Irish Legends Tour
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Day 1: Dublin Tour & Kilmainham Gaol
Start your tour at Dublin Airport with a group transfer to your hotel between 7:00 am and 12:00 noon. Passengers arriving later will transfer to the hotel at their own expense. At 2:00 pm a local tour guide will introduce you to Dublin's River Liffey, wide O'Connell Street, tranquil St. Stephen's Green, the Irish Famine Memorial, Leinster House and other public buildings. See some of the elegant Georgian houses and visit Kilmainham Gaol to see where many of Ireland's leaders, including Robert Emmett, Eamon DeValera and Padraig Pearse, were imprisoned while striving to create an independent nation. Enjoy a welcome get-together drink with your tour director and discuss your itinerary.
Day 2: Boyne Valley Tombs & Taylor's Three Rock
This morning drive north of Dublin to the Boyne Valley Visitor Centre to learn about the passage burial tombs of Newgrange and Knowth, both of which are over 5,000 years old. Visit one of the tombs to see how primitive people managed to align these buildings precisely with the sun or the moon. Return to Dublin where the afternoon is at leisure. You may use your voucher for an open-top bus tour with a visit to Guinness or Jameson. In the evening drive to Taylor's Three Rock Pub for a dinner with Irish specialties. Then sit back with an Irish coffee to watch a lively show with music, songs and step-dancing. (B, D)
Day 3: National Stud & Medieval Kilkenny
Depart Dublin this morning and travel to Kildare for a visit to the Irish National Stud and Japanese Gardens. As a nation, the Irish are very interested in horses and the Stud will tell you about the valuable breeding industry. See some of the magnificent horses before walking around the delightful Japanese Gardens, established a century ago. Drive south to visit Nicholas Mosse Pottery to watch potters create charming pieces inspired by the Irish countryside. Continue to Kilkenny, a medieval city where narrow streets still follow the ancient layout but are lined with attractive stores and restaurants. Check in to your centrally-located hotel and then you may like to explore this compact city center on your own before dinner. (B, D)
Day 4: Titanic Tour & Blarney Castle
Travel south, pausing for photos at the Rock of Cashel, a magnificent collection of ruins perched on a rocky outcrop. Continue to Cobh, the main port for emigration from the 18th to mid-20th centuries. Take the Titanic Walk tour to discover places, including the docks, associated with the famous liner which made its last scheduled stop in Cobh. Take a short drive to Blarney to visit the Blarney Woollen Mills, which offer excellent Irish-made products. If you wish, you may climb Blarney Castle on your own to gain the "Gift of Eloquence" or walk around the village green. Drive through Macroom to Killarney and check into your hotel in the center of town. (B, D)
Day 5: Dingle Peninsula Tour
Today discover the glorious Dingle Peninsula, made famous by two movies that showcased the scenery – “Ryan’s Daughter” and “Far & Away.” Drive along the south shore to admire views of heathery mountains, sandy stretches of beach and rocky headlands. Stop for a while in Dingle before continuing to the Blasket Centre in Dunquin to learn about the offshore Blasket Islands, inhabited until 1953 by hardy families who eked out a living by farming and fishing. Return to Killarney and enjoy free time to take a jaunting car ride or walk around town. After dinner you may like to visit local pubs featuring live music. (B, D)
Day 6: Flying Boat Museum & Cliffs of Moher
Leave Killarney head North to visit the Foynes Flying Boat Museum, which recalls the ealy days of air travel when Pan Am Clippers landed here. Travel to the village of Bunratty, before viewing the Cliffs of Moher, majestic walls of rock which extend five miles along the coast. Walk up to O'Brien's Tower for the best views and also catch a glimpse of the Aran Islands. Drive through part of the Burren, a unique region of rounded limestone hills, where rare wildflowers thrive in sheltered crevices. There are many prehistoric dolmens, large capstones erected on two uprights. Travel into the city of Galway and take a look around the city center before checking into your hotel. (B, D)
Day 7: Aran Islands & Dun Aengus
Take a short ferry ride from Rossaveal to Inis Mor, the largest of the three Aran Islands (apr 14 - Oct 20 departures). These rocky islands are renowned for the hardy islanders who maintained traditional fishing and farming methods and where the popular intricately-patterned fishermen's sweaters originated. The Irish language is still spoken widely. Take a minibus ride to Dun Aengus, a huge pre-historic fortress perched on sheer cliffs, which fall away to the Atlantic below. In Kilronan, the main town, visit the Aran Heritage Centre to learn about unique local customs before returning by ferry to the mainland. Enjoy some leisure time and dine with your group in the hotel once more. For departures outside the dates above, there will be a Quiet Man walking tour of Cong and drive around Connemara, stopping in Leenane and Clifden. (B, D)
Day 8: Stokestown Park House & Dunboyne Castle
Travel to the center of Ireland to visit Strokestown Park House in County Roscommon. There are three parts to see – the 18th century mansion with its original furnishings; the four-acre walled garden, restored to look as it would have during the heyday of the estate; and the Famine Museum, which explains the circumstances of the 1840’s Great Irish Famine through a combination of original documents and images. Drive to the village of Dunboyne, on the outskirts of Dublin. Check in to Dunboyne Castle Hotel and relax for a while before enjoying a farewell dinner with entertainment. (B, D)
Day 9: Return Home from Dublin
Complimentary group transfers to Dublin Airport are provided to arrive at 6:00 am, 9:00 am or 12:00 noon. After check-in, you’ll have time to shop at the duty-free stores before boarding your flight for the journey home. (B)