DAY    1            DEPARTURE FROM NORTH AMERICA
Enjoy full meal service on your scheduled wide-bodied flight to Dublin.

DAY    2            ARRIVE DUBLIN (2 NIGHTS)
We will be met at the airport by our Tour Manager/Guide, and transfer to our hotel in Dublin, Ireland's magnificent capital city. Upon our arrival, we will take an Introductory Walking Tour of Southeast Dublin. We begin outside the Bank of Ireland, one of Dublin's most treasured landmarks, before strolling along Grafton Street, the spine of Dublin's most popular and stylish shopping district. After viewing the Molly Malone statue, we continue to St. Stephen's Green, a beautiful 22-acre park in the heart of Dublin filled with beautifully landscaped flowerbeds, fountains, a lake and memorials to important Dubliners. Our walking tour concludes with a walk around Merrion Square, a marvel of Georgian architecture known for its colorful doors and the famous literary figures that once lived here, including Yeats and Wilde.

DAY    3            DUBLIN (SAINTS & SCHOLARS)
Our morning begins with a visit to St. Patrick's Cathedral, the national cathedral of the Church of Ireland. It is said that St. Patrick baptized converts on this site, and consequently a church has stood here since A.D. 450, making it the oldest Christian site in Dublin. St. Patrick's is closely associated with Jonathan Swift, who was dean from 1713 to 1745 and whose tomb lies in the south aisle. Our day continues with a visit to Trinity College, the oldest university in Ireland, with cobbled squares, beautiful gardens, a picturesque quadrangle, and buildings dating from the 17th to the 20th centuries. The college is also home to the Book of Kells, an 8th-century version of the four Gospels with elaborate scripting and illumination. This afternoon we visit the National Museum, established in 1890; the museum is a reflection of Ireland's heritage from 2000 B.C. to the present. The museum houses many of the country's greatest historical finds, including the Treasury Exhibit, with the Ardagh Chalice, Tara Brooch, Cross of Cong, and an extensive exhibition of Irish Bronze Age gold ornaments. This evening we will dine and wander through the lively Temple Bar area.

DAY    4            DUBLIN - CASHEL - BLARNEY - CORK AREA (1 NIGHT)
We leave Dublin early this morning and travel to the spectacular Rock of Cashel, a monumental 12th century cathedral complex dominating the surrounding landscape. The Rock was the stronghold of the kings of Munster for seven centuries, and it was here that St. Patrick converted them and made the shamrock the emblem of Ireland. Our day continues to Blarney, where we will visit Blarney Castle, one of the most haunting and striking castles in Ireland. The remains of this impressive castle include a massive square tower, with a parapet rising 83 feet, and the infamous Blarney Stone, wedged underneath the battlements; it is traditional to kiss the stone to ensure the gift of eloquence. We will also stroll through the gardens and a nearby dell beside Blarney Lake, before having the opportunity to visit Badger Cave and adjacent dungeons, penetrating the rock at the base of the castle. We continue for a brief stop at the Blarney Woolen Mills, featuring quality garments and souvenirs, before continuing to our hotel in Cork.

DAY    5            CORK AREA - MUCKROSS HOUSE - KILLARENY AREA
                          (3 NIGHTS)
This morning we will explore the city of Cork, beginning with a visit to Cork's most famous attraction, St. Anne's Anglican Church. In addition to a tour of the church, we will have the opportunity to ascend the tower to see the famous Shandon Bells, hung in 1752. We will hear them play Cork's own anthem, On the Banks of My Own Lovely Lee. We continue with a stroll down St. Patrick's Street, past the Grand Parade, before journeying to County Kerry for a visit to Muckross House, overlooking the Lakes of Killarney. This imposing Victorian mansion is built in the Elizabethan style, and its elegant rooms are decorated with period furnishings. Our visit will also include the Museum of Kerry Life, with displays on the history of southwest Ireland, and a craft center with numerous workshops. After time to wander through the beautifully landscaped Gardens, we continue to our hotel in Killarney.

DAY    6            THE RING OF KERRY
Today we will enjoy a leisurely tour around the famed Ring of Kerry, a beautiful drive around the Iveragh Peninsula. We will enjoy a splendid variety of outstanding coastal panoramas and magnificent mountain views. During the course of our tour, we will have the opportunity to stop and explore many small towns and villages on the peninsula, including Killorglin, Glenbeigh and Caherciveen. We continue to Valentia Island, then through the Coomaskista Pass, before stopping to visit Staigue Fort, the best preserved Iron Age drystone fort in Ireland. Other highlights will include: the Hog's Head, Moll's Gap, Ladies View, Torc Waterfall and our visit to Sneem, a small village with brightly painted cottages. We return to Killarney for the evening.

DAY    7            THE GAP OF DUNLOE
Today we will take a tour through the Gap of Dunloe and the Lakes of Killarney. We commence at Kate Kearney's Cottage, followed by a Pony Cart Ride through the famous gap, a glaciated valley, to Lord Brandons Cottage. After lunch, we will take the Traditional Style Boat through the three Lakes of Killarney, to Ross Castle. There are few castles anywhere in Ireland that can boast such a dream-like enchanted setting as this ruined tower house on the shore of Killarney's Lower Lake. Built in the late fifteenth century, it is fairly typical of its type, with square bartizans on diagonally opposite corners and a thick end wall containing a tier of chambers and a winding mural stair. We return to our hotel in Killarney.

DAY    8            KILLARNEY - CRAGGAUNOWEN - ADARE - LIMERICK AREA
                          (2 NIGHTS)
This morning we visit the Craggaunowen Project, and the exhibit entitled Craggaunowen: The Living Past, which is designed to bring Bronze Age and Celtic culture to life. This is a shining example of a recreated prehistoric site, created around the grounds of Craggaunowen Castle in the 1960s. People in costume act out particular trades such as spinning and potting, and a French slave describes how communities lived in the ring fort, an early Christian homestead. Our visit will also include a collection of archaeological finds from the area, housed in the castle tower, an Iron Age timber road, a crannog, and a leather-hulled boat used to retrace the route that legend says St. Brendan took across the Atlantic in the 6th century. Our day continues with a visit to the town of Adare, billed as Ireland's prettiest village. It is a picture of neat stonework and thatched roofs with picturesque ruins, all in a woodland setting. This afternoon we continue to our hotel in the Limerick area.

DAY    9            THE CLIFFS OF MOHER & BUNRATTY CASTLE
Our day begins with a visit to the Cliffs of Moher, a dramatic sheer rock face, rising 700 feet from the Atlantic Ocean and stretching for five miles. During our visit, we will have the opportunity to climb O'Brien's Tower, a viewing point built for the benefit of Victorian tourists. After time to explore the beauty of the Irish coast, we continue with a visit to Bunratty Castle a formidable castle built in the 15th century, which has been preserved just as it would have looked in the 1500s. We will take a tour through the castle, including the Great Hall, the Main Guard and the South Solar, before visiting the adjoining Folk Park, which is an authentic re-creation of life in Ireland at the turn of the 20th century. This evening we will enjoy a Medieval Banquet at Bunratty Castle, before returning to our hotel.

DAY    10            DEPARTURE FROM SHANNON
Our enjoyable and rewarding tour will come to an end as our guide accompanies us to the airport for the return flight home.