Ireland

Depart via scheduled air service to Dublin.

Arrive in Dublin. Meet your Faith Journeys Tour Manager who will assist the group to awaiting chartered motorcoach to Dublin’s city center. Enjoy a panoramic tour of Dublin’s highlights including O’Connell Street, Phoenix Park, Trinity College, and Christchurch Cathedral. Late afternoon check-in at the hotel. Evening Welcome Dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. This morning, we will travel to County Cork stopping for a heritage tour and sheepdog demonstration at Jerpoint Park. Continue to the Rock of Cashel, also known as St. Patrick’s Rock. This historic site is one of the most photographed in Ireland. Only a few remnants of the early structures survive from the 5th century. Lunch, on own. Continue to Cork for evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Enjoy a panoramic tour of beautiful Cork, a major Irish seaport. Visit Blarney Castle, one of Ireland’s oldest and most famous castles. At the top of the castle, lies the Blarney Stone. Those who visit Blarney Castle may hang upside-down over a sheer drop to kiss the stone, which is said to give the gift of eloquence. Lunch, on own. Continue to Killarney stopping en route in Gougane Barra, whose name derives from St. Finbarr, who was said to have built a monastery here during the 6th century. Enjoy a stroll through Gougane’s Forest Park. Continue to Killarney for evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Begin in the town of Dingle with its thriving fishing harbor, shops, pubs, and narrow streets. On our drive along the Peninsula, we will admire scenic Iveragh Peninsula, Rossbeigh Beach, and the Basket Islands.. Lunch, on own. Continue to the excavated monastery at Riask to see the ruins of a 6th century monastery and 7th century cross slab of St. Mura, the patron saint of Fahan. Explore the impressive Gallarus Oratory, an early Christian monument built in the shape of an upturned boat dating from 7th century. It was part of a larger monastic site and was used as a place for prayer and reflection. Continue to the Kerry area for evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. This morning we will travel to County Clare, rich in Christian history and contains many abbeys and priories whose ruins date back to the 6th century. As we drive along the coast, we will behold the majestic Cliffs of Moher. Lunch, on own. Continue to Galway through the Burren Region, a high plateau of porous limestone. Visit Corcomroe Abbey and three early Christian Churches. Continue to Galway for evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Visit the Connemara Region, famous for its scenic lakes and mountains. See Lough Corrib (the second largest lake in Ireland) then proceed through Maam Cross to the village of Leenane and Kylemore Abbey. Lunch, on own. Explore Kylemore Abbey, a monastery founded in 1920 for Benedictine Nuns who fled Belgium in World War I. A craft shop, pottery studio, restaurant, and gardens also surround the Abbey. Return to Galway for evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. Enjoy a panoramic tour of Galway including Lynch’s Castle and St. Nicholas’ Collegiate Church before returning to Dublin via Clonmacnoise. Lunch, on own. Explore Clonmacnoise to see the large round tower built in 1124, ruins of churches, and remarkable Cross of the Scriptures which dates from 900 AD. Continue to Dublin for evening dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at the hotel. This morning we will visit the Boyne Valley, a complex of tombs, standing stones, hinges, and other prehistoric enclosures predating the Egyptian pyramids. Visit St. Peter’s Church in Drogheda and the shrine of St. Oliver Plunkett. Lunch, on own. Visit Mellifont Abbey, the first Cistercian abbey to be built in Ireland which served as a model for other Cistercian abbeys in Ireland. Return to Dublin for Farewell Dinner and overnight.