Ireland and Scotland Adventure - From £2,025

Europe Ireland
OVERVIEW
Across Ireland and Scotland, you’ll travel from Dublin’s storied streets to the deep lochs and mountain valleys of the Scottish Highlands, with medieval towns, ancient castles and wild coastlines in between. Follow the Ring of Kerry, stand high above the water at the Cliffs of Moher and pick your way across the extraordinary basalt columns of the Giant’s Causeway. Cross the Irish Sea to Scotland, then journey through Glencoe and St Andrews before reaching Edinburgh’s historic closes and grand streets. Along the way, local stories, live music, hearty flavours and the call of the pipes add sound and warmth to the landscapes, while your Travel Director and Local Specialists connect you with the history and people behind each place.
EXPERIENCES
Belfast: See Belfast from the waterfront to its civic heart, from the gleaming scales of the Big Fish at Donegall Quay to the Titanic Quarter, Belfast City Hall and murals painted across the city’s streets, with the towering Samson and Goliath cranes visible across the skyline.

Bushmills: In Northern Ireland you'll discover the legend of the Giant's Causeway as you explore this iconic natural landmark. 

Donegal: Stop in Donegal and see The Diamond, a hub for music and cultural gatherings in the town.

Dublin: A Local Specialist will show you Dublin's elegant Georgian squares, O'Connell Street and the Custom House.

Edinburgh: Explore the city with your Local Specialist as you travel along Princes Street to see the Scott Memorial, the neoclassical Adam facades of New Town and the official Scottish residence of the King, Palace of Holyroodhouse.

Galway: Explore the historic heart of Galway. See landmarks such as the Spanish Arch and the cathedral, or perhaps admire the distinctive Claddagh rings.

Glasgow: See the grand public buildings of Glasgow, including George Square. 

Glencoe: Drive through Glencoe, a Highland valley known for steep mountains, open moorland and clan history. Your Travel Director shares context on the area’s past as you follow the road through one of Scotland’s best-known landscapes, with views that show the scale and character of the Highlands.

In Kilkenny, cobbled lanes and narrow slipways thread through the compact medieval centre. With your Travel Director, pass colourful shopfronts and historic buildings along the Medieval Mile, with Kilkenny Castle at one end and St Canice’s Cathedral at the other.

Lahinch: Gain a deeper understanding of the Cliffs of Moher on a guided walk with a Local Specialist in conservation. Learn how wildflowers support rare bird species like the red-billed chough and explore the cultural ties between the land and local communities. Your visit directly supports United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 15: Life on Land. 

Ring of Kerry: Admire Ireland's enduring scenic beauty on one of the most beautiful drives in the world.
DEPARTURE DATES AND PRICES
Tour
Departs		 Tour
Returns		 Starting From
(price per person)		 Definite Departure
What's this? 		Book Now!
01/04/2027 12/04/2027 £2,225   Book
15/04/2027 26/04/2027 £2,025   Book
29/04/2027 10/05/2027 £2,295   Book
13/05/2027 24/05/2027 £2,065 Book
27/05/2027 07/06/2027 £2,425   Book
10/06/2027 21/06/2027 £2,115   Book
24/06/2027 05/07/2027 £2,425   Book
08/07/2027 19/07/2027 £2,425   Book
22/07/2027 02/08/2027 £2,205   Book
05/08/2027 16/08/2027 £2,695   Book
19/08/2027 30/08/2027 £2,675   Book
02/09/2027 13/09/2027 £2,295   Book
16/09/2027 27/09/2027 £2,395   Book
30/09/2027 11/10/2027 £2,250   Book
14/10/2027 25/10/2027 £2,250   Book
28/10/2027 08/11/2027 £2,225   Book
View Our Dates
ITINERARY

You’ll arrive in Dublin with twelve days of Celtic adventure ahead, meeting your Travel Director and the fellow travellers who’ll share the journey with you. On your orientation drive, you’ll begin to find your bearings in Ireland’s capital, perhaps passing the River Liffey, Georgian terraces and some of the city’s familiar landmarks as Dublin unfolds beyond the window. The evening is yours. Follow the glow from a pub doorway, listen for live music drifting into the street or wander towards the river as the city lights begin to shimmer on the water, enjoying your first taste of Dublin entirely your way.

Begin with your Local Specialist among Dublin’s old brick courtyards, colourful streets and Gothic spires, with centuries of stories waiting behind the city’s familiar landmarks. Along the way, you’ll hear how Viking settlers, literary greats and rebels each left their mark on the Irish capital, with stories that turn familiar landmarks into something far more human. The rest of the day is yours to shape. You might choose an Optional Experience and try the speed, skill and competitive spirit of traditional Gaelic games, or spend the evening at an interactive Dublin cabaret, where music, laughter and live performance fill the room.

Travelling south to Kilkenny, you’ll see medieval lanes, painted shopfronts and weathered stone line streets layered with centuries of folklore. With your Travel Director sharing the stories behind its past, you’ll have free time to wander the Medieval Mile, pause for lunch or look across the River Nore from the grounds of Kilkenny Castle. Then it’s on to Blarney Castle, where cool castle walls, green gardens and winding paths lead you towards one of Ireland’s most famous traditions: the chance to kiss the Blarney Stone. In Cork, you might round out the evening with an Optional Experience of hearty pub food, live music and classic Irish entertainment, with song and laughter carrying you through your final hours of the day.

You’ll follow the Ring of Kerry, where the road winds between Atlantic inlets and green hillsides as sheep scatter across the slopes and sea air drifts in through your journey south. In Waterville, you’ll have free time to choose your own lunch, breathe in the Atlantic air and linger beside the water before continuing to Killarney. Your Travel Director introduces you to the town, then the time is yours to wander its streets at your own pace. You might choose an Optional Experience by traditional jaunting car, clip-clopping past the Lakes of Killarney and Ross Castle as horse hooves strike the road and reflections shimmer across the water. With the lakes behind you, the road leads back to Cork to close out the day.

Leaving Cork behind, you’ll travel towards Adare, where rows of 19th-century thatched cottages, clipped gardens and painted doors line the village streets. From there, the land rises towards the Cliffs of Moher, their dark rock dropping sheer towards the water as the air cools against your skin and seabirds circle far below. Take your time here, listening to the rush of wind across the cliff tops and watching the horizon stretch beyond the edge before continuing to Galway. Your Travel Director will introduce you to this harbour city, where narrow streets lead towards the waterfront and music may spill from pub doorways as you explore at your own pace. This evening, you can choose an Optional Experience with a walking tour of Galway followed by dinner.

Through Ireland’s northwest, you’ll pause in Sligo, the seaport town that served as a muse to W.B. Yeats, before continuing to Donegal, where the River Eske runs through town and Donegal Castle stands close to its banks. Your Travel Director will introduce you to the town, and then there’s free time for lunch and a wander of your own before the journey continues to Derry/Londonderry. The evening is yours, or you can choose an Optional Experience at the Walled City Brewery, where a beer-paired dinner layers roasted, malty flavours with each course and adds a warm local finish to the day.

Your morning in Derry/Londonderry is yours to shape, or you can choose an Optional Experience with a Local Specialist and follow the city’s historic walls while hearing the stories behind them. Then the landscape turns dramatic at the Giant’s Causeway, where thousands of dark basalt columns lock together beside the Antrim coast. Pick your way among the geometric rocks, feel the cool surface beneath your hand and listen as waves break against the shore. Later, continue to Belfast, where your Travel Director introduces you to the Northern Irish capital before you explore further at your own pace. You might choose to visit Titanic Belfast, tracing the city’s shipbuilding past, then spend the evening on an Optional Experience with a guided walk, a pub stop and hot fish and chips to finish the day.

You’ll begin the day with a drive through Belfast, where your Travel Director points out the city before you head for the ferry port. Out on the Irish Sea, the crossing opens into a sweep of water and sky, with gulls overhead and Scotland waiting beyond the horizon. Back on land, continue to Glasgow, where your Travel Director introduces you to the city along the way, from sandstone buildings to the hum of its streets. The evening is yours to explore, or you can choose a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience pairing a seasonal Scottish dinner with a comedy show, where hearty flavours and sharp Scottish humour round out the evening.

Towards Loch Lomond, you’ll watch the landscape open into wooded shores and mountain slopes as the loch stretches ahead, its cool surface broken by scattered islands. From the water, listen to the skipper’s local stories as the boat glides past forested banks and quiet coves. Continue through Glencoe, where steep-sided mountains rise around deep valleys and the road threads through one of Scotland’s most dramatic landscapes before your photo stop. In Fort William, you’ll have time for lunch at your leisure. Later, pause in Fort Augustus and look out across the deep, shadowed waters of Loch Ness before continuing into the Highlands for dinner.

You might spend the morning at your own pace or choose an Optional Experience inside Blair Castle, moving through grand rooms, polished wood and centuries of family history gathered beneath its roof. Then travel to St Andrews, where you’ll wander through this famous university town, feel the coastal air on your face and take in a place whose name is inseparable from the game of golf. In Edinburgh, the evening is yours, or you can choose an Optional Experience at a traditional Ceilidh. Settle in for dinner and a welcome drink, then listen for the skirl of the pipes as the famous ‘Piping in the Haggis’ ceremony begins. Tickets to The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo are included on certain departures.

With your Local Specialist, you’ll weave through Edinburgh’s stately streets and narrow closes, hearing tales of monarchs, ambition and intrigue as centuries of royal history echo through the Old Town. The rest of the day is yours. You might choose to visit Edinburgh Castle, standing high above the city and home to the Honours of Scotland, or spend your free time following whichever streets, viewpoints and tucked-away corners catch your eye. This afternoon, an Optional Experience through the Old Town pairs a guided walk with hot fish and chips, crisp from the fryer and warming in your hands. Later, you can choose another Optional Experience on the Royal Mile, where a Johnnie Walker whisky tasting and dinner fill the evening with smoky aromas, warming flavours and the glow of Edinburgh after dark.

After breakfast, your Ireland and Scotland adventure comes to a close, but the memories travel home with you: castle walls and loch-side landscapes, the call of the pipes, hearty flavours and twelve days shared across two countries.
ACCOMMODATION
DAY 1: Clayton Leopardstown - Meals:
DAY 2: Clayton Leopardstown - Meals: Breakfast
DAY 3: Cork International - Meals: Breakfast
DAY 4: Cork International - Meals: Breakfast
DAY 5: Clybaun - Meals: Breakfast
DAY 6: Holiday Inn Express - Meals: Breakfast
DAY 7: Corr's Corner - Meals: Breakfast
DAY 8: Novotel Glasgow - Meals: Breakfast
DAY 9: Craiglynne - Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
DAY 10: Novotel Edinburgh Park - Meals: Breakfast
DAY 11: Novotel Edinburgh Park - Meals: Breakfast
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