On arrival at Dublin Airport, reclaim your baggage and enter the Arrivals Hall. Here, you will meet your tour guide (who is also your driver). There will be three group transfers this morning between 7:00 am and 1200 noon. To ensure a smooth start to your tour, it is advisable to aim for an arrival time in Dublin Airport before 11:00 am, as clearing immigration and reclaiming baggage typically takes around 1 hour.
Board your luxury air-conditioned coach and make the short transfer to Gresham Riu Plaza Hotel in the heart of Dublin City.
Check-in starts from 15:00, and you can store your luggage at the hotel prior to check-in.
Meet your driver-guide in the hotel lobby and depart on a Panoramic Tour of Dublin City, visiting EPIC: The Irish Emigration Museum. Voted, recently, as "Europe's Leading Tourist Attraction", this museum tour tells the story behind the millions of people who fled, or were forced from, Ireland over the past three centuries. Located in Dublin's Docklands.
You will also visit the Guinness Storehouse. With an address at the world-famous St. James's Gate. Here you will tour the world-renowned brewery and enjoy a perfect complimentary pint of Guinness in the Gravity Bar — located at the top of a glass tower that commands spectacular views of Dublin City.
Evening free in Dublin.
Tonight you will overnight at Gresham Riu Plaza Hotel, located in a grand Georgian building on Dublin City's main street; O'Connell Street. This is a luxury hotel in a dream location.
| Time | Arrival Transfer details |
|---|---|
| Between 07:00 and 12 (noon) | Dublin Airport There are 3 group airport transfers this morning, between 7am and 12 noon, from Dublin Airport to Gresham Riu Plaza Hotel. |
After some much-needed sleep and a hearty full Irish breakfast, depart for Galway City across the centre of Ireland through the counties of Kildare, Meath, Offaly and Westmeath.
Visit Clonmacnoise. A medieval monastery on the banks of the River Shannon, founded by St. Ciaran in the 6th century. Clonmacnoise lay at a crossroads of medieval Ireland, linking all parts of the island. Sacked time and again by the Vikings, it nevertheless flourished for over 600 years.
Travel on to Galway City, known as the "City of the Tribes". Today, it is a vibrant bustling harbour town with medieval origins and with a long tradition of Irish language, music, song, and dance.
Spend some free time in Galway City, located right on the famous Wild Atlantic Way. Here you can take a ramble to Salthill Promenade, or Quay Street with its many great pubs including "The Quays" and "Ti Neachtain" — a townhouse which belonged to "Humanity Dick", an 18th-century MP who promoted laws against cruelty to animals.
Tonight you will overnight and dine in Old Ground Hotel Ennis. A former manor house located in the medieval town of Ennis, County Clare. Dating back to the 18th century and featuring an abundance of luxury and charm.
This morning, after breakfast, you will embark on a tour of County Clare and Wild Atlantic Way.
On the Atlantic coast, you will stand on the Cliffs of Moher. Braced against the ocean, on the coast of County Clare. Here you will stand on the dramatic 702ft (214m) high and 9 miles (14km) long cliffs, a Wild Atlantic Way signature discovery point, to gaze out on the vastness of the Atlantic Ocean.
See The Burren, which is Gaelic for rocky land—an apt name for this vast limestone plateau. In the 1640s, Cromwell's surveyor described it as "a savage land, yielding neither water enough to drown a man, nor tree to hang him, nor soil enough to bury".
Visit Caherconnell Sheep Dog Demonstration. Recognized for the talent, agility, and grace of its border collies, and host to the only sheepdog demonstration in County Clare.
Tonight you will overnight at Old Ground Hotel Ennis.
This morning, after breakfast, depart for County Cork — known as the Rebel County. Your journey will bring you through some of Ireland's most picturesque landscapes and into the heartlands of the Irish southwest.
Visit Adare. In the heart of county Limerick County, we take time to stroll the main street of the beautiful thatched cottages in Adare Village.
Visit Blarney Castle. Built on this site in 1446 by Dermot McCarthy. You will have the chance to kiss the legendary Blarney Stone. You will also have an opportunity to shop at Blarney Woollen Mills, boasting a huge selection of Irish arts, crafts and produce.
Tonight you will overnight and dine at Clayton Hotel Cork City. Located in the very heart of the Rebel City, Clayton Hotel Cork City is nestled alongside the River Lee and makes the ideal base for those looking to find out what Cork has to offer.
This morning after breakfast, travel to Midleton, where you will visit Midleton Distillery Experience. Experience a fully guided tour, and discover the world's largest pot still — with a capacity of over 30,000 gallons.
Visit Cork City Gaol. Seen as a marvel of architecture and a feat in logistics when it originally opened in 1824, Cork City Gaol was home to some of Ireland's most notorious prisoners during its heyday of the 19th and 20th century. Today, the gaol is a museum that aims to recreate day-to-day lives of prisoners and guards during that time.
Spend some free time in Cork City. We would suggest a visit to the English Market in the heart of Cork City. It is a covered market for fish, fruit, meat, and vegetable. The origins of the market can be traced back to James 1st in 1610, but the present building dates from 1786.
Overnight in the Clayton Hotel Cork City.
This morning, after breakfast, you will journey north to Dublin. Cross the River Blackwater and enjoy the breath-taking views of the Golden Vale, the name given to some of Ireland's finest rolling pastureland, and the Galtee Mountains on the Tipperary/Limerick border.
Visit Kilkenny Castle. This imposing structure dominates the skyline of Kilkenny City. It has been an important site since Strongbow constructed the first building; a wooden tower, in the 12th century. William the Earl Marshall built the first stone castle on the site, in 1260.
Spend some free time in Kilkenny.
Travel on via "The Curragh" a flat open plain of common land, the home of the Irish Defence Forces and world-renowned for Irish horse racing, breeding, and training.
As today marks the end of your 6 Day Iconic Scenes of Ireland Tour, accommodation is not included by us for tonight.
This evening, your Driver-Guide will drop you off in a suitable location in Dublin City Centre. Once your luggage has been unloaded, bid a fond farewell to your Driver-Guide — taking with you many great memories from your journey together.