Best of Ireland Tour

Your journey begins on your overnight flight.

Arrive in Dublin, capital city of the “Emerald Isle.” If you purchased airline tickets from YMT, a representative will welcome you and transport you to the hotel. Dublin is laid out perfectly for casual walkers, so shops, restaurants, the River Liffey, and many other highlights are easy to explore on foot at your leisure. This evening, relax over a welcome dinner with your fellow travelers and learn about the days ahead. (D)

Today we head south to the Rock of Cashel—a cluster of historic ruins towering on a hilltop. We then head to Waterford, the oldest city in Ireland, and home to the famous crystal. Enjoy an illuminating tour of the factory where you’ll learn about the manufacturing process and Waterford’s history. Visit the gift shop, and marvel at the largest Waterford Crystal collection in the world. (B)

This morning we continue to Cork for a guided Jameson Experience distillery tour of the Midleton Distillery. Learn about history, heritage, and the whiskey production process before enjoying a tasting of Scotch, American and Jameson whiskey. Also included in today’s visit is a complimentary drink at the bar! Next, we visit Blarney Castle, one of Ireland’s oldest and most historic castles. Our tour ends today in Killarney, our home for the next two nights. (B, D)

Today, we travel through the beautiful and rugged landscape of the Connemara region. We’ll visit Kylemore Abbey, nestled at the base of Druchruach Mountain. Our drive continues through Westport into the Sligo area by late afternoon. (B, D)

This morning, enjoy a short visit to Belleek Pottery, a porcelain company founded in 1884, for a lesson on its history—with time to buy souvenirs in their store. Next, visit the Ulster American Folk Park and learn about 300 years of Irish emigration to America. Continue to Belfast, your home for the next two nights. (B)

Today, we’ll enjoy an excursion along coastal roads, and take in the seaside cliffs and Atlantic Ocean. We’ll visit the Glenarm, one of the oldest walled gardens in Ireland. Enjoy free time for lunch on your own at the Glenarm Gardens and Estate. Afterwards, you will spend time exploring the Giant’s Causeway, a UNESCO World Heritage site with rock formations that tower up to 40 feet. The stacks are said to be 50 million years old, and according to myth, were part of a road built by the giant Finn MacCool. (B)

This morning we visit Titanic Belfast, the $150 million Titanic visitor experience in the city where the unsinkable ship was built. You will see full-scale reconstructions and learn about the Titanic’s conception through to her tragic end in 1912. The journey continues to the discovery of the wreck, and into the present day with a live undersea exploration center. We will then enjoy a panoramic motor coach tour of Belfast, taking in the Parliament buildings at Stormont, Belfast City Hall, and the murals of the Falls Road. In the afternoon, we drive south to Dublin for our final evening in Ireland, and a farewell dinner at the hotel. (B, D)