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PRIVATE TOUR ITINERARY

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This tour combines the best of our Discover Ireland tour with some lesser known places for the discerning traveler! Experience Ireland’s must-see historical sites, and spectacular coastal scenery. Enjoy Gaelic tunes in the music filled bars and gourmet dinners at hand-picked restaurants. Stay in the charming towns Kilkenny, Kenmare and Dingle. Explore Limerick on a private guided tour, visit Russborough House & Castletown House, two of Ireland’s finest Georgian houses, and venture to some of Ireland’s earliest Christion sites such as those at Jedpoint Abbey, a ruined Cistercian abbey, and Holy Cross Abbey. Tour the Slea Head Drive along the Dingle Peninsula, see the Cliffs of Moher and head out to the dramatic coastline of Mizen Head. This beautifully guided journey ends in Dublin where you may return home or extend your stay.

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Day 1) Quin Friary & Burren  
Arrive Dublin Airport where you’ll be met by your chauffeur-guide.  Depart Quin Friary, a Franciscan abbey founded in the 14th century. The cloisters, which remain one of the abbeys most prominent features, were constructed in the 15th century. Next, explore the intriguing, rocky and beautiful landscape of the Burren, including the Poulnabrone Dolmen and the ‘Hole of Sorrow’, probably the most iconic of Ireland’s megalithic structures. Continue to your castle hotel near Doolin, just over an hour away. The hotel is strikingly situated with magnificent views of the Atlantic and the Aran Islands.

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Day 2) Inis Oírr (Aran Island) & Cliffs of Moher 
This morning, you’ll board a ferry at Doolin Harbor bound for the stark beauty of Inis Oírr, the smallest of the Aran Islands. On arrival, enjoy a pony and trap (cart) tour of the island. On your return to the mainland, admire the Cliffs of Moher in the most spectacular way, from the sea. This afternoon, head to the tops of the Cliffs of Moher, where you will find yourself leaning into the wind on the very edge of Europe, more than 600 feet above the waters of the North Atlantic. 

 

Day 3) Limerick, Adare & Conor Pass

Today, depart for Limerick where you will enjoy a private guided walking tour of Limerick. Learn about the history of Limerick—from its Viking past to the present. See St. Mary's Cathedral, the Treaty Stone, King John's Castle and the Hunt Museum. From Limerick, continue your journey to Dingle, pausing along the way in Adare, a picturesque town. Descend the Conor Pass, Ireland’s highest mountain pass, to the quintessentially Irish harbor town of Dingle for a two-night stay. Dingle is a lively Gaeltacht town of seafaring heritage, where instrumental music and song have a long tradition. You will explore the town, have an opportunity to soak up Gaelic tunes in one of the local bars and enjoy dinner at one of several excellent restaurants, all within walking distance of your hotel. 

 

Day 4) Falconry Experience & Dingle Peninsula

Today, discover the Dingle Peninsula along the Slea Head Drive, one of the most scenic routes in Ireland. Your day will include a private Falconry Experience, where you will learn how to hold a hawk, as they fly along the beach between you. You will visit the Blasket Island Heritage Center, with stunning views of the wild Atlantic coast and islands. The Blasket Centre is a fascinating museum, honoring the unique community who lived on the remote Blasket Islands until their evacuation in 1953. Tonight, explore more of Dingle’s delights for which recommendations will be made.

 

Day 5) Ring of Kerry & Killarney National Park

Today, enjoy a scenic drive to the spectacular Ring of Kerry and the stunning beauty of Killarney National Park. You will stop at Kissane Farm to see a sheepdog demonstration. You will view Molls Gap, Ladies View and Torc Waterfall. You will also experience a jaunting car ride (horse carriage ride) and visit Muckross House & Gardens, a 19th century Tudor style mansion, where Queen Victoria stayed in 1861. Next, continue to quaint Kenmare with its rows of vividly painted shop fronts and a go-for-a-stroll atmosphere. Enjoy a stay at the Brook Lane Hotel in this quintessentially Irish town, known for its culinary specialties. 

 

Day 6) Mizen Head & Bantry House

Depart on a whole-day excursion to Mizen Head Peninsula in western County Cork, a photographer’s paradise. At Mizen Head Signal Station nestled high up in the Cliff face, view some of the most beautiful scenery Ireland has to offer. Stops along the route will include Barleycove Beach, and if time permits, Three Castle Head. This afternoon, visit Bantry House, a country house with gardens dating from the 18th century. 

 

Day 7) Cahir Castle, Ormond House & Jedpoint Abbey

Depart Kenmare for Cahir Castle one of Ireland's most prominent and best-preserved medieval castles, and Ormond House, Carrick-On-Suir, County Tipperary, a fine example of an Elizabethan manor house in Ireland. It was built in the 1560s by Thomas Butler, the 10th Earl of Ormond. Continue to Jedpoint Abbey, a ruined Cistercian abbey, founded in the second half of the 12th century. Arrive in Kilkenny for a two-night stay at an historical house is situated in the center of Kilkenny, adjacent to Kilkenny Castle. 

 

Day 8) Kilkenny, Rock of Cashel & Holy Cross Abbey

This morning you will enjoy a private guided walking tour of Kilkenny, one of Ireland's best-preserved medieval towns. Your tour will visit St. Canice’s Cathedral, which includes a well-preserved 9th-century Irish round tower. There will be some free time to visit the enchanting Kilkenny Castle. This afternoon, visit the Rock of Cashel, a major historic landmark in Ireland. Set on a dramatic outcrop of limestone in the Golden Vale, it possesses the most impressive cluster of medieval buildings in Ireland. Among the monuments to be found here are a round tower, a high cross, a Romanesque chapel, a Gothic cathedral, an abbey, the Hall of the Vicars Choral and a fifteenth-century Tower House. According to legend, St. Patrick himself came here to convert King Aenghus to Christianity. Return to Kilkenny vis Holy Cross Abbey. Pilgrims travelled here for eight centuries to venerate the relic after which the abbey and surrounding villages are named – a piece of the True Cross of Christ’s crucifixion.

 

Day 9) Russborough House & Castletown House  

This morning, depart Kilkenny for Russborough House, where you will enjoy a guided tour. Filled with hidden treasures from the Renaissance to the 20th century, Russborough is one of Ireland’s most beautiful Georgian houses. we make our way to Castletown House in County Kildare, Ireland’s largest and most significant Palladian style country house. Here, you will avail of the opportunity to view the fine architecture, original furniture and vast collection of paintings at home in this wonderful Georgian palace. Continue to your castle hotel for an overnight stay, just a 20-minute drive from Dublin Airport. Alternatively, extend your tour with a stay in Dublin.

 

Day 10) Dublin Airport 

Transfer to Dublin Airport for your return flight.