Irish Gold - 8 Days

Day 1: Dublin Tour & Book of Kells

Your holiday starts at your Dublin hotel at 2:00 pm when you meet your tour director. Head out to see Dublin’s main attractions including O’Connell Street, St. Stephen’s Green, the seat of government at Leinster House and other public buildings. View Dublin’s famous Georgian squares and elegant town houses with elaborate doorways. Pause at the Famine Memorial, a reminder of the mid-19th century disaster. Take a stroll through Trinity College’s campus in the centre of the city with a student guide and in the Old Library view the priceless 8^th century Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript of the four gospels. Your tour director will host a welcome drink with your fellow travellers and advise where to dine independently.

Day 2: Clonmacnoise Monastic Site & Galway City Tour

Travel to Clonmacnoise, a monastic settlement founded by St. Ciaran in 545 AD on the banks of the River Shannon. View round towers, elaborate Celtic crosses and church ruins. Drive to Galway, see the main sights and check into your hotel, located in the city centre. Enjoy some free time to stroll the city streets before dinner. (B, D)

Day 3: Connemara & Catamaran Cruise 

Today explore scenic Connemara to admire how constantly-changing cloud formations give granite hills, sparkling lakes and peat bogs an added dimension. While visually stunning, this area is not good for farming with many tracts of bogland and sturdy sheep that wander over the hills. Drive through the picturesque Inagh Valley to Leenane where you embark on a short catamaran cruise of Killary Harbour, a 9-mile fjord. Enjoy views of hills where traces of “lazy beds” of potato ridges from the 19th century and earlier can still be seen. Drive to Kylemore Abbey to tour elegant rooms in the mansion and the charming church, set beside a tranquil lake. Enjoy a casual lunch and savour more views of Connemara before returning to Galway where the evening is free to explore the city. (B, L)

Day 4: Cliffs of Moher , Sheepdogs & Jarvey's Irish Night

Travel south around Galway Bay and through the Burren, a region of rounded limestone hills which has a curious lunar-like appearance. Wild flowers thrive in the sheltered cracks and cattle thrive on the excellent pasture. In Caherconnell watch trained sheepdogs obey their owner as they direct sheep through various obstacles. On the coast view the Cliffs of Moher, which rise almost 215m above the pounding Atlantic surf. Walk to O’Brien’s Tower at the highest point for great views of the Aran Islands and Connemara. Drive south to take a ferry across the River Shannon Estuary and head to Killarney, a little town that is world-famous due to its exquisite location beside lakes and mountains. Check in to your hotel in the centre of the town and head to Jarvey’s Irish Night for a lively show with dinner. (B, D)

Day 5: Ring of Kerry & Muckross House

Set out on Ireland’s most popular scenic drive – the Ring of Kerry. The variety of scenery in such a small area will amaze you and there will be plenty of photo opportunities. The road winds between the Macgillycuddy’s Reeks, Ireland’s highest mountains, and the heavily-indented Atlantic coastline. Cross to Valentia Island by bridge and tour the Skellig Experience to learn about the rocky offshore islands where early Christian monks lived. Savour a light lunch and continue along the scenic route, stopping in the village of Sneem and also at Moll’s Gap for panoramic mountain views. Take a horse-drawn jaunting car ride through the Killarney National Park to Muckross House for a guided tour to see period furnishings and learn about its history. Stroll through the mature gardens before returning to Killarney where the evening is free for independent dining or checking out some of the pubs with live music. (B, D)

Day 6: Blarney Castle & Traditional Music Session

Drive through the mountains into richer farming country on the way to Blarney. Climb to the ramparts of Blarney Castle to kiss the famous stone or, if you don’t feel like a climb, take a gentle walk through the lovely parklands and colourful gardens. Shop for Irish-made goods at the Blarney Woollen Mills before traveling along the coast to the Marine Bar in Dungarvan for a creamy Irish coffee and informal traditional music. Continue to Waterford and check into your historic hotel, located on the waterfront of this ancient port city. After dinner, join a local guide for a fun walking tour through the narrow streets of the old city to discover Waterford’s long history and some of its colourful characters. (B, D)

Day 7: Waterford Crystal & O’Connell’s Restaurant

After breakfast tour the House of Waterford Crystal to watch glass blowing and cutting by master craftspeople and see a huge display of elegant tableware and magnificent trophies. In New Ross tour the Dunbrody Famine Ship, a replica of a sailing vessel that was used during the 1840’s Famine to transport starving Irish people to the United States and Canada. Travel along the east coast to your hotel in Dublin and in the evening drive to O’Connell’s Restaurant for a superb dinner and some live music. (B, D)

Day 8: Depart for Home 

Your tour ends after breakfast. (B)

B: Breakfast; L: Lunch; D: Dinner

Highlights

• Jarvey's Irish Night
• O’Connell’s Restaurant in Dublin
• Blarney Castle
• Killary Fjord Catamaran Cruise
• Cliffs of Moher
• Jaunting Car Ride
• Waterford Crystal

Tour Includes

8 days/7 nights/13 meals

• Sightseeing by luxury coach
• Professional tour director
• 7 nights in hotels listed
• Full breakfast daily (B) except on day 1
• 5 dinners (D) including
• - Jarvey’s Irish Night
• - O'Connell's Restaurant in Dublin
• - 3 table d'hote dinners
• 2 Lunches (L)
• Welcome get-together drink
• Tours of Dublin
• Walking tours of Dublin’s Trinity College, Galway and Waterford
• Killary Fjord catamaran cruise
• Sheepdog trials at Caherconnell
• Horse-drawn jaunting car ride in Killarney
• Irish coffee and music session at the Marine Bar in Dungarvan
• Visits and admissions to Book of Kells at Trinity College, Clonmacnoise Monastic Site, Kylemore Abbey, Cliffs of Moher, Muckross House & Gardens, Skellig Experience, Blarney Castle, Blarney Woollen Mills, House of Waterford Crystal and Waterford’s Medieval Museum
• Headsets for walking tours
• Deluxe carry-on backpack, ticket wallet, luggage tags & strap
• All local taxes, hotel service charges & porterage for one suitcase per person
• Free Wi-Fi on coaches and in hotel lobbies

Hotels

Deluxe & Superior First Class

• Royal Marine Hotel, Dun Laoghaire, Dublin (1 night)
• Radisson Blu Hotel, Galway (2 nights)
• Malton Hotel, Killarney (2 nights)
• Granville Hotel, Waterford (1 night)
• Doubletree by Hilton Hotel, Dublin (1 or 2 nights)