Arrive mid-afternoon so that you can enjoy the atmosphere and facilities of this lovely property and maybe play the 9-hole golf course. After dinner in the Court Restaurant, youthful dancers display intricate Irish step-dancing. (B, D)
Day 11: Dublin Open-Top Bus Tour
After a leisurely breakfast, drive to Dublin and check in around midday to a different Dublin hotel. The afternoon is free and you may use your vouchers for an open-top bus tour and Guinness or Jameson visit if you did not use them at the start of your trip. Dine independently at one of Dublin's great restaurants or create your own pub crawl through the nearby Temple Bar area.(B)
Day 12: Tour Ends Dublin Airport
Take a group transfer to Dublin Airport to arrive at 6:00 am, 9:00 am or 12:00 noon to check in for your flight. (B)
B: Breakfast; D: Dinner
Your Hotels:
Stay at the following (or similar):
- Davenport Hotel, Dublin (2 nights)
- River Lee Hotel, Cork (1 night)
- Killarney Plaza Hotel, Killarney (2 nights)
- Salthill Hotel, Galway (2 nights)
- City Hotel, Derry (2 nights)
- Cabra Castle Hotel, Kingscourt (1 night)
- Burlington Hotel, Dublin , Dublin (1 night)
