2022 Taste of Ireland with Driver - 7 Days/6 Nights

Duration: 7 Days

Price: Starts from $0 USD

Itineraries

Day 1: Independent Touring in Dublin
Your tour begins when you are picked up at the airport and driven to your hotel. The rest of the day is free for independent touring in Dublin. Take a Hop-On, Hop-Off bus tour, and see all the city’s highlights with the freedom to stop off to explore further as you please. Your Hop-On, Hop-Off bus ticket also gives you admission to the Little Museum of Dublin, an old Georgian townhouse with a fantastic collection of 5,000 objects telling the story of the city. Plus, you will have a voucher to admit you to one of Dublin’s top attractions: the Guinness Storehouse, a seven-story attraction telling the story of Dublin's iconic beverage, complete with a pint at the Gravity Bar on the top floor; Teeling Distillery, the first new whiskey distillery to open in Dublin in 125 years; EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum, telling the story of the people who left Ireland and how they shaped the world (and winner of Europe’s Leading Tourist Attraction 2019); or the GPO Museum, innovatively detailing the fascinating story of the 1916 Rising, the pivotal event that led to Ireland’s independence. Your evening is free to explore Dublin’s many bustling pubs and restaurants as you wish.

Day 2: Independent Touring | Merry Ploughboy Pub
Enjoy the morning continuing to explore Dublin with the included vouchers, seeing its vibrant blend of ancient and modern: Trinity College, Georgian houses with colorful doors, and the modern buildings rising by the River Liffey. In the evening, head to the Merry Ploughboy Pub for a dinner of Irish specialties and a lively show with popular Irish songs and intricate step-dancing.
(B, D)


Day 3: Blarney Castle | Killarney
Your specialist driver/guide will pick you up at your hotel so you may depart Dublin, traveling through the legendary green fields of Ireland’s farmlands. Stop for photos of the stately ruins of the Rock of Cashel, rising high above the surrounding plain. Continue to Blarney Castle in Cork, where you can climb the winding staircase to kiss the legendary stone that promises the gift of the gab or wander through the beautiful gardens. Arrive in the friendly town of Killarney, picturesquely set beside lakes with Ireland’s highest mountains, Macgillycuddy’s Reeks, forming a backdrop. Check in to your hotel and relax before dinner.
(B, D)


Day 4: Ring of Kerry | Skellig Experience
You might choose to visit CIE Tours preferred shopping partner Moriarty’s in the beautiful Gap of Dunloe, before embarking on the famed Ring of Kerry scenic drive. The winding 100-mile route reveals breathtaking coastal and mountain views, with plenty of photo stops. Pause for a casual lunch in The Moorings in Portmagee, then continue to Valentia Island, where you’ll visit the Skellig Experience; it tells the story of the neighboring island of Skellig Michael, which you’ll see off the coast. Learn how early Christian monks lived there in austere conditions, and how the island was used as a location for the “Star Wars” films. Stop for a stroll around the village of Sneem, with its brightly painted houses, and at Moll’s Gap for panoramic views of Ireland’s highest mountains. Return to Killarney to explore and dine independently.
(B, L)


Day 5: Cliffs of Moher | Medieval Castle Banquet
Leave Killarney and drive north to the Cliffs of Moher, a spectacular wall of sandstone that reaches almost 700 feet above the Atlantic Ocean. Drive on to your hotel in Limerick. In the evening, head out to a genuine castle for a medieval-style feast of excellent traditional dishes. During and after the meal the lords and ladies will serenade you with songs and harp music evocative of the Middle Ages. (Please note that January departures may offer a different dining experience.)
(B, D)


Day 6: Galway | Dublin
Travel north this morning to Galway to explore this vibrant, artistic city. Walk through its medieval streetscape, listen to the buskers performing, enjoy its many shops and cafes. Head across the country to Dublin, and then say farewell to your driver/guide. Spend the final night of your tour exploring the pubs in the lively Temple Bar area or experiencing one of Dublin’s fine restaurants.
(B)


Day 7: Trip Ends in Dublin
Your trip ends after breakfast today, as you are transferred from your hotel to Dublin Airport.
(B)


B: Breakfast; L: Lunch; D: Dinner

Highlights

Authentic Local Experiences:

  • Enjoy a fun evening of traditional song and dance over dinner at the Merry Ploughboy pub.
  • Climb the winding staircase to kiss the famous Blarney Stone at Blarney Castle – Legend says it will give you the gift of eloquence.
  • Enjoy a feast in a real medieval castle, as you are serenaded by lords and ladies.

Trip Highlights:

  • Irish Night in Dublin
  • Blarney Castle
  • Cliffs of Moher
  • Medieval Castle Banquet
  • Ring of Kerry
  • Skellig Experience

Dining Experiences:

  • 6 Breakfasts (B), 1 Lunch (L), and 2 Dinners (D)

Hotels:

  • Clayton Hotel Ballsbridge | Dublin (2)
  • Killarney Towers Hotel | Killarney (2)
  • Bunratty Castle Hotel | Bunratty (1)
  • Academy Plaza Hotel | Dublin (1)

Taste of Ireland with Driver - 7 Days/6 Nights

Not included

Hotels

Taste of Ireland with Driver - 7 days/6 Nights land tour
SupplierNameSupplierRating DescriptionImage
SupplierName Clayton Hotel BallsbridgeSupplierRating **** This hotel was once a Masonic School and still retains many striking original features that give it a unique charm. Standard rooms are tastefully decorated and boast a fresh and warm feeling. The Brasserie Restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner with fresh, seasonal and sustainable produce. Tom’s Bar is a great place to relax with a drink or a snack. Set in Ballsbridge, close to the Royal Dublin Society and Aviva Stadium, this property is a short distance from the city center, with good bus service close by.
SupplierName Killarney Towers HotelSupplierRating **** This modern hotel provides guests with 182 rooms that are comfortable and include satellite TV and video facilities. An excellent restaurant serves great Irish breakfasts and carvery dinners while the choice of bars offer live music most nights. Enjoy a strenuous workout or leisurely dip in the pool in the extensive leisure center. Located in the center of Killarney town within easy walking distance of shops, restaurants, pubs and the Killarney National Park. Hotel parking.
SupplierName Killarney Towers HotelSupplierRating **** This modern hotel provides guests with 182 rooms that are comfortable and include satellite TV and video facilities. An excellent restaurant serves great Irish breakfasts and carvery dinners while the choice of bars offer live music most nights. Enjoy a strenuous workout or leisurely dip in the pool in the extensive leisure center. Located in the center of Killarney town within easy walking distance of shops, restaurants, pubs and the Killarney National Park. Hotel parking.
SupplierName Bunratty Castle HotelSupplierRating **** Nestled in the heart of the historic countryside of Bunratty, this hotel is an ideal base for visiting and touring the cultural West of Ireland. There is a wide selection of dining options from which to choose, including Kathleen's Bar and Fibber McGee's Steakhouse Restaurant. The hotel is within easy walking distance of Bunratty Castle & Folk Park, Durty Nelly's Pub and the shops at the Bunratty Village Mills.
SupplierName Academy Plaza HotelSupplierRating **** This modern and centrally located hotel offers 285 rooms of several types. All public areas are spacious and comfortable, including the large reception and lobby area, Sir Harry's Bar & Bistro, Oscar's Restaurant and Abacus Asian Restaurant. Complimentary WiFi is available throughout the hotel, which is located on Cathal Brugha Street, just off O'Connell Street, one of Dublin’s main thoroughfares. Trinity College, St. Stephen's Green, Temple Bar, shops, galleries and pubs are all within easy walking distance.