Ireland Group Tours - Traveling Around Ireland with Patricia Tunison Preston

Kinsale, Bantry Bay & West Cork, Killarney, Kenmare, Ring of Kerry, Dingle Town & Peninsula, Cliffs of Moher, Adare, Bunratty , Blarney

7 Days – 6 Nights at Superior First Class Hotels – 12 Meals – Plus Sightseeing, admissions, entertainment and more

Scenes from Springtime 2010 in Ireland will include (three photos, top row): two scenes from the County Cork coastline, and the Cliffs of Moher, Co. Clare; (middle row, from left) Bantry House Gardens; sheep dog demonstration at Kells on the Ring of Kerry; Killarney's Lakes from Ladies View; (bottom row, from left) Kinsale Harbour; horse-drawn jaunting car ride in Killarney; and traditional Irish music at Kate Kearney's Cottage.

Sunday, May 16 – Depart your home airport, overnight flight to Shannon, with dinner on board.

Monday, May 17 – Arrive at Shannon Airport by 7 a.m., to be greeted by our CIE Tours International driver/guide. We’ll enjoy a “Welcome to Ireland” Irish breakfast and then set out into the Irish countryside of County Limerick. Our first stop is Adare, known as "the prettiest village in Ireland," with a main street of thatched-roof cottages and colorful gardens. We'll resume our drive south via the Limerick and Cork countryside, and arrive in the historic fishing and yachting port of Kinsale. Dating back to the 12th century, Kinsale played a strategic part in Irish history including becoming one of Ireland’s principal wine ports. Today this picturesque harbor town is hailed for food as well as wine – with over 20 fine restaurants, Kinsale is known as the “gourmet capital” of Ireland. After checking into our hotel, which is located right on the marina, there will be time to rest and relax and enjoy the watefront vistas, before an afternoon guided tour of Kinsale town with a local guide.This evening, CIE Tours will host us to a pre-dinner “Welcome” drink, followed by dinner at the Pier One restaurant of our hotel.
Dinner and Overnight: Trident Hotel, Kinsale

Tuesday, May 18 – From Kinsale, it’s just a short drive to Blarney where we will go to visit Blarney Castle, and to kiss the legendary Blarney Stone and enjoy the beautiful Spring gardens. We’ll also visit the famous Blarney Woollen Mills, a treasure-trove for shoppers. After lunch, we’ll head back to Kinsale to board the “Spirit of Kinsale” for a cruise along the harbor and up the Bandon River. The excursion includes a commentary about the Kinsale area. The rest of the afternoon/evening is free to explore Kinsale on your own and to sample your choice of Kinsale’s many fine restaurants and pubs. It’s an ideal opportunity to make your own plans and enjoy a special meal (whether you crave fish-and-chips or lobster from the tank; local or international cuisine).
Overnight: Trident Hotel, Kinsale

Wednesday, May 19 – From Kinsale, we’ll head westward along the scenic N 71 route of West Cork, a happy mix of bays and coves, inlets and islands, as well as the colorful market towns of Clonakilty and Skibbereen and the artisan village of Ballydehob. The landscape presents a rainbow of wildflower colors and lush subtropical foliage, warmed by Gulf breezes and fanned by palm trees. A highlight of our drive is Bantry Bay, a curved panorama of glistening waters nestled between two peninsulas – Sheeps Head and Beara. We’ll stop at the southeast head of the bay to visit Bantry House, one of Ireland’s grandest 18th century mansions, blending Georgian and Victorian architecture. Built in 1740 for the Earls of Bantry, this house sits in a wonderful position on Bantry Bay encircled by mountains. But the real beauty at Bantry House is in the gardens, with subtropical plants and shrubs, original statuary and bayfront walking paths. Departing Bantry, we’ll continue along Bantry Bay via Glengarriff, another town known for its lush gardens and subtropical vegetation, and then to Kenmare and into Co. Kerry. We’ll enjoy free time in the award-winning village of Kenmare, and then we head to Killarney, arriving at Muckross House in the Killarney National Park. We’ll have time to explore the gardens and craft centre (pottery and weaving demonstrations) before we board our horse-drawn jaunting cars for a ride along the Killarney lake shore and into Killarney town, arriving in traditional style at our hotel which sits amid six acres of glorious gardens.
Dinner and Overnight: Malton Hotel, Killarney

Thursday, May 20 – The Iveragh Peninsula (more popularly known as the Ring of Kerry) – Ireland’s most scenic drive – awaits us today. It’s an ever-changing mix of coastal scenery including Carrantuohill, Ireland’s highest mountain, pristine beaches, cliffside vistas, and colorful palm tree-lined villages and gardens. We’ll stop at Kells to meet local farmer Brendan Ferris who will introduce us to a flock of his sheep and provide a sheepdog demonstration. Afterwards, we’ll continue along the Ring to Portmagee and Valentia Island to learn more about the 6th century Skellig Islands monastic settlements at the “Skellig Experience” Heritage Centre. Our tour continues with stops at Coomakista Pass the colorful village of Sneem, and then through Molls Gap and back to Killarney. In the evening, we’ll travel to the Gap of Dunloe for dinner and Irish traditional music and dancing at Kate Kearney’s Cottage, an authentic 19th century pub.
Overnight: Malton Hotel, Killarney

Friday, May 21 – From Killarney, we head to the nearby Dingle Peninsula, often called the “Ring of Dingle,” because it reaches out like a thumb plunging into the Atlantic, rimmed by Dingle Bay and Tralee Bay, with the mist-laced mountains of Slieve Mish and Mount Brandon visible at every turn. The western tip of the Dingle Peninsula is also home to the West Kerry Gaeltacht where the Irish language is readily spoken, and traditional music and crafts flourish. Highlights will include stops at Inch Strand, a vast four-mile expanse of sandy beach, and Slea Head, one of Ireland’s most-photographed beauty spots, plus a visit to the Blasket Island heritage centre to learn more about the mysterious Blasket Islands, a cluster of seven offshore islands resembling giant rocks lying over two miles out on the horizon. The Dingle Peninsula is a “wow” place in every way. CNN-TV recently described the Dingle Peninsula as “the most beautiful place on Earth,” and the TripAdvisor web site reported that travelers voted Dingle as “the sixth most popular destination in Europe,” the only place in Ireland to make the “top ten” list. Our overnight base for the Dingle Peninsula is the harbor town of Dingle, known in Irish as An Daingean. We’ll settle in, to explore the colorful shops, cafés and pubs, or you may opt to take a boat ride to see “Fungie,” the resident dolphin. After dinner at our hotel, meander around town to sample a few of the traditional music pubs for which Dingle is so famous.
Overnight: Dingle Benners Hotel, Dingle/An Daingean, Co. Kerry

Saturday, May 22 – Depart DingleTown and drive through the mountains on a scenic road with vistas of Tralee Bay and through the town of Tralee, and north to Tarbert where we will board a ferry to cross over the Shannon into Co. Clare. We'll travel along the scenic Clare coast and via Lahinch, the famed golf resort, to the Cliffs of Moher, acclaimed as one of Ireland’s natural wonders. A new visitor center opened at the Cliffs in 2007 and it provides a spectacular visit, rain or shine. After seeing the Cliffs (and time for lunch), our route takes us through the spectacular Burren region of Co. Clare, a rock-strewn area known for its lunar-like landscape, and then to Bunratty. After checking into our hotel, there will be time to rest or enjoy the hotel'sleisure centre, or to shop at the nearby Bunratty Village Mills or visit the famous Durty Nellys Pub across the street. In the evening, we’ll enjoy dinner and entertainment in medieval style at 15th century Bunratty Castle – a fitting finale to our tour.
Overnight: Bunratty Castle Hotel, Bunratty, Co. Clare

Sunday, May 23 – Fortified by a hearty Irish breakfast, we’ll head to Shannon Airport, just a 10-minute drive away. The hotel operates a shuttle van service to the airport for early morning flights, and our bus will bring passengers to the airport for afternoon flights, to arrive in plenty of time for check-in and for reclaiming VAT refunds and duty free shopping at Shannon.

PRICE: Our “land only” escorted tour package is $1,529, which means you buy your own airfare and get the best deal from your gateway, or use frequent flyer miles, etc., and meet us in Ireland at the start of our tour. If you need assistance in getting the best airfare, we will help you via email or phone.

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Send an email to: patpreston@mac.com or call 845-758-1232