Northern Embrace

Céad míle fáilte! Welcome to Ireland. Your driver will be waiting for you in the arrivals hall to transport you to your city center hotel! Relax and enjoy the short trip. Depending on your arrival time, your room may not be ready but worry not—there is plenty to do! A short walk away is Temple Bar, Grafton Street and St. Stephen’s Green. 

Highlights (Included): Hop-On Hop Off City Sightseeing tour (doing this first gives you a great orientation of the city), Guinness Storehouse, EPIC Emigration Museum, and Trinity College Book of Kells exhibit. 

Overnight in Dublin

“Rock and Stroll” today and savor Dublin’s coastal views and some of its music history. Take the DART train out to Dalkey, known affectionately as Ireland’s Italian Riviera! Some famous musicians reside in the area such as Bono and Enya. On the way back to the city, visit the famous studios that U2 recorded in. Experience what it would be like to record and maybe even mix your own session. 

Highlights (Included): Literary Pub Crawl.
Highlights (Optional): Windmill Lane Recording Studio, Merry Ploughboys Traditional Irish Dinner & Show.

Overnight in Dublin

Heading North today, not far from Belfast is Hillsborough castle. An official UK government and Royal residence, it even had some modern history here with peace talks leading to the Anglo Irish Agreement, a precursor to the Good Friday Agreement that led to peace on the island. Learn both sides of the story when you get into Belfast with a Black Cab Taxi Tour. You can even sign the peace wall! A walking food tour will introduce you to some of the city’s delights! Finish with a local gin or whiskey in the Crown Bar, a Victorian Gin Palace. Slåinte!

Highlights (Included): Hillsborough Castle, Belfast Black Taxi Tour, Belfast Food Tour. 

Overnight in Belfast 

Walk in the footsteps of giants at the Giant’s Causeway today! Climb the hilltop trail to get a birds eye view of the causeway coast. At the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, Go Beyond the Bridge with a special tour (must be pre-booked) of the island on the other side of the bridge. It’s an experience that you will never forget! For the whiskey connoisseur, leave a little time to call into Bushmills Distillery, the oldest licensed distillery in the world. 

Highlights (Included): Giant’s Causeway Boat Trip from Ballycastle
Highlights (Optional): Beyond the Bridge Experience

Overnight in Belfast  

Departing Belfast today, you’ll head northwest to Derry, Ireland’s only walled city. On a tour of the walls you’ll learn all about this great city which has a scarred past from which it is emerging. A visit to the Museum of Free Derry is a must- you’ll meet descendants of people that were killed in one of the defining events of what was known in Ireland as “The Troubles.” For fans of the TV show Derry Girls, they have their own mural! 

Highlights (Included): Derry City Walled Tour.
Highlights (Optional): Museum of Free Derry, Derry Girls Tour, Unlock the Walled City Experience.

Overnight in Derry 

Explore more of the northwest today. Your next stop is Donegal in the Republic of Ireland. Witness the craft and skill that has gone into Donegal tweed for generations in the local shops and see where Sarah Jessica Parker has shopped on her annual trips to Donegal! 

Highlights (Optional): Donegal Castle, Glenveagh National Park, Triona Irish Design Store.

Overnight in Donegal 

Soak up the beauty of  the lesser known cliffs at Slieve League today. Higher than the Cliffs of Moher at 596 meters, Slieve League is a mountain on the Atlantic coast with truly spectacular views. If you feel energetic today, there are many walking routes that you can take to discover this point on the Wild Atlantic Way. 

Highlights (Included): Sliabh Liag Guided Tour.
Highlights (Optional): Glencolmcille Folk Village.

Overnight in Donegal 

Arriving into Westport, take a coast road drive around Croagh Patrick, Ireland’s holiest mountain. An ancient pilgrimage site, some of the regular pilgrimage days attract 1 million people. Visit the pride of Westport, Westport House, and see what life was like living in a  “Big House.” Enjoy the tracks and trails and feel the thrill of having a hawk flying down to land on your hand. All that fresh air should whet your appetite for some great food tonight and perhaps a Westport Food Tour.

Highlights (Included): Westport House.
Highlights (Optional): Hawk Walk, cycle the Great Western Greenway, Westport Food Tour, Ceide Fields.

Overnight in Westport 

Visit the quaint little village of Cong, Co. Mayo as you drive toward Clare. Famous for one of the quintessential Irish movies, The Quiet Man starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara. Visit the cottage museum and feel like you’re on the set of the movie. Be enchanted by the spectacle of a medieval banquet- eating with your hands has never been such fun! 

Highlights (Optional): Bunratty Castle Medieval Banquet and admission to Bunratty Folk Park

Overnight in Clare

Discover more of Clare today with the imposing Cliffs of Moher. On a sunny day, it’s spectacular, and on a rainy day it’s mystical—so a winner all around. Drive out to some of the lovely little seaside towns like Doolin, Spanish Point or Lisdoonvarna, where you can enjoy some of the local Burren Smokehouse Salmon. 

Highlights (Optional): Day trip to Inis Mor from Doolin.

Overnight in Clare 

Say “Slån” to Ireland today. Make your way to Shannon Airport to fly home with memories that will last a lifetime and a desire to return and see more of what Ireland has to offer!

(Breakfast included)