8 Night Best of Ireland by Rail

Arrive at Dublin international airport and make your way to the city centre. After checking into your accommodation, use your Dublin sightseeing tickets to bus your way around Dublin city. The Dublin sightseeing ticket lasts for two days and includes stops close to all of Dublin’s main attractions including The National Museums, Trinity College and The Book of Kells, St Patrick’s Cathedral and Christchurch Cathedral to name just a few places. On one night of your time in Dublin, we would certainly recommend that you visit Dublin’s busy Temple Bar to check out its famous traditional Irish music and vibrant nightlife!

Continue your sightseeing in Dublin today. Visit Dublin Castle which was built in the early thirteenth century on the site of a Viking settlement and served as the headquarters of English administration in Ireland prior to Irish independence. Kilmainham Gaol is also a must.  One of the largest unoccupied gaols in Europe, it covers some of the most heroic and tragic events in Ireland's history.

Also worth a visit are EPIC, the Irish emigration museum and the GPO (General Post Office) which houses the ‘GPO Witness History’ visitor attraction. This exhibition tells the story of the 1916 rising and the aftermath of this historic rebellion. Of course, you will also have the opportunity to visit the Guinness Storehouse before another evening of exploring Dublin's famed traditional pubs complete with great traditional music.

Begin the next stage on your Irish rail tour with a scenic train journey from Dublin through the historic country of Tipperary and the rolling green pastureland that makes up Ireland’s ‘Golden Vale’ to Killarney in county Kerry. For your first day in Kerry we recommend that you take in Killarney and the surrounding attractions. You may decide to visit Muckross House and Gardens on the outskirts of the town or take a tour around Killarney national park by horse and carriage. One of the main attractions in Killarney is the town itself with its colourful shops, cute cafes and ample fine restaurants. There is always plenty of traditional Irish music on offer in Killarney in its many old style pubs!

Today we have pre-booked a Ring of Kerry bus tour for you. On your tour discover landscapes of magnificent beauty alongside the backdrop of the grand MacGillycuddy Reeks mountain range, rivers and rolling countryside. Along the way, you will encounter larger bustling towns to the more traditional quaint Irish villages. Visit such places as Glenbeigh which holds the famous Kerry Bog Village, a cluster of reconstructed cottages dating back to the 1800’s, Cahersiveen,  the principal town of the peninsula and Sneem with its brightly painted buildings and quaint village green. Return to Killarney via Ladies View, a famous stopping point to view the three Lakes of Killarney in all of their splendour. 

Set off early this morning and take a scenic train journey from Killarney to Galway. Galway is the principle city of the West of Ireland and a lively University City. In fact, Galway is often referred to as Ireland’s Festival capital due to the frequent festivals that the city holds. Due to its compact size, the city can be explored easily on foot and you will find many bars to quench your thirst as well as many great restaurants with an excellent food offering. We recommend that you take a stroll down Shop Street where on any given day you are sure to find a variety of buskers and other street performers. Shop Street contains Galway's best preserved ancient building, Lynch's Castle and numerous old brick buildings, bright storefronts and a great selection of excellent shops.  

Its few people that visit Ireland and not take in a trip to Ireland’s most famous attraction, the Cliffs of Moher! Travel by Galway Bay and stop first at the village of Kinvara, where Dunguaire Castle can be found. Dunguaire Castle was built in 1520 by the O’Hynes clan; its name derives from the Dun of King Guaire, the legendary king of Connacht. Continue through the Burren where you will witness a lunar landscape like you have never seen before, the Burren is home to numerous ancient monuments including the 5,800 year old Poulnabrone Dolmen Tomb. Settle at the coastal village of Doolin in County Clare for a lunch stop before visiting the 200-metre high Cliffs of Moher. Revel in astonishing views over the Atlantic Ocean and the Aran Islands and take some time to appreciate the natural beauty of the cliffs before returning to Galway. 

Depart early morning for your journey to Inis Mór, the largest of the three the Aran Islands. Protected from outside influence due to their remote location, the Aran Islands display the traditional Ireland that the rest of the country has largely left behind. Learn about the Aran Jumper and traditional crafts such Basket Weaving. On Inis Mór, you will still find the traditional horse and trap and hear the Gaelic language spoken as the first language.  There are more than 50 different monuments of pre-Christian importance on the islands, the most popular being the fort of Dun Aonghasa which stands dramatically against the cliff edge over the western part of the Island.  After a long day to explore the island at your leisure take the return ferry back to Rossaveal and the return shuttle back to Galway City.

This morning check out of your hotel and travel by rail back to Dublin City, arriving in time to take in some of the attractions and locations that you may have missed on your first visit. If the weather is nice you might decide to talk a walk in Dublin’s famous ‘Stephen’s Green’ or check out the shops and cafes on Grafton Street, stopping like many people do to take a picture with Molly Malone, one of Dublin’s most famous statues.

You may feel like learning more about Ireland’s political history by taking a trip to Leinster House where the current parliament sits or Dublin Castle which was the seat of English rule from the 13th Century. Dublin Castle also houses the Chester Beatty Library which displays manuscripts, prints, miniature paintings and early printed books from countries across Asia, the Middle East, North Africa and Europe.

The Chapel Royal with its fine plaster decoration and carved oaks and galleries can also be visited at Dublin Castle. This evening, take another opportunity to check out Dublin’s traditional music and pub scene. The Cobblestone and the Auld Dubliner are famous venues and many of our past customers have enjoyed a drink or two in Kehoe’s Bar, one of last great heritage pubs of Dublin, this pub retains much of its Victorian trappings leaving the visitor feeling like they have stepped back in time!

This morning, check out of your hotel for the journey home.