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The Scots Irish
Superior & First Class Hotels: 11 Day Coach Tour
Tour
Highlights:
Scottish Cabaret & Dinner in Edinburgh
Brazen Head Pub Dinner & Traditional Music
Edinburgh & Blair Castles
Loch Ness Panoramic
Cruise
Blair Athol Whisky Distillery
Derry’s
Medieval Walls
Ulster American Folk
Park
Westport
& Achill Island Tour
Day 1: Glasgow Highlights
Land in Glasgow Airport
where you’ll meet your CIE Tours driver/guide or representative. Take a
group transfer to your hotel, departing at 8:00 am, 10:00 am or 12:00 noon.
If you arrive later than noon, you must transfer to the hotel at your own
expense. At 3:00 pm set out on a coach tour to discover the main attractions
of Glasgow, a
city that flourished in Victorian times due to the shipbuilding industry on
the River Clyde. Drive around George
Square with its ornate City Chambers and nearby
Glasgow Cathedral. Visit extensive collections in Kelvinqrove Art Gallery and
Museum, originally opened in 1901 and recently refurbished.
Back at your hotel, join your fellow travellers for a welcome drink before dinner
is served. (D)
Day 2:
Loch Lomond & Loch Ness Cruise
Depart Glasgow
and drive alongside the famous Loch Lomond,
renowned in song and also for unsurpassed beauty of the lake and mountains.
Travel across the haunting Rannoch Moor and through Glencoe, notorious for
the Campbell
massacre of the Clan Macdonald in 1692. Continue through Fort William
and stop at the nearby Ben Nevis Highland Centre, which offers a good
selection of quality Scottish goods. At Fort
Augustus embark on a short cruise on Loch Ness to admire enchanting scenic views
and perhaps spot the famous monster. Motor alongside the loch and through Inverness. Continue to Nairn
where your hotel was a favourite summer residence
of Charlie Chaplin. (B,D)
Day 3: Blair Castle & Scottish Cabaret
Head through the steep Grampian
Mountains to visit 13th century Blair Castle, home of the
Earls and Dukes of Atholl. This stately mansion
contains a variety of portraits, china and armour
to show the life of Scottish nobility. Nearby visit Blair Athol Distillery to
learn about the creation of whisky and enjoy a sample. Continue south to Edinburgh, in time to
check in to your hotel. In the evening attend a Scottish cabaret where you
dine on local specialties, including the famous haggis, and enjoy traditional
entertainment. (B,D)
Day 4: Edinburgh Castle & City Tour
This morning an Edinburgh city guide
will point out the principal sights of this interesting capital city. Drive
along the bustling Princes
Street and through the gracious, wide streets of
the 200-year-old Georgian New Town. See the compact medieval section along
the Royal Mile where some houses reach 11 stories tall. Visit Edinburgh Castle, which dominates
the city centre and contains the Scottish Crown Jewels and the Stone of
Scone. The balance of the day is free for further sightseeing, shopping and
dining. On August 10 and 24 departures enjoy the Military Tattoo at Edinburgh Castle. (B)
Day 5:
Larne Ferry & Belfast Historic Tour
This morning depart Edinburgh after breakfast and drive south
through part of the Southern Uplands and along the coastline. At Cairnryan take a ferry ride across the narrow
channel between Scotland
and Ireland
to arrive in Larne. Drive the short distance to Belfast
and see the highlights of Belfast
with a local
guide, including Victorian buildings, the Harland and Wolff
Shipyards, where the Titanic was built and areas around the Shankill and Falls Road. Check in to your
centrally-located hotel and relax before dining in the hotel. (B,D)
Day 6:
Giant’s Causeway & Walls of Derry
Walk
Drive north to experience wonderful
views as you travel along the “Nine Glens of Antrim,” a scenic
route past mountains, valleys and coastline. Stop at the Giant’s
Causeway, hexagonal columns formed by volcanic
activity over 60 million years ago. The enormous rocks have spawned legends
about the mythical giant, Finn McCool. Continue to Derry
to check in to your hotel. Join a local guide for a short walking tour
around the ancient and historic city centre, which is completely surrounded
by medieval city walls. (B,D)
Day 7: Ulster American
Folk Park
& Westport
Travel south to visit the Ulster American Folk
Park in Omagh. The Park traces the
story of Ulster emigrants
to the Appalachians where they became known
as the “Scotch Irish.” See how people lived in the “Old
Country” before sailing across the Atlantic to settle in the “New World” in Colonial times. One third of all U.S.
Presidents had Scots Irish heritage. Drive along the northern rim of scenic
Lower Lough Erne and along the shoreline of Donegal Bay, pausing to view the grave of the
Nobel-winning writer, W. B. Yeats. Continue through County
Sligo and
the open, windswept landscapes of County
Mayo to your next overnight stay in Westport. Check in to
your hotel in the centre of this lovely town and enjoy free time to browse
around before dinner. (B,D)
Day 8: Achill Island
& Deserted Famine
Village
After a leisurely breakfast, travel
around Clew Bay
to reach Achill
Island, joined to the
mainland by bridge. Follow the Atlantic
Drive to capture wonderful, wild views of steep
mountains and stretches of golden beaches. Near Slievemore
see the Deserted
Village, the remains of
100 cottages abandoned in the 1840’s Famine. Return to Westport for an
afternoon at leisure so you may look around the town on your own. The estate
town was laid out in 1780 and has many fine Georgian houses and a tree-lined
mall. After dinner in your hotel you may like to explore some of the lively
pubs, including Matt Malloy’s Pub, of Chieftains fame. (B,D)
Day 9: Strokestown Park House & Viking Dublin
Drive through Castlebar
to visit Strokestown Park House in County Roscommon. There are three parts to
see – the 18th century mansion with its original furnishings; the
four-acre walled garden, restored to look as it would have during the heyday
of the estate; and the Famine Museum, which uses a combination of original
documents and images to explain the circumstances of the 1840’s Great
Irish Famine. Continue your journey across Ireland
to the east coast and Dublin’s
Temple Bar area where your hotel is located. In the evening head to the
nearby Brazen
Head Pub, which dates from the 12th
century. Here enjoy a great dinner and a lively show of traditional
Irish songs and intricate step-dancing. (B,D)
Day 10:
Kilmainham Gaol &
Guinness
Relax on a half-day guided tour of Dublin, originally
founded by Vikings over 1,000 years ago. See elegant Georgian townhouses and colourful doors and cross the River Liffey
to view the wide thoroughfare of O’Connell
Street with the General Post Office where the
1916 Rebellion started. Pause to view the gaunt figures at the Famine Memorial
before visiting Kilmainham Gaol
to see how penal establishments were operated in past centuries. Learn about
the leaders of the 1916 Rebellion who were imprisoned and shot here, changing
Irish history. The afternoon is free so that you may use your independent open-top
bus tour and Guinness or Jameson vouchers. (B)
Day 11:
Homeward Bound
Complimentary group transfers to Dublin Airport are provided to arrive at 6:00
am, 9:00 am or 12:00 noon. After check-in, you’ll have time to shop at
the duty-free before boarding your flight for the journey home. (B)
Tour
runs 20 April > 19 October
Departure
days Tuesday
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Tour Dates
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Prices
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20 April
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$2365
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4 May > 18 May
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$2595
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1 June > 13 July
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$2615
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27 July > 24 August
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$2740
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7 September > 21
September
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$2615
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5 October > 19
October
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$2405
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All
rates in Australian dollars per person twin share basis
Single
supplement $800
YOUR
TOUR INCLUDES
• Group
transfers on arrival and departure
• Ferry from Scotland to Ireland
• Sightseeing
by luxury coach throughout
• Dublin open-top bus tour
• Visit and a
drink at Guinness Storehouse or Old Jameson Distillery
• Services of
a professional driver/guide
• Superior
& first class hotels with private bath/shower for 10 nights
• 10 full
Scottish & Irish breakfasts (B)
• 8 dinners
(D) including:
- Scottish cabaret with dinner in Edinburgh
- Food, Folk and Fairies dinner/show at the
Brazen Head Pub
- 6 table d’hôte dinners
• Welcome
get-together drink
• Scenic
cruise on Loch Ness
• Whisky
tasting and tour of Blair Athol Distillery
• Reserved
seats for Edinburgh Military Tattoo on August 10 and 24 departures
• Tours of Edinburgh and Belfast
with local guides
• Walking
tour of Derry with a local guide
• Day tour to
Achill Island
• Visits and
admissions to Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum,
Ben Nevis Highland Centre, Blair Castle, Edinburgh Castle, Giant’s
Causeway, Ulster American Folk Park, W. B. Yeats’ Grave, Strokestown House & Famine Museum and Kilmainham Gaol
• Deluxe flight bag, ticket
wallet, luggage tags & strap
•
All local taxes, hotel service charges & porterage
for one suitcase per person
YOUR HOTELS
Stay
at the following (or similar):
Thistle
Hotel, Glasgow (1 night)
The
Newton Hotel, Nairn
(1 night)
Marriott
Dalmahoy Hotel, Edinburgh
(2 nights)
Europa Hotel, Belfast (1 night)
Everglades
Hotel, Derry
(1 night)
Mill
Times Hotel, Westport (2 nights)
Burlington
Hotel, Dublin (2 nights)
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