Irish Classic Tour – 12 days /11 nights

[wptabs style=”wpui-green” mode=”horizontal”] [wptabtitle] <big>Irish Classic Tour </big> [/wptabtitle] [wptabcontent]

This Classic Escorted Coach tour of Ireland Includes 12 days/11 nights & 21 meals 

Highlights:
Bunratty Castle Medieval Banquet
Taylor’s Three Rock Pub
Giant’s Causeway
Sheepdog TrialsWalking Tours of Waterford & Derry
Jaunting Car Ride

Hotels:
Superior First Class
Radisson Blu St. Helens, Dublin (1 night)
Hilton Belfast Hotel, Belfast (2 nights)
City Hotel, Derry (1 night)
Hotel Westport, Westport (2 nights)
Bunratty Castle Hotel, Bunratty (1 night)
Killarney Plaza Hotel, Killarney (2 nights)
Granville Hotel, Waterford (1 night)
Royal Marine Hotel, Dun Laoghaire, Dublin     (1 night)

Tour Includes:
Sightseeing by luxury coach
Professional tour director
11 nights in hotels listed
Full breakfast daily (B) except on day 1
7 dinners (D) including
– Bunratty Castle Medieval Banquet
– Taylor’s Three Rock Pub dinner and traditional show
– 5 table d’hote dinners
2 lunches (L)
Welcome get-together drink
Tours of Dublin and Belfast
Walking tours of Belfast, Derry, Galway and Waterford with local guides
Killary Fjord catamaran cruise
“The Quiet Man” walking tour of Cong
Horse-drawn jaunting car ride in Killarney
Sheepdog trails on Ring of Kerry
Irish coffee and music session at the Marine Bar in Dungarvan
Visits and admissions to Dublin Castle, Down Cathedral, St. Patrick Centre, Ulster Folk Park, Titanic Belfast, Giant’s Causeway, Donegal Castle, W. B. Yeats’ Grave, Ballintubber Abbey, Cliffs of Moher, Blarney Castle, Blarney Woollen Mills, House of Waterford Crystal, Dunbrody Famine Ship and JFK Homestead
Headsets for walking tours
Deluxe carry-on backpack, ticket wallet, luggage tags & strap

[/wptabcontent] [wptabtitle] <big>Tour Pricing</big>  [/wptabtitle] [wptabcontent]

[/wptabcontent] [wptabtitle] <big>Tour Itinerary</big>  [/wptabtitle] [wptabcontent]

2015 Irish Classic 12 Days / 11 Nights

Day 1: Dublin Arrival & Dublin Castle
Your Irish trip starts at 2:00 pm when you meet your tour guide at your Dublin hotel. Tour Dublin to see elegant Georgian townhouses, pass St. Stephen’s Green and cross the River Liffey to view the Famine Memorial and drive along O’Connell Street. Take a guided tour through Dublin Castle, which was the seat of power and government for many centuries. In the evening meet your tour director over a welcome drink to discuss your trip.

Day 2: St. Patrick’s Grave & Ulster Folk Park
Drive north to visit Down Cathedral to see St. Patrick’s reputed burial site, marked by a huge boulder. Learn about the many stories of his work, life and times in the nearby St. Patrick Centre. On the outskirts of Belfast visit the Ulster Folk Park to see traditional town buildings of many types, including churches, a bank, police station and doctor’s office. Also see rural cottages showing gardens, crafts, crops and farm animals. Drive to your hotel in central Belfast and relax before dinner.
(B,D)

Day 3: Titanic Belfast & Walking Tour
This morning take a panoramic tour around central Belfast to see Victorian buildings, the imposing City Hall in Donegall Square and the shipyards where RMS Titanic was built in 1912. Visit Titanic Belfast to learn about this ill-fated famous liner through state-of-the-art displays. In the afternoon join a local guide for a walking tour around part of central Belfast and spend time on your own for shopping and dining.
(B)

Day 4: Giant’s Causeway & Derry Walk
Drive north along the Nine Glens of Antrim, for lovely views of mountains, valleys and coastline. This scenic region is where “Game of Thrones” is filmed. Stop at the Giant’s Causeway, enormous hexagonal columns formed by volcanic activity 60 million years ago. Continue to Derry and join a local guide for a short walking tour around the defensive walls that encircle the compact old city.
(B,D)

Day 5: Donegal Castle & Westport
Travel through the rugged countryside of Donegal, renowned for heathery hills, sheep and the many tweeds made from their wool. Stop in Donegal town for a tour of Donegal Castle, built by the O’Donnell chieftain in the 15th century and expanded in the 17th century. Drive around Donegal Bay and pause at W. B. Yeats’ Grave in Sligo, a region that he loved to write about. Drive to Westport and enjoy free time before dinner.
(B,D)

Day 6: Connemara Catamaran Cruise & “The Quiet Man” Walk
Travel through Connemara to Leenane and embark on a catamaran cruise around Killary Harbour, Ireland’s only fjord. See remains of houses and potato patches abandoned during the 1840’s Famine as well as stunning scenery. Enjoy a light lunch and take a walking tour around Cong to see movie locations of the 1952 production of “The Quiet Man”. Use free time in Westport to browse around the town and dine independently.
(B,L)

Day 7: Cliffs of Moher & Bunratty Banquet
Visit Ballintubber Abbey, used for worship continually for 700 years. Travel through the heart of Connemara to Galway for a guided walking tour around the city center. Drive through the Burren to view the majestic Cliffs of Moher, which rise 700 feet above the foaming Atlantic Ocean. At Bunratty check in to your hotel, right beside the Bunratty Folk Park and Durty Nelly’s Pub. Head to Bunratty Castle for a jolly medieval-style dinner where the lords and ladies serenade you.
(B,D)

Day 8: Literary Tea with Scones & Dingle Peninsula
Drive through the outskirts of Limerick and alongside the River Shannon into County Kerry. Sample tea and scones in a pub in Listowel, associated with the writer, J. B. Keane. Journey along the Dingle Peninsula for glorious scenic views of hills and coastline. Drive to Slea Head at the westernmost point and stop in the town of Dingle before heading to Killarney.
(B,D)

Day 9: Killarney’s Lakes & Jaunting Car Ride
Take a traditional horse-drawn jaunting car ride to Ross Castle for views of Lough Leane, Killarney’s largest lake. Drive to the delightful town of Kenmare and savor a casual pub lunch. Travel along part of the awesome Ring of Kerry route to view spectacular mountain scenery at Moll’s Gap and visit a farm to watch trained dogs herding sheep. The evening is free in Killarney.
(B,L)

Day 10: Blarney Castle & Traditional Music
Travel to Blarney Castle to climb to the top and kiss the famous “Stone of Eloquence.” Also shop at the Blarney Woollen Mills. Drive to Dungarvan to the Marine Bar for a creamy Irish coffee and an informal traditional music session. Continue to Waterford and after dinner join a local guide for a stroll around the historic streets of this old port city.
(B,D)

Day 11: Waterford & Taylor’s Three Rock
Visit the House of Waterford Crystal to see how molten glass is blown into shapes before being hand-cut by experts and view priceless trophies. In New Ross explore the Dunbrody Famine Ship which transported people to North America during the 1940’s Famine. Stop at the nearby JFK Homestead where the ancestors of President Kennedy lived. In Dublin, this evening’s destination is Taylor’s Three Rock Pub for dinner with traditional Irish songs and intricate step-dancing.
(B,D)

Day 12: Tour Ends
Your program ends after breakfast.
(B)

B: Breakfast; L: Lunch; D: Dinner

[/wptabcontent] [wptabtitle] <big>Tour  Highlights </big>[/wptabtitle] [wptabcontent]

Cliffs of Moher 
The Cliffs of Moher, one of Ireland’s top visitor attractions, loom high over County Clare’s west coast. Standing 214 metres at their highest point, the cliffs stretch for 8km along the Atlantic coastline. From the cliffs, one can see the Aran Islands, Galway Bay, The Twelve Bens, the Maam Turk Mountains in Connemara and Loop Head to the south. O’Brien’s Tower, another of Ireland’s most photographed landmarks, guards one prominent headland of these majestic cliffs. The Burren and Cliffs of Moher region of north Clare has been awarded the prestigious designation of membership of the UNESCO supported Global Geopark network at the 10th European Geoparks Conference in Langesund, Norway. This iconic location attracts close to one million visitors per year.
The unusual, underground visitor centre also houses the exciting Atlantic Edge display.
This huge, domed cave contains images, exhibits and displays. The centre also has a gift shop stocking official Cliffs of Moher products, maps, guides, books and DVDs, visitor information and an accommodation booking service. Other facilities of this fully wheelchair accessible premises include a baggage store and ATM. Friendly staff will answer questions, provide assistance, give information on and directions to other attractions in the area.

Belfast Titanic Exhibition  
The newly-opened Titanic Belfast is a “must see” visit in any tour of Belfast and Northern Ireland. It is located in the heart of Belfast, right beside the historic site of this world-famous ship’s construction. Housed in an iconic, 6-floor building, this state-of-the-art visitor experience tells the story of the Titanic, from her conception in Belfast in the early 1900s, through her construction and launch, to her famous maiden voyage and tragic end. The adventure begins the moment you walk through the door and into the building’s giant atrium surrounded by the four ‘ship’s hull’ shaped wings which house the Titanic Experience. As you journey through the nine large galleries of this state-of-the-art interactive exhibition, you will uncover the true story of the Titanic.

Giants Causeway 
The Giant’s Causeway is Northern Ireland’s most famous landmark and has been an official Unesco World Heritage Site since 1986. Formed between 50 and 60 million years ago, the ’causeway’ takes its name from the legends of Finn MacCool and draws people from far and wide to this corner of north Antrim. Whether you are just researching about Ireland or planning an Ireland vacation, The Giants Causeway is a must see! The north Antrim coastline in renowned for its scenic beauty and the Giant’s Causeway is its unique jewel in the crown, known to the Irish as the 8th Wonder of the World. A jagged promontory of neatly packed columns of hexagonal basalt rocks created some 6 million years ago by a flow of basaltic lava. As the lava cooled it formed these distinctive hexagonal shapes just as the bottom of a dried riverbed would crack into shapes

Tour Includes:
Sightseeing by luxury coach
Professional tour director
11 nights in hotels listed
Full breakfast daily (B) except on day 1
7 dinners (D) including
– Bunratty Castle Medieval Banquet
– Taylor’s Three Rock Pub dinner and traditional show
– 5 table d’hote dinners
2 lunches (L)
Welcome get-together drink
Tours of Dublin and Belfast
Walking tours of Belfast, Derry, Galway and Waterford with local guides
Killary Fjord catamaran cruise
“The Quiet Man” walking tour of Cong
Horse-drawn jaunting car ride in Killarney
Sheepdog trails on Ring of Kerry
Irish coffee and music session at the Marine Bar in Dungarvan
Visits and admissions to Dublin Castle, Down Cathedral, St. Patrick Centre, Ulster Folk Park, Titanic Belfast, Giant’s Causeway, Donegal Castle, W. B. Yeats’ Grave, Ballintubber Abbey, Cliffs of Moher, Blarney Castle, Blarney Woollen Mills, House of Waterford Crystal, Dunbrody Famine Ship and JFK Homestead
Headsets for walking tours
Deluxe carry-on backpack, ticket wallet, luggage tags & strap

Have you decided that an Irish bus tour isn’t for you? Check out our dedicated golf site for other options. Or else, check out our car tours for more open ended itineraries.

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