6 Day Tour: ALL IRELAND!!

Day 1: Dublin - Belfast

Depart Dublin and make our first stop at Monasterboice, a monastic settlement dating back to year 501. This ancient monastery is home to Ireland's best preserved and finest Celtic crosses, and it also has a monumental fully intact Round Tower. Discover why Lonely Planet regards Belfast as one of the top 10 'must-see' destinations on Earth. We strongly recommend the world famous Black Taxi tour (optional) to view the Peace Wall and political murals. Your driver will show you highlights of the city including City Hall, Queen's University, Albert's Clock, Botanic Gardens and much more. Tonight we stay in the charming University Quarter.

Day 2: Belfast - Derry

A glorious touring day cruising the Beautiful North Coast. We initially visit the Dark Hedges, famed by the Game of Thrones along with views of Ballintoy Harbour one of the backdrops of the series. You'll see the Carrick-a-rede rope bridge (seasonal, consider crossing if you dare, for a small optional charitable donation to the National Trust, the registered UK charity that maintains the Bridge). Then it's the jackpot visit of the day - we will trace the footprints of Celtic Giants, walk the Giant's Causeway! Ulster's #1 attraction since 2 million BC! A UNESCO world heritage site and the proud location of an estimated 60,000 hexagonal columns of basalt rock formed by cataclysmic violent volcanic eruptions a long long time ago! Your guide will wax lyrical about how our giant warrior hero - Fionn McCool - built it to fight off our cousins the pesky Scots. You'll have plenty of time to take either the high road or low road hikes to this place of outstanding natural beauty. Once sufficiently impressed we'll be off to take fantastic photos of Dunluce Castle - ancestral home of the McDonnell clan, until its kitchen collapsed into the sea during a great feast in 1639 - killing many staff, who's ghosts are said to still linger in the ruins even to this day. Overnight in Historic Derry. If you love history then you will be foaming at the mouth in this jewel of a city. We stay downtown in the ancient streets. Amazing traditional music night in Peadar O'Donnells pub!

Day 3: Derry - Galway

Begin today with a hearty breakfast and an excellent in-depth walking tour of Derry's walls (1613.) with a local guide. Learn why the city is officially known as Londonderry and the story of the long bloody siege here in 1689. Your guide will take you down to the well known Bogside district, scene of the Bloody Sunday massacre in 1972 and inspiration for U2's classic anthem 'Sunday, Bloody Sunday'. Our next stop is a blast from the past, at the portal tomb of Creevykeel dating back to the pagan years in Ireland that gives us an insight to our earliest inhabitants from the stone age and their rituals and burial ceremonies. We continue through the poetic heartland of Ireland, W.B. Yeat's country. We visit his final resting place in Drumcliff Abbey, and admire the beautiful Benbulben referenced in many of his poems. The road takes us to Ireland's premier surf venue and beach at Strandhill, County Sligo. Tonight you'll overnight in Galway, Ireland's party capital. We'll find a cosy pub down in the Latin quarter and sip Guinness to the beat of electrifying Irish music and the sweet sound of the Gaelic language.

Day 4: Galway - Killarney

Today you will have the wild Atlantic ocean by your side as we cruise down the West coast. See beautiful beaches, golden sand, maybe even a few dolphins and whales. Run around the lunar landscape of the Burren, the only place on earth where Alpine, Arctic and Mediterranean flowers grow side by side, and hear your guide tell inspiring tales of how our ancestors overcame the horrors of the great Potato Famine of 1845-49, sending over a million of our ancestors to the four corners of the globe and in particular Britain, North America, and Australia. We visit CLIFFS OF MOHER, the most popular natural tourist destination in Ireland and most spectacular cliffs in Europe. Rising over 700 ft in height, these cliffs are home to some of natures most majestic birds including puffins, gannets and many more. We'll cross the River Shannon in historic Limerick, the setting for Frank McCourt's blockbuster book, Angela's Ashes. Our last stop is the beautiful heritage town of Adare with its fabulous thatched cottages, renowned for being regularly voted Ireland's tidiest town. We spend the night in Killarney.

Day 5: Killarney - Dingle

Today we embark on the world famous Dingle Peninsula. The day begins with a horse and cart ride through Killarney National Park (optional) or horseback ride through the park for the energetic and adventurous (optional). We visit Ireland's longest beach at Inch, and then we take the short drive to Dingle, a charming Gaelic speaking fishing village. Famed in many films like Far and Away and Ryan's Daughter, Dingle is celebrated for having most pubs in Ireland for a town of its size, 52 pubs and 2000 people. We cannot forget Dingle's most famous resident, Fungi the Dolphin who we shall have time to visit in the early afternoon. Then it's off on a wonderful pleasant drive around Slea Head with amazing views of Sleeping Giant Island, the Blasket Islands, and Beehive Huts dating back to 2000 B.C. Regarded as the most beautiful Peninsula in the world by many photographic magazines, Slea Head has some of Ireland's most fabulous beaches and is definitely the highlight of Ireland's famed Wild Atlantic Way. This area is completely Gaelic speaking, and you may even get to hear some of the locals converse in this ancient language. Then it's back to Dingle where there is ample time for shopping in traditional arts and crafts stores, and some refreshments in one of the many colorful pubs with local musicians playing some mystic tunes. Tonight we stay in your very own Irish pub, the Randy Leprechaun on the Dingle Peninsula. Here we mix with the locals, and enjoy the characteristics of a genuine Irish small-village, away from the hustle and bustle. Pull up a stool by the fire or choose to dance the night away!

Day 6: Dingle - Dublin

Our day begins by crossing the Cork and Kerry mountains and heading for the world renowned Blarney Castle. Here we spend plenty of time (2h) visiting the Castle, and kissing the Blarney Stone endowing us with the gift of eloquent speech (gift of the gab) for 7 years. Surrounded by beautiful and majestic gardens, we may also take the time to visit the Blarney Woolen mills, the world's largest Irish shop. After lunch we take a leisurely drive through Golden Vale, Ireland's finest agricultural land with its rolling fields and pastures fresh, a lovely place to reflect on the great 6 days you've just had. You'll make your way up through the battle fields of "Braveheart" to Dublin for our grand finale - the Guinness Storehouse and complements of the Paddywagon team have a pint of the black stuff, a big creamy pint of Guinness!

Pick-up Points

1. Paddys Palace, Lower Gardiner Street, Dublin @ 09:00am