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Screenshot — Ireland Grand Circle Tour Oct. 1 - 24, 2024

Only a few weeks to the start of our Grand Ireland Circle Tour

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August 13, 2024

It is only a few weeks now until the start of our fabulous 15-day Ireland Grand Circle Tour which will start in Dublin on Oct. 1.

(THIS TOUR IS NOW SOLD OUT)

The tour will sweep around the picturesque south and beautiful west coast of the island, up to the north, with visits to Derry, Belfast and the Giant’s Causeway and more, before ending in Dublin to complete the circle.

The tour is designed to be an exciting and fun-packed adventure from start to finish, but it is also a golden opportunity to engage and indulge in all the best of Irish culture: the music, dance, humour and, of course, all the traditional, delicious and creative food and drink.

It will be a journey with friendly, like-minded souls into quaint towns and villages, exceptional gardens and a chance to see a grand list of outstanding landscapes . . . as well as a chance to enjoy a stay in a five-star historic castle with awesome views.

For me, the tour will be the fulfilment of a deep yearning to complete a journey I began in 2017.

Back then, I took a group – two groups, actually, back to back – to Ireland for the first time on a tour focused on the east coast, visiting gardens south of Dublin, such as Powerscourt, Mount Usher and Altamont as well as the towns of Wexford and Waterford.

It was a wonderful, enlightening trip full of delights and discoveries and laughter.

But at the end of it, I knew my adventure in Ireland was incomplete for I still longed to see the beauty of the West Coast and the lovely city of Cork and the Wild Atlantic Way and seaside town of Cobh and the Garnish Island and the all those splendid lyrical towns and places of the south and west: Blarney, Dingle, Galway, Donegal, the Ring of Kerry, Cliffs of Moher, Sligo, and on and on.

There’s a peacefulness, calm and comfort about Ireland that goes deep into the soul.

I have many vivid memories of the kindness I found there, in towns and villages.

And I still well remember the fun and friendliness and humour I experienced in pubs and, of course, the thrill of being in blissful gardens with magnificent trees and pristine lakes and a surprising assortment of exotic plants.

It’s impossible here to tell you everything we will be seeing and doing on the tour.

So many of the special things that happen on our tours seem to happen unexpectedly – it’s a kind of magical serendipity. Of course, the tour has been well thought out. It is all carefully designed to maximize our enjoyment and take in everything that is fun and wonderful. I really want to make sure you get to do and see as much as possible without feeling rushed or pressured.

For instance, we will go to Muckross House with its spectacular garden and to the charming village of Adare for lunch at the amazing manor house.

I want us to see the awesome Cliffs of Moher as well as romantic Kylemore Abbey and the stunning Darty Mountains, and area sometimes called “Yeats Country”.

We’re have arranged a ferry ride to the charming island of Inis Oirr where for part of our visit we’ll be transported by tractor wagon. This island is the smallest and most easterly of the three Aran Islands in Galway Bay.

In Galway, we have plans for a night of lovely Irish music before we visit the picturesque Kylemore Abbey, so beautiful I believe it is worthy of a love poem.

In Glenveagh national park in the heart of County Donegal, we’ll see more fabulous gardens as well as visit the very special Crolly Distillery for a tasting.

There we’ll spend time at Long Eske Castle on the waters edge of Lough Eske and close to the Blue Stack Mountains.

From Sligo, we go to Derry where we will hear about Ireland’s important past, and then we will make our way to Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland, and the Giant’s Causeway, one of the world’s most iconic geological sites.

To complete the Circle Tour, we will return to Dublin where our farewell dinner with be a party to remember at Taylors Three Rock in the Dublin mountains.

For the day-by-day details of the tour, you need to get the complete itinerary.

This is available from Lyle Truden, our agent for this and many past tours. Contact him here on via this website or at lyle@trudentravel.com or by phone at 778-995-6525.

swhysall@hotmail.com