Britain & Ireland Discovery

DAY 1 – LONDON – STRATFORD. After a warm welcome from your Tour Director, head west over the green Chiltern Hills. Stop in the university town of Oxford before driving through pretty Cotswold villages to visit Shakespeare’s birthplace in Stratford-upon-Avon. Enjoy a Welcome Drink.
Hotel: Thistle. (D)

DAY 2 – STRATFORD – YORK. Visit the Wedgwood china factory before continuing to York to wander the cobbled streets of the Shambles and see the huge York Minster.
Hotel: Marriott. (B,D)

DAY 3 – YORK – EDINBURGH. Tour the beautiful Lake District and visit Wordsworth’s grave before stopping at Gretna Green in Scotland. Then it’s on to Edinburgh. Tonight, selected departures attend the spectacular flood lit Military Tattoo at Edinburgh Castle.
Hotel: Royal Terrace/Roxburghe. (B)

DAY 4 – EDINBURGH SIGHTSEEING. Take a guided tour inside historic Edinburgh Castle. Continue down the Royal Mile, past St Giles’ Cathedral to the Queen’s Holyroodhouse Palace. Cross to the 18th century New Town. The afternoon is at leisure. (B)

DAY 5 – EDINBURGH – HIGHLANDS. Cross the Firth of Forth on your way to St Andrews – the home of golf. Continue to Perth and over the Grampian Mountains, past Blair Athol, to the sparkling Spey Valley. Enjoy a traditional dinner with Scottish entertainment. Hotel: Laggan Country Hotel. (B,HD)

DAY 6 – HIGHLANDS – THURSO. First stop to see the Clava Stone Circles and continue across the battlefield of Culloden. Drive via Inverness and along the shores of Loch Ness, before following the coast to Thurso.
Hotel: Royal. (B,D)

DAY 7 – ORKNEY ISLANDS EXCURSION. Drive to John O’Groats, the most northerly town on the British mainland, where you board a ferry to the Orkney Islands. Visit the village of Skara Brae, the Ring of Brodgar, Kirkwall and the Italian Chapel. Head back to the mainland for the evening. (B,D)

DAY 8 – THURSO – ISLE OF SKYE. Relax and enjoy the lochs and mountains on your way to the fishing town of Ullapool. Then it’s ‘over the sea to Skye’. Admire the scenic splendour of the Cuillin Hills en route to your hotel in Portree. Hotel: Tongadale. (B,D)

DAY 9 – ISLE OF SKYE – GLASGOW. Take in magnificent scenery as you pass Eilean Donan Castle and continue through Glencoe, ‘the valley of the weeping’. Stop on the ‘bonnie banks’ of Loch Lomond before arriving in Glasgow.
Hotel: Marriott. (B)

DAY 10 – GLASGOW – LONDONDERRY. Bid farewell to Scotland as you cross the Irish Sea, enjoying views of the Island of Arran on the way. Take the scenic Antrim coast road to the Giant’s Causeway before reaching your hotel.
Hotel: Everglades. (B,D)

DAY 11 – LONDONDERRY – SLIGO. Join a guide to see Derry’s Walls, the Guildhall and the city’s cathedral before crossing the border to see O’Donnell’s Castle in Donegal. Drive south to visit the Belleek Pottery Centre. Continue to the churchyard at Drumcliff, where the Irish poet WB Yeats is buried, before reaching your hotel in Sligo. Hotel: Radisson SAS. (B,D)

DAY 12 – SLIGO – LIMERICK. Take a scenic drive through the beautiful Connemara region to visit the famous marble factory. Continue on to Galway where you see St Nicholas Cathedral, the Spanish Arch and Eyre Square. Now on to Bunratty Folk Park, where old Ireland comes to life in the thatched cottages and cobbled streets of the museum. Stay tonight in Limerick.
Hotel: George. (B)

DAY 13 – LIMERICK – KILLARNEY. An orientation tour shows you King John’s Castle, St. Mary’s Cathedral and the treaty stone. Now drive through the charming village of Adare into County Kerry. In Killarney, enjoy a ride on a famous jaunting car.
Hotel: Killarney Avenue & Towers. (B,D)

DAY 14 – RING OF KERRY EXCURSION. Experience scenery of plunging cliffs and spectacular lakes, and drive between granite mountains and endless beaches as you tour the Ring of Kerry. (B)

DAY 15 – KILLARNEY – WATERFORD. Cross the Derrynasaggart Mountains to kiss the Stone of Eloquence at Blarney Castle. Enjoy an orientation tour of Cork seeing St Finbar’s Cathedral before continuing along the coast to your hotel in Waterford.
Hotel: Dooleys. (B,D)

DAY 16 – WATERFORD – DUBLIN. After visiting the Waterford Crystal showroom, drive to Kilkenny to see its castle en route to the fun loving Irish capital, Dublin.
Hotel: Burlington. (B)

DAY 17 – DUBLIN SIGHTSEEING. Tour Dublin’s elegant Georgian squares and visit Dublin castle (when open) with a local guide. Also see the Irish President’s home, O’Connell Street and historic Customs House before spending the afternoon at leisure. (B)

DAY 18 – DUBLIN – WARRINGTON. Cross the Irish Sea and travel through North Wales, past Conwy Castle, to the walled city of Chester. See the ruined Roman amphitheatre, Tudor ‘Rows’ and cathedral before continuing to your hotel. Hotel: Daresbury Park. (B,D)

DAY 19 – WARRINGTON – BRISTOL. Drive to the border town of Ludlow, with its half- timbered houses and ruined castle. Continue along the Wye Valley past romantic Tintern Abbey and over the soaring Severn Bridge to Bristol.
Hotel: Marriott City Centre. (B)

DAY 20 – BRISTOL – PLYMOUTH. Travel the short distance to Bath, famous for its Georgian architecture. Visit the Roman Baths before moving on to Plymouth, taking in Glastonbury along the way. On arrival in Plymouth, enjoy a highlight cruise on the harbour.
Hotel: Jurys Inn. (B,D)

DAY 21 – DARTMOOR & TINTAGEL EXCURSION. Stop in Princetown, in the heart of rugged Dartmoor, and visit King Arthur’s Tintagel, returning to Plymouth via Bodmin Moor. (B)

DAY 22 – PLYMOUTH – LONDON. Visit mysterious Stonehenge before crossing Salisbury Plain to return to London, where you bid farewell to your Tour Director. (B)