13 Day Celtic Highlights

Tour Description

This journey brings you the best of Scotland, England’s Lake District, North Wales and the Emerald Isle. Your Scottish experience begins in the lively city of Glasgow and continues via the ‘Bonnie Banks’ of Loch Lomond to Fort William and the Highland capital of Inverness. In Edinburgh visit the famous castle and the Queen’s Holyrood Palace, and in the lowland hills visit the famous blacksmith’s shop at Gretna Green before crossing the border into England. Delight in the beauty of the peaceful Lake District on your way to historic Chester. Explore the north Welsh towns of Betws-y-Coed and Caernarvon, then take a ferry across the Irish Sea to the ‘Fair City’ of Dublin. Blarney, the Ring of Kerry, the Cliffs of Moher and the Giant’s Causeway are all included before your Irish experience is completed with a visit to Belfast in the company of a Local Guide. Back to Glasgow to complete this popular holiday.

Your Hotels

Stay at the following (or similar):

•  Novotel Hotel , Glasglow(F),
•  Inverness Ramada (F),
•  The George Hotel ,Edinburgh (SF),
•  Chester Ramada Hotel , Chester (F),
•  Royal Marine Hotel ,Dublin, Dun Laoghaire (SF) ,
•  Holiday Inn Hotel , Killarney (F),
•  Limerick Strand Hotel , Limerick (SF),
•  Clarion Hotel , Sligo (SF),
•  Radisson Blu Hotel, Belfast  (SF),
•  Radisson Blu Hotel , Glasgow (SF)

Hotel Classifications: Deluxe (D), Superior First Class (SF), First Class (F)

Tour Includes

• GLASGOW: Welcome dinner; orientation drive; farewell dinner.
• FORT WILLIAM
• HIGHLANDS: Guided tour of a whisky distillery.
• BALMORAL: Visit the castle (when open).
• BRAEMAR
• EDINBURGH: Guided sightseeing, visit Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Palace.
• GRETNA GREEN
• GRASMERE: Visit Wordsworth’s village.
• CHESTER: Walking tour.
• BETSW-Y-COED: Take a stroll in this popular resort.
• CAERNARVON: Admire the impressive castle.
• HOLYHEAD-DUBLIN: Cross the Irish Sea by ferry.
• DUBLIN: Orientation drive, visit Trinity College.
• KILDARE: Guided tour of the Irish National Stud.
• ROCK OF CASHEL: Take photographs of this famous landmark.
• BLARNEY: Visit the famous village.
• KILLARNEY: Visit the popular resort town.
• RING OF KERRY: Scenic peninsula drive.
• ADARE: Admire the thatched cottages.
• LIMERICK: Orientation drive.
• CLIFFS OF MOHER: Savour the spectacular views.
• GALWAY: Orientation.
• KNOCK: Visit the religious site.
• DRUMCLIFF: Visit W.B. Yeats’ grave.
• BELLEEK: Guided tour of the pottery.
• DERRY: Walking tour with a Local Guide
• COUNTY ANTRIM: Take pictures of Dunluce Castle, visit the Giant’s Causeway.
• BELFAST: Guided “Living History” tour.
• BELFAST-STRANRAER: Cross the North Channel by Stena Line’s High Speed Service.

Tour Meals

• Full English breakfast (B); 7 three-course dinners (D) with choice of menus, including a welcome dinner and a farewell dinner in Glasgow.

Itinerary

Day 1 Glasgow, Scotland.

Check into your hotel. The rest of the day is free to relax in Scotland’s largest city. At 6 pm, meet your Tour Director and travelling companions for a welcome dinner at your hotel. (D)

Day 2 Glasgow – Fort William – Inverness.

Your Celtic adventure starts in earnest with a city drive, taking in the fine 12th-century cathedral, imposing university buildings, and elegant Georgian squares. On the way this morning: the “Bonnie Banks” of Loch Lomond; wild Rannoch Moor; Glen Coe; lovely Loch Linnhe; and Fort William beneath Ben Nevis. In the afternoon, look out for signs of the mysterious Loch Ness monster. Spend the night in Inverness, the Highland capital. (B/D)

Day 3 Inverness – Braemar – Edinburgh.

Cross the battlefield of Culloden Moor for a visit to a WHISKY DISTILLERY. On to BALMORAL CASTLE, the Queen’s residence during the hunting season (when available). Then, drive through Braemar, home of the Royal Highland Games for over 900 years, and in the afternoon, via Perth to Edinburgh. Tonight, don’t miss our optional Scottish evening with Highland dancers, bagpipers, and the Ceremony of the Haggis. (B)

Day 4 Edinburgh.

Morning city sightseeing with a Local Guide introduces you to the 200-year-old “New Town” and famous scientists, inventors, and novelists. In the “Old Town”, drive up the narrow Royal Mile to EDINBURGH CASTLE to admire Scotland’s Crown Jewels, then explore HOLYROOD PALACE (except when the Queen is in residence). Later, a unique optional experience: board the former Royal Yacht Britannia, to see how the Royal Family and crew of 240 lived and worked on board. Dinner rounds off this optional evening. For departure numbers 0809, 0816, and 0823 tickets are included for tonight’s performance of the world-renowned MILITARY TATTOO. (B)

Day 5 Edinburgh – Lake District, England – Chester.

On the way through the history-steeped Lowland Hills, stop at Gretna Green. Then leave the land of the Scots and journey into England, through the tranquil <a href=”/pop_areas/uk/uk/lake_district.htm”>Lake District</a> to Grasmere, home of poet William Wordsworth. On your Chester walking tour, see the Roman remains, the characteristic black and white half-timbered houses, and the famous two-tiered arcades called the “Rows”. (B/D)

Day 6 Chester – North Wales – Dublin, Ireland.

Travel through the incomparable landscapes of Snowdonia National Park via lovely Betws-y-Coed and over breathtaking Llanberis Pass. After as stop at Caernarvon, cross Britannia Bridge to the Isle of Anglesey for a photo stop at tongue-twisting Llanfair… At Holyhead, board your fast FERRY and cross the Irish Sea to Dublin. (B)

Day 7 Dublin.

An orientation drive in the Irish capital includes statue-lined O’Connell Street, elegant Georgian squares, and St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Then, visit Oscar Wilde’s TRINITY COLLEGE, famous for the 1,200-year-old Book of Kells and the magnificent Old Library. Afternoon at leisure. Take your Tour Director’s dining recommendation. (B)

Day 8 Dublin – Kildare – Blarney – Killarney.

Horse-racing country this morning. Drive across the Curragh to visit the IRISH NATIONAL STUD at Kildare, whose thoroughbreds command respect on the racecourses of the world. On the way to Killarney, stop at the Rock of Cashel, where St. Patrick preached, and in Blarney, renowned for its magical Kissing Stone. (B/D)

Day 9 Killarney – Ring of Kerry – Adare – Limerick.

Follow the road known as the RING OF KERRY for a spectacular 100-mile panoramic drive around the island’s south western tip. In the afternoon, travel via quaint Adare to Limerick, where an orientation drive features St. Mary’s Cathedral, King John’s Castle, and the Stone where the Treaty of Limerick was signed in 1691. A suggestion for a very special night out: an optional medieval banquet at Bunratty Castle. (B)

Day 10 Limerick – Cliffs of Moher – Galway – Sligo.

Motor to the spectacular CLIFFS OF MOHER, rising 204 metres (668 feet) above the Atlantic. Via the limestone plateau of The Burren you reach Galway. Hear about the infamous Lynch Stone, commemorating the day Mayor James Lynch Fitzstephen hanged his son for murder. Visit Knock, a village that attracts pilgrims from all over the world, then spend the night in Sligo. (B/D)

Day 11 Sligo – Derry, Northern Ireland – Giant’s Causeway – Belfast.

A rich string of attractions awaits you today: the grave of native son and poet W.B. Yeats in Drumcliff; BELLEEK POTTERY, renowned for its exquisite cream-colored Parian china; and in Derry, walk the city walls in the company of a Local Guide. After lunch, drive to Dunluce Castle, then visit the awe-inspiring GIANT’S CAUSEWAY. Stay in Belfast tonight, Northern Ireland’s seat of government. (B/D

Day 12 Belfast – Glasgow, Scotland.

On this morning’s “Living History” tour in the company of a Local Guide, learn more about this fascinating city where the Titanic was built. Board your FERRY for the fast crossing of the North Channel to Stranraer on the west coast of Scotland. Back in Glasgow, celebrate the success of your journey with a farewell dinner at your hotel. (B/D)

Day 13 Glasgow.

Your holiday ends with breakfast this morning. (B)

Dates and Prices for 2011

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Accommodation rating Represents the standard of hotel used most frequently throughout this tour

Extras Represents the individual operators suggested budget to pay for additional activities on tour (dinners,entertainment,excursions etc) NOT included in base tour price

Hotel legend:
D deluxe | SF superior first | F first | MF moderate first | ST superior tourist | T Tourist