Superior & First Class Hotels/B&Bs - 9 Day Coach Tour
Experience a wide range of sightseeing activities in popular regions around the southern half of Ireland on this 10-day tour. Attractions and activities are balanced with time for individual pursuits. All superior and first class hotels offer high standards of comfort and excellent meals and a two night stay in especially selected farmhouses will enhance your knowledge of Ireland and its people.
Day 1: Dublin Tour
& Kilmainham Gaol
Once your flight has landed at Dublin Airport you will recieve a transfer to
your hotel between 7:00 am and 12:00 noon. Should your flight arrive outside of these times, you will need to arrange your own transport.
At 2:00 pm, meet your tour guide for a tour of Dublin. On the tour you will get a chance to view the River Liffey, O'Connell Street and the famous St. Stephen's Green. Visit the Irish Famine Memorial before heading to Leinster House and various other public
buildings. Visit Georgian houses before heading to Kilmainham Gaol - this is
where many of Ireland’s most influencial leaders, including Robert Emmett, Eamon DeValera and
Padraig Pearse, were imprisoned.
Enjoy a welcome drink on return to your hotel.
Day 2: Boyne Valley
Tombs & Irish Pub Dinner
On the second day, you will drive north of Dublin until the Boyne Valley
Visitor Centre is reached. Here you can learn about the passage burial tombs of Newgrange and Knowth.
You will have a free afternoon once you reach Dublin. Why not use your voucher and take the open top bus tour around Dublin? Included is a visit to Guinness or Jameson.
In the
evening you will head to an Irish pub where you'll enjoy a dinner followed by an Irish coffee. Later you will be treated to a night of traditional Irish songs
and step-dancing. (B, D)
Day 3: National Stud
& Medieval Kilkenny
On the third day you will depart Dublin this morning before travelling to Kildare for a visit
to the Irish National Stud & Japanese Gardens.
Travel to the medieval city of Kilkenny before checking into your hotel. Explore the city in your free time before dinner. (B, D)
Day 4: Titanic Tour
& Blarney Castle
Today you will travel south and stop at the Rock of Cashel. Onwards to Cobh, where you will take part in a “Titanic” walking tour where you can learn all about the ill fated liner who made it's final stop in Cobh.
Drive to Blarney and visit Blarney Castle where you can kiss the famous Blarney stone. A visit to the Blarney Woollen Mills where they sell various beuaitiful Irish products is a must.
Next you will drive through Macroom and on to Killarney. Check in to your
hotel before dinner (B, D)
Day 5: Dingle
Peninsula Tour
On the fifth day you will explore the Dingle Peninsula which was made famous by
two movies, “Ryan’s Daughter” and “Far & Away.” You will have time to take a break in Dingle before
continuing to the Blasket Centre in Dunquin. Here you will learn about the Blasket
Islands which was inhabited up to1953.
You will then return to Killarney where you will have some free time to take a
jaunting car ride or explore the town before sitting down to dinner. (B, D)
Day 6: Flying Boat
Museum & Cliffs of Moher
On day 6 you will drive north through Listowel and along by the River Shannon
to Foynes. Here you will find the Flying Boat
Museum which is dedicated to the early days of air travel during the 1930’s
and 1940’s.
Travel around the outskirts of Limerick and look around Bunratty Village
before heading to the Cliffs of Moher. Drive through the
Burren before taking a tour of central Galway. Check into your hotel which overlooks Galway Bay and the Aran Islands before heading to dinner later that evening. (B, D)
Day 7: Aran Islands
& Dun Aengus
Day 7 will include a short ferry ride from Rossaveal to Inis Mor which is the
largest of the three Aran Islands. (Depatures on Apr 13 – Oct 19 only). Learn all about the lifestyle it's inhabitants endured here. The Irish language can still be heard here.
Next you will take a minibus
ride to Dun Aengus. When you reach Kilronan which is the main town, you will have time to visit the Aran
Heritage Centre. Learn all about the unique local customs before taking a ferry ride back to the
mainland. For departures outside the dates of April 13th to Oct 19th, you will be able to enjoy the
“Quiet Man” walking tour of Cong instead plus a drive around Connemara where you are free to stop in
Leenane and Clifden. (B, D)
Day 8: Strokestown
Park House & Dunboyne Castle
On the second last day of the tyour you will travel to the midlands of Ireland to visit Strokestown Park
House which is situated in County Roscommon. There are three parts to see – first you may enjoy the 18th century
mansion, then you will have the four-acre walled garden, and finally you may visit the Famine Museum,
which explains the circumstances of the Great Irish Famine in the 1840’s.
You will then drive to the village of Dunboyne,
on the outskirts of Dublin. Check in to your hotel before enjoying a farewell meal followed by entertainment.(B, D)
Day 9: Return Home
from Dublin
Group transfers to Dublin Airport can be arranged for 6:00 am, 9:00 am or 12:00 noon. (B)
B=Breakfast, D=Dinner
Hotels on this trip
- Royal Marine Hotel, Dun Laoghaire, Dublin (2 nights)
- Ormonde Hotel, Kilkenny (1 night)
- Killarney Towers Hotel, Killarney (2 nights)
- Salthill Hotel, Galway (2 nights)
- Dunboyne Castle Hotel, Dunboyne (1 night)
|
