Please find below our annual "traditional" tour :





TOUR TO IRELAND

Day 1 - Sunday  – Arrival into Dublin

 On arrival at Dublin airport this morning , meet your driver guide in the arrivals hall for your transfer to Dublin city.

 You will be met and assisted by a ‘Meet & Greet service with porterage at Dublin airport inside the secured area of Dublin Airport.

 Travel from the airport to Dublin City - Dublin is where you will find the profound, high-speed changes transforming Ireland into a prosperous, venturesome European country. 

 Check in the hotel & enjoy tea and scones followed by some time to relax and freshen up.

 At 3.30pm, you will depart the hotel and your driver will give you a short orientation tour of the city, enroute to the Guinness Storehouse. At 4.00pm visit the Guinness Storehouse located in the heart of the Guinness brewery in Dublin.

 Return to hotel for dinner at 7.00pm and overnight.

Day 2 - Monday – Dublin Castle & Bru Na Boinne, Co. Meath.

Today after breakfast you will embark on an exploration of Dublin city with a local tour guide at 09.00am. On your panoramic city tour you will experience all the wonderful sights and landmarks of this ancient city and you will pass some of Dublin’s most renowned sites, such as St Patrick’s Cathedral and Christchurch Cathedral.

At 11.00am visit the State apartments at Dublin Castle - originally built in the 13th century on a site previously settled by the Vikings it functioned as a military fortress, a prison, treasury, courts of law and the seat of English Administration in Ireland for 700 years.

Enjoy some free time for lunch after your city tour. At 1.30pm depart Dublin & travel to the Boyne Valley in Co. Meath to visit the Bru Na Boinne Visitor Centre at 3.00pm. Brú Na Bóinne Visitor Centre interprets the Neolithic monuments of Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth. The extensive exhibition includes a full scale replica of the chamber at Newgrange as well as a full model of one of the smaller tombs at Knowth. All admission to Newgrange and Knowth is through the Visitor Centre, there is no direct access to these monuments.

At 4.30pm, the group will visit Knowth (Instead of using the shuttles the driver will transfer the group in their own coach from the centre over to Knowth) - Knowth is the largest of the Boyne Valley passage tombs and dates to circa 3000BC.
Return to Dublin City for your evening at leisure & overnight .

Day 3 - Tuesday  – Wicklow Tour

After breakfast today, travel south from Dublin, along the coast with fine views of the indented coastline travelling into County Wicklow. Traditionally know as the 'Garden of Ireland' because of its beauty and abundance of greenery beautifully set off against the backdrop of the Great Sugar Loaf Mountain. 

Visit Glendalough Visitor Centre at 11.00am - This early Christian ecclesiastical settlement was founded by St. Kevin in the 6th century. Set in a glaciated valley with two lakes, the monastic remains include a superb round tower, stone churches and decorated crosses. The Visitor Centre has an interesting exhibition and an audio-visual show. The Visitor Centre is fully accessible for visitors with disabilities but access to the graveyard is very difficult for wheelchair users.

Afterwards visit Powerscourt Gardens - One of the world’s great gardens, Powerscourt is situated 12 miles south of Dublin in the foothills of the Wicklow Mountains.

Return to Dublin city for your evening at leisure.

Day 4 - Wednesday – Dublin to Kildare & Cork

This morning after breakfast drive south to County Kildare where you will visit Newbridge Silverware Showrooms & Museum. On offer and display is the most extensive collection of Newbridge Silverware product worldwide including cutlery, glassware, giftware, kitchenware, earthenware, homeware and jewellery. The Newbridge Silverware showrooms are home to the Newbridge Silverware factory where for 70 years craft workers have been producing the famous cutlery and jewellery.

Afterwards you will visit the National Stud and Japanese Gardens. The world famous Japanese Gardens are situated 45km south of Dublin off the M7 & R415 just outside Kildare Town in the 1,000 acre Tully estate, now known as The Irish National Stud.
Continue to Cork to check into the hotel for dinner at 7.00pm and overnight.

 Day 5 - Thursday  – Cork & Midleton Tour

 Enjoy breakfast before exploring Cork City. Cork City is Ireland’s second biggest city after Dublin and built like Venice upon the waters with the centre on an island.

Travel outside Cork city to Cobh, a unique Irish Port Town. Cobh is situated on the southern shore of the Great Island in one of the world’s finest natural harbours.

Visit the "Queenstown Experience" at the Cobh Heritage Centre (located in the old Cobh Railway Station). It has permanent exhibitions of Irish history. It provides information on life in Ireland through the 18th and 19th centuries, the mass emigration, the Great Famine, and on how criminals were transported to Australia for petty crimes. It also has an exhibition on the history of the RMS Titanic, whose last port of call (before it sank) was Cobh (then called Queenstown).

In the afternoon travel to Midleton to visit the Old Midleton Distillery - A tour of the Old Midleton Distillery is a journey through the story of Irish whiskey by means of an audio-visual presentation (available in 8 languages).

Return for overnight in Cork & your evening at leisure.

 Day 6 - Friday  – Millstreet Country Park & Tralee.

 After breakfast depart hotel and visit the Millstreet Country Park – an Eco park - fully wheelchair accessible..
 On arrival at the centre, you will be escorted the Parks Transport Vehicles (wheelchair accessible). These comfortable open sided vehicles driven by friendly local guides make frequent trips along preplanned trails and visitors may alight or embark from various points in the Park. By this process it is possible to explore the entire Park on wheels.

Proceed to Tralee the gateway to the beautiful and rugged Dingle Peninsula with its wonderful clean beaches. The town itself has a large selection of gift shops, pubs offering traditional Irish music and award winning restaurants.

Enjoy dinner and overnight in Tralee.

Day 7 - Saturday  – Dingle Peninsula Tour

After breakfast this morning, you will tour the Dingle Peninsula..

Return for overnight  in Tralee.

Day 8 - Sunday – Mini Ring of Kerry

This morning after breakfast, you will tour the Mini Ring of Kerry which is renowned for its landscape, panoramic views and also for the warmth of its people whom you meet as you travel.

Travel through the town of Killarney in Co. Kerry.  Its world famous National Park and Muckross House & Gardens offer wonderful experiences never to be forgotten. Killarney is truly - ‘A place for all Seasons’.
 Visit Muckross House & Gardens – Within Killarney National Park is Muckross House, a magnificent Victorian mansion and one of Ireland s leading stately homes.
Continue on your tour of the Ring of Kerry, a popular tourist route around the Iveragh Peninsula which takes you through picturesque Irish towns and villages seeing amazing scenery along the way. Beautiful mountainous and coastline countryside with many lakes and untouched beaches are waiting to be discovered. Along the way you will also be treated to views of miscellaneous castle ruins and ancient monuments present in the places, standing stones and many archeological sites. The Ring will also take you through a large section of the Killarney National Park and provides you with stops at Ladies View, the perfect place to see the stunning Killarney lakes, surrounded with some very twisty roads. The Ring of Kerry will give you a perfect image of Southwest Ireland's countryside, culture and heritage.

Return for dinner at 7.00pm and overnight in Tralee.

Day 9 - Monday  – Tralee to Galway

This morning after breakfast you will travel northwards to Bunraty Castle ..

Continue northwards to visit the Cliffs of Moher, looming over County Clare's west coast & stretching for 8 kilometres and 214 metres over the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Unchanged for millennia the landscape of the Cliffs of Moher has, for centuries, welcomed visitors who come to marvel at their splendour and be at one with nature.

 Travel through the Burren - a vast, bare, eerie limestone plateau which covers much of Co Clare and is gradually being established as a national park. 

Continue to Galway City which is the focal point of Co. Galway and the west of Ireland. 

Dinner at 7.00pm and overnight in Galway

Day 10 - Tuesday  – Connemara Tour

Enjoy a full Irish breakfast and afterwards you will tour the beautiful Connemara countryside, made famous by the John Wayne movie - The Quiet Man. 

Enjoy a boat trip at Killary Harbour (Ireland's only Fjord) with Killary Cruises - No visit to Connemara would be complete without a visit to Killary Fjord.

Return to Galway . Your evening at your leisure.

Day 11 - Wednesday  – Galway to Dublin.

After breakfast depart Galway and travel eastwards to Dublin City.

At 10.30am, visit the Dartfield Horse Museum in Loughrea, County Galway, the only museum in the world dedicated to Irish horses, Connemara Ponies and Irish dogs, and their contribution to Irish society throughout the years. Bright and spacious, the museum features exhibits on all aspects of Irish country life from 1800 to 1900 as well as veteran cars from 1901 to 1930.
Possibly stop off for some free time in Athlone or continue directly to Dublin.

Arrive into Dublin for free time & check into your hotel .

 Day 12 - Thursday  – Depart from Dublin Airport.

 Alas it is time to bid farewell to Ireland. The group will be transferred to Dublin Airport towards afternoon.

Slan Abhaile (Safe Home).