Irish Experience
Experience Overview
Explore all the best the Emerald Isle has to offer on your trip filled with tales of mythical creatures and the troubled history of an island split in two. Beyond soul-stirring landscapes, there’s time with a local ‘Cabbie’ who’ll guide you through Belfast.
Highlights
Dining Summary
- 5 Dinner (D)
- 10 Breakfast (B)
- 1 Lunch (L)
Be My Guest
- Ballycastle: Join your hosts, the Cole family, at their home, Broughgammon Farm near Ballycastle, where you'll enjoy farm life and a delicious meal of local favorites.
Brendan Experiences
- Londonderry: With a Local Specialist explore inside the city walls. See the Gothic Guildhall and the Georgian houses of Shipquay Street.
Dive Into Culture
- Belfast: Experience Belfast from the comfort of your dedicated Black Cab with expert 'Cabbie' commentary.
- Belfast: Discover the full story of the Titanic at the Titanic Belfast visitor attraction and monument in Belfast.
- Belleek: See traditional craftsmen at work at the Belleek Pottery Visitor Center, one of the oldest working potteries in the world.
- Waterford: Learn how crystal is crafted at the House of Waterford Crystal during a workshop tour.
- New Ross: Explore the tragic history of Ireland's famine emigration at the Dunbrody Famine Ship Experience, a replica of one of the original ships used in the 1800s.
Iconic Experience
- Dublin: A Local Specialist will show you Dublin's elegant Georgian squares, O'Connell Street and the Custom House.
- Kylemore: Visit the turreted Neo-Gothic Kylemore Abbey. This monastery was founded in 1920 for Benedictine Nuns who fled Belgium in World War I.
- Galway: Explore the historic heart of Galway. See landmarks such as the Spanish Arch and the cathedral, or perhaps admire the distinctive Claddagh rings.
- Cliffs of Moher: Towering cliffs and the dramatic sea, the Cliffs of Moher has inspired countless travelers. Visit the Exhibition Center and look out over the Wild Atlantic Way from these majestic cliffs that rise over 700 feet high. Gain insights from your Travel Director into the cliffs’ geology, history and the species that find sanctuary in its nooks and crannies.
- Blarney: It is said that those who kiss the Blarney Stone, the famous stone of eloquence, are bestowed with the power to persuade, flatter and coax. Take your turn at giving it a peck knowing that the stone was sourced from 330-million-year-old limestone.
- New Ross: Visit the port town of New Ross. On the quayside, perhaps see the Dunbrody replica famine ship and statue of John F. Kennedy.
MAKE TRAVEL MATTER®
- Bushmills: In Northern Ireland you'll discover the legend of the Giant's Causeway as you explore and learn about this iconic natural landmark. Your visit directly supports United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities.
Must-see Highlights
- Explore Dublin, Belfast and Londonderry with a Local Specialist
- Discover Galway and Waterford
- Visit St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, the Titanic Experience in Belfast, the UNESCO World Heritage site at the Giant's Causeway, Belleek to see how the famous pottery is made, Kylemore Abbey, the Cliffs of Moher, Blarney Castle to kiss the stone and gain the 'gift of the gab', the Crystal Showroom at Waterford and the Dunbrody Famine Ship in New Ross
- View the City Walls and Murals of Londonderry
- See Galway Cathedral
- Scenic Cruise across the Shannon Estuary
- Scenic Drive through Connemara and along the Ring of Kerry
Top Rated Highlights
- Ring of Kerry: Admire Ireland's enduring scenic beauty on one of the most beautiful drives in the world.
What's Included
- An expert Travel Director and professional Driver
- Cherry-picked hotels, all tried and trusted
- All porterage and restaurant gratuities
- All hotel tips, charges and local taxes
- Breakfast daily and up to half of your evening meals
- Must-see sightseeing and surprise extras
- Audio headsets for flexible sightseeing
- Luxury air-conditioned coach with Wi-Fi in most countries or alternative transportation (such as rail journeys)
- Ferry across the Shannon estuary
- Optional Experiences and free time
- On occasion, hotels of similar standard and location may be utilized.
Trip Details
Product Code: 29567
Tour Type: Group Tour
Accommodation: Deluxe
Transport: Private
Guide Language: English
Travel Styles:
Family, 55+, Luxury
Tour Operator:
Brendan Vacations (CA)
Supplier Code: 12.18D
Starts: Dublin, Ireland
Finishes: Dublin, Ireland
Duration: 11 days
Departures: Guaranteed
Physical Rating:
Easy
Includes
Price
Price per person: (Double Occupancy) CAD $4,180 ($380 /day)
Itinerary
Embrace your playful side and discover the allure of the lively Irish capital - a small city with a lot of heart and yours to explore before meeting your Travel Director and fellow travelers this afternoon for a sightseeing tour with your Local Specialist. See the stately Georgian Squares and Trinity College before enjoying a Whiskey Tasting at a local distillery.The excitement will build this evening over drinks, good food and great company as your Travel Director gives you a taste of what’s to come.
Accommodation: Clayton Hotel Ballsbridge
Meals: Dinner
Leaving the cosmopolitan streets of Dublin behind, we travel to Northern Ireland and the bustling city of Belfast, where you will have some free time to enjoy a spud for lunch or perhaps an Irish stew. Later, we meet our Local Specialist 'Cabbie' for an insider view of the city’s living history during a journey through its vibrant streets in a real taxi. We spend the rest of the afternoon at leisure, or perhaps join an Optional Experience.
Accommodation: AC by Marriott , DoubleTree by Hilton Belfast Templepatrick
Meals: Breakfast
Dive Into Culture during a visit to the award-winning Titanic Belfast Experience. Gain insights into the tragic story of the Titanic and its passengers who lost their lives in the icy Atlantic. Leave the city behind, traveling to your Be My Guest experience near Ballycastle for lunch. Then onto the Giant's Causeway for a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience as we walk in the footsteps of Finn MacCool. Our visit will help to conserve this iconic natural landmark. Take some time to admire the natural spectacle of 40,000 interlocking basalt columns before continuing to Londonderry, our home for the next two nights.
Accommodation: City Hotel Derry, Waterfoot Hotel
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Join your Local Specialist for a walk along the 17th-century city walls and see the formerly turbulent Bogside neighborhood, with its street murals depicting the history of the 'Troubles'. Spend a free afternoon walking along the pretty Foyle River or consider joining an Optional Experience to Inishowen Peninsula, with its rich history. This evening enjoy dinner at your hotel.
Accommodation: City Hotel Derry, Waterfoot Hotel
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Journey through the lush countryside to Belleek, where you'll Dive Into Culture and witness talented pottery crafters create the exquisite collectables. Arrive in Galway.
Accommodation: Maldron Hotel Oranmore Galway
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
The rugged beauty of Connemara was captured in the film 'The Quiet Man' with John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara. Its loughs and mountains are yours to explore today during a scenic drive. Arrive at Kylemore Abbey later to visit the country's most romantic castle and ramble through the hidden nooks of its Victorian walled garden. Returning to Galway, enjoy some free time to explore its imposing stone Cathedral or stroll through Eyre Square, which John F. Kennedy visited in 1963.
Accommodation: Maldron Hotel Oranmore Galway
Meals: Breakfast
See the imposing UNESCO-listed Cliffs of Moher rising over 650 feet (200 m) above the pounding Atlantic and scan the horizon all the way to the Aran Islands to get the full view of the irresistible beauty of this special place. You’ll have an opportunity to visit the ‘Atlantic Edge’ exhibition which will bring to life this extraordinary natural phenomenon in a way that only the wildlife of the area get to see. Enchanted by the wild landscapes, you’ll continue along the Wild Atlantic Way with spectacular views of this dramatic coastline before you board a ferry across the tranquil Shannon Estuary river. Then, continue through County Kerry to your hotel in Killarney, where you'll have an evening at leisure or join in the craic at an optional Irish ceilidh.
Accommodation: Killarney Towers Hotel , Hotel Killarney
Meals: Breakfast
The soul-stirring landscapes of Iveragh Peninsula provide a mesmerizing backdrop for our scenic coastal drive around the Ring of Kerry – an unimaginably beautiful natural setting. En route we will see Killorglin, famous for its annual 'Puck Fair', as well as Daniel O'Connell's Cahirciveen, the fishing village of Waterville, the Black Valley and Moll's Gap.
Accommodation: Killarney Towers Hotel , Hotel Killarney
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Today you might acquire the 'gift of the gab', bending over backwards to kiss the Blarney Stone before we travel to Waterford. Admire the delicate creations of fine crystal during a visit to the House of Waterford Crystal where you will Dive Into Culture and witness a demonstration by master crafters. This evening, arrive in Kilkenny with its imposing 12th-century castle, once the seat of the Butlers of Ormonde.
Accommodation: Kilkenny
Meals: Breakfast
After a morning exploration of Kilkenny, depart for New Ross where you'll see the monument to John F. Kennedy, who visited his ancestral family hometown in 1963. Dive Into Culture and gain insights into the tragic plight of Irish emigrants during the potato famine of the 1800s on your visit to the nearby three-masted Dunbrody Famine Ship. Journey through the lush Irish countryside of County Wicklow, the 'Garden of Ireland', and back to Dublin where you’ll spend your final evening with travel companions sharing stories of your memorable journey through Ireland at dinner.
Accommodation: Clayton Leopardstown, Sandymount Hotel Dublin
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
It’s time to say a fond farewell to Ireland and newfound friends as you prepare to end your wonderful Irish experience.
Meals: Breakfast
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Tour Operator
Brendan Vacations (CA)
In Business Since 1931
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