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Irish Heritage CIE7D

2010 Irish heritage Tour 7 days

Highlights:

• Medieval Banquet at 15th Century Bunratty Castle
• Merry Ploughboy Pub Dinner & Show
• Cliffs of Moher
• Ring of Kerry Tour
• Foynes Flying Boat Museum & Irish Coffee-Making
• Historic Kilmainham Gaol
• Deluxe Hotel in Killarney

Itinerary:
Day 1 - Sat: Bunratty & Medieval Banquet
Land at Shannon Airport, locate the CIE Tours desk in the Arrivals Hall where our staff will arrange a group transfer to your nearby hotel. Complimentary transfers are available between 7:00 am and 12:00 noon. This afternoon you are at leisure to rest after your journey or take a stroll on your own through Bunratty Folk Park, which is located close to your hotel. Join your fellow travelers for a welcome drink before heading to the 15th century Bunratty Castle for a medieval-style dinner and entertainment. (D)
Day 2 - Sun: Cliffs of Moher & Irish Coffee
Drive west through Ennis and Lahinch to see the Cliffs of Moher, which rise almost 700 feet above the pounding Atlantic surf. Then cross the wide River Shannon Estuary on a short ferry ride to Tarbert and travel and along river shore to Foynes. Visit the Flying Boat Museum, which recalls the early days of air travel, during the 1930's and early 1940's. Irish Coffee was first created here to warm frozen, weary travelers and you will learn how to make a perfect one and then drink it. Drive south to Killarney, a world-famous town due to its exquisite location beside lakes and mountains. Check in to your hotel in the town center and enjoy free time before dinner. (B, D)
Day 3 - Mon: Killarney & Ring of Kerry Tour
Embark on Ireland's most popular scenic drive - the Ring of Kerry. This circular tour will reveal constantly-changing vistas of mountains, open Atlantic Ocean, beaches and cliffs. As you travel, enjoy plenty of breaks to admire the natural beauty. Stop at Kells to meet a local farmer, Brendan Ferris, for a taste of farm life with a sheepdog demonstration of herding flocks and see different breeds of sheep. Cross to Valencia Island by bridge to visit the Skellig Experience. Learn about early Christian monks who created a community on the rocky offshore islands and about the prolific bird life today. Continue your drive to Waterville, where Charlie Chaplin loved to vacation, and the colorful village of Sneem. Stop at Moll's Gap to view the Three Lakes of Killarney with mountains all around before returning to Killarney. (B, D)
Day 4 - Tue: Blarney & Cobh Heritage Centre
Depart Killarney and travel through Macroom to Blarney. Stop at the Blarney Woollen Mills for quality Irish-made goods. If you feel energetic you may climb the steps of Blarney Castle to kiss the fabled “Stone of Eloquence” on your own. Bypass Cork city as you drive to the port town of Cobh. Visit the Cobh Heritage Centre, which traces the history of emigration from Ireland to the United States. Learn about travel conditions for the many Irish emigrants on early sailing ships and steam vessels. Follow the coastal route via the town of Youghal to Waterford for dinner and an overnight stay. This evening take a gentle walk with a local historian who will reveal Waterford's Viking and medieval past. (B, D)
Day 5 - Wed: National Stud & Merry Ploughboy Pub
Travel north to Kilkenny with its intriguing medieval streets and buildings. Stop for a stroll through the narrow streets and view the massive castle from its rose gardens. Continue to the National Stud to see some of Ireland's finest horses and learn about breeding techniques. Also take a walk around the Japanese Gardens, laid out to represent life from the cradle to the grave. Drive to your next hotel, an elegant Victorian mansion, which overlooks Dublin Bay and Dun Laoghaire Harbour. Dine on Irish specialties at the Merry Ploughboy Pub, followed by a lively show of traditional Irish songs and intricate step-dancing. (B, D)
Day 6 - Thu: Dublin Tour & Kilmainham Gaol
Relax on a half-day guided tour of Dublin, originally founded by Vikings over 1,000 years ago. See elegant Georgian townhouses and colorful doors and cross the River Liffey to view the wide thoroughfare of O'Connell Street with the General Post Office where the 1916 Rebellion started. Pause to view the gaunt figures at the Famine Memorial before visiting Kilmainham Gaol to see how penal establishments were operated in past centuries. Learn about the leaders of the 1916 Rebellion who were imprisoned and shot here, changing Irish history. The afternoon is free so that you may use your independent open-top bus tour and Guinness or Jameson vouchers. Dine on your own this evening. (B)
Day 7 - Fri: Depart for Home
For clients on our 8-day vacation, your tour ends today with a group coach transfer to Dublin Airport. You will then have time to shop at the duty free shops before boarding your flight home. (B)
Tour Includes:

• Group transfers on arrival and departure
• Sightseeing by luxury coach throughout
• Dublin open-top bus tour
• Visit and a drink at Guinness Storehouse or Old Jameson Distillery
• Services of a professional Irish tour director
• Deluxe & superior first class hotels with private bath/shower for 6 nights
• 6 full Irish breakfasts (B)
• All dinners (D) except 1 in Dublin including
  - Medieval banquet and entertainment in Bunratty Castle
  - Dinner and traditional Irish entertainment at the Merry Ploughboy Pub
  - 3 table d'hote dinners
• Welcome get-together drink
• Ferry ride across the River Shannon
• Foynes Flying Boat Museum & an Irish Coffee
• Sheepdog trials on Ring of Kerry
• Walking tour of Waterford
• Visits and admissions to Cliffs of Moher, Skellig Experience, Blarney Woollen Mills, Cobh Heritage Centre, National Stud & Japanese Gardens and Kilmainham Gaol
• Deluxe flight bag, ticket wallet, luggage tags & strap
• All local taxes, hotel service charges & porterage for one suitcase per person

Hotels:
Stay at the following (or similar):

• 1 night Bunratty Castle Hotel, Clare
• 2 nights Killarney Plaza Hotel, Kerry
• 1 night Granville Hotel, Waterford
• 2 nights Royal Marine Hotel, Dublin

Dates & Rates:
May 1 & May 8: $1438
May 15 – Sep 25: $1498
Oct 2 & Oct 9: $1398
Oct 23  & Oct 30: $1288
Nov 6 – Dec4: $1158

Single Supplement: $378
All Prices in US Dollars

Tour departs Shannon Saturdays and arrives Dublin Fridays.