Your Day-by-Day Itinerary

Day 1: Depart for Ireland

Day 2: Shannon & Leisure Time
Arrive in Shannon Airport and go to the CIE Tours desk to arrange a hotel transfer between 7:00 am and 12:00 noon. If your flight arrives later you will need to transfer at your own expense. Check
into your hotel near Bunratty Castle. Durty Nelly’s Pub or The Creamery are great places to have dinner on your own.

Day 3: Cliffs of Moher & Galway
Drive through Ennis to view the Cliffs of Moher, an impressive wall of rock above the open Atlantic Ocean. Visit the Burren Display Centre to learn about the flora and wildlife of the unique, rocky area before driving through it. Continue around Galway Bay to arrive at your hotel in Galway in time to take a look around the city center on your own. (B, D)

Day 4: Connemara & Kylemore Abbey
Tour Connemara, a region of open countryside with plenty of sheep and tracts of peat. Stop in
Clifden, the “capital” of Connemara, a pleasant town on the west coast. Visit Kylemore Abbey to see the exquisite chapel and reception rooms of this 19th century neo-Gothic mansion. At the Connemara Celtic Crystal Factory in Moycullen watch expert craftsmen cutting fine crystal. (B, D)

Day 5: Museum of Irish Life & Donegal
Head north to visit the Museum of Irish Life to understand how rural people lived from the
1850’s to the 1950’s. In Sligo stop to view W. B. Yeats’ grave in Drumcliffe Churchyard. Drive around Donegal Bay and visit Donegal Castle in the center of the town. Built in the 15th century as a fortress of the O’Donnell chieftain, it was later rebuilt. Continue past the Blue Stack Mountains to Derry for dinner and overnight. (B, D)

Day 6: Derry & Giant’s Causeway
Drive along the north coast to explore the Giant’s Causeway, huge hexagonal columns formed over 60 million years ago. Return to Derry for a guided walking tour around central Derry, which will include the 16th century city walls. Also visit the Tower Museum and enjoy some free time before dinner. (B, D)

Day 7: Ulster American Folk Park & Cabra Castle
Drive to Omagh to visit the Ulster American Folk Park. Trace the story of Ulster emigrants as you walk through the Park to see how they lived in the “Old Country” before sailing to the “New World.” See the family home of Thomas Mellon, who emigrated to Pittsburgh in 1818. Travel south to Kingscourt to your 18th century castle hotel. Enjoy a farewell dinner with informal entertainment in the Court Restaurant. (B, D)

Day 8: Return Home
This morning take a group transfer from Kingscourt to Dublin Airport where your tour concludes at 10:00 am. If you need an earlier group transfer, your guide will arrange one. (B)