​NORTH OF IRELAND ESCAPE
7 Day Tour from Dublin to Dublin

Escape to the beauty and history of the “Emerald Isle” on your guided tour of Ireland. Enjoy your getaway into the green valleys and sweeping seashores without the large crowds or costs of the “busy” travel season. You’ll begin in the fair city of Dublin. Admire statue-lined O’Connell Street, Dublin’s main thoroughfare, and elegant Georgian squares with their red-brick townhouses and colorful doors behind the wrought-iron fences. You’ll also see Trinity College and St. Patrick’s Cathedral along the way.

Leave the bustle of Dublin for the green landscapes of Ireland’s countryside, and visit Rathbaun Farm. You’ll learn about Ireland’s sheep-farming practices, and try your hand at scone baking in the farmhouse kitchen. You’ll travel on to western Ireland’s colorful harbor city of Galway, with its vibrant shops, cafés, and traditional pubs. On your way to Northern Ireland, pass through Westport, Donegal, and Letterkenny. Then, enjoy a guided walk on Derry’s Old Town walls, and visit the amazing natural formation of the Giant’s Causeway—massive interlocking basalt columns that dramatically extend across the seashore.

Spend two nights in Belfast, with plenty to see in Northern Ireland’s capital city, including the fascinating Titanic Experience. On your way back to Dublin, stop in Carlingford. This Cooley Peninsula town is famous for its oyster farms, medieval buildings, and 12th-century King John’s Castle overlooking the city. Spend the last night of your escorted tour of Ireland where you began, in Dublin. You’ll see why this escape through Ireland’s beauty and history is made even better without the crowds of the high season on your affordable, guided Ireland vacation.

ITINERARY 
​
DAY 1 ARRIVE IN DUBLIN, IRELAND
Céad mile fáilte—a hundred-thousand welcomes! At 3pm, meet your Tour Director and traveling companions for an afternoon orientation drive to see O’Connell Street, Georgian squares, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and Trinity College.
Dinner

DAY 2 DUBLIN–ATHLONE–RATHBAUN FARM–GALWAY
ATHLONE Visit the town on the River Shannon.
RATHBAUN  Try your hand at scone baking, learn about sheep herding, and enjoy coffee and your scones at an Irish farm. 
Breakfast

DAY 3 GALWAY–WESTPORT–DONEGAL–LETTERKENNY
WESTPORT Visit the elegant holiday resort on Ireland’s west coast.
DONEGAL Visit the Vikings’ town. 
Breakfast
Dinner

DAY 4 LETTERKENNY–DERRY, NORTHERN IRELAND–GIANT’S CAUSEWAY–BELFAST
DERRY Walk on the city walls with a Local Guide. GIANT’S CAUSEWAY See more than 40,000 interlocking basalt columns formed millions of years ago. 
Breakfast

DAY 5 BELFAST
BELFAST Orientation drive. Visit Titanic Experience museum. Free time this afternoon.
Breakfast

DAY 6 BELFAST–CARLINGFORD, IRELAND–DUBLIN
CARLINGFORD Stop in the charming village on the Cooley Peninsula. DUBLIN Free time in the evening. 
Breakfast

DAY 7 DUBLIN
Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning.
Breakfast

IRELAND