Itinerary Details
CIE Tours: 2025 - 13 Day Scottish & Irish Dream
Day 1 Glasgow Tour & Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
Your tour departs from your hotel at 2:00 PM on a panoramic tour of the highlights of Glasgow, a city built on industry but now known for its stunning Victorian architecture and creative cultural scene. Visit Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, housing one of Europe’s finest art collections. Enjoy a welcome drink with your group at the hotel, then you are free to explore the city and dine as you wish.
Day 2 Loch Lomond & Inveraray Castle
Embark on a cruise of Loch Lomond with views of Highland peaks. Stroll through Inveraray and have lunch on your own before touring Inveraray Castle, which you may recognize from “Downton Abbey”. Drive through Glencoe, considered one of Scotland’s most beautiful places, and on to Ballachulish on the shore of Loch Leven. (B, D)
Day 3 Isle of Skye & Loch Ness
Travel on the scenic “Road to the Isles”, stopping for photos at the Glenfinnan Monument. Ferry to the Isle of Skye to visit the romantic ruins of Armadale Castle. Back on the mainland, travel along the shores of Loch Ness. End the day at your hotel in Nairn, a lovely manor house set on spacious grounds near the North Sea. (B, D)
Day 4 Culloden & Sheepdog Demo
Visit the Culloden Battlefield Visitor Centre to learn about the historic battle. Walk around the serene moorland to see monuments commemorating the troops. Immerse yourself in rural life at a local farm as you watch dogs herd sheep. Travel to your gracious manor-style hotel near Pitlochry. (B, D)
Day 5 Blair Castle & Whisky Tasting
Visit Blair Castle, home of the Dukes and Earls of Atholl. Delve into the history of Mary, Queen of Scots, Bonnie Prince Charlie, and how Queen Victoria’s famous stay led to the creation of Europe’s only private army, the Atholl Highlanders. Go behind the scenes at Blair Athol Distillery for a tour and sample of the finished product. Spend the afternoon at leisure exploring the hotel gardens and museum, or browsing around Pitlochry town. (B, D)
Day 6 Glamis Castle, St Andrews & Scottish Evening*
Visit Glamis Castle, the legendary setting of “Macbeth”. Head to St Andrews, the “Home of Golf”. See the famous Royal and Ancient Clubhouse and the Old Course on a panoramic drive. Enjoy a traditional Scottish evening with dinner and entertainment. July 27 – August 17 departures enjoy an evening free to dine independently. (B, D*)
Day 7 Edinburgh Castle & City Tour
Take a panoramic tour of Edinburgh, from the narrow lanes and medieval townhouses of the Royal Mile to the elegant mansions and wide streets of the 200-year-old Georgian “New Town”. Tour the imposing Edinburgh Castle with its splendid views of the city. The rest of the day is free for independent exploring, shopping, and dining. July 27 – August 17 departures attend the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo on the Castle Esplanade. (B)
Day 8 Belfast Ferry, Titanic Belfast & Dublin
Say farewell to your Scottish guide and embark on a ferry ride to Belfast. Immerse yourself in the history of the Titanic through displays at Titanic Belfast. Drive on to Dublin, where you have a free evening to explore the city’s excellent restaurants and famed pubs. (B)
Day 9 Dublin & Merry Ploughboy Pub
Explore Dublin independently on a Hop-On, Hop-Off bus tour, and choose one of four top attractions to visit with your included voucher: Guinness Storehouse, the GPO Museum, Teelings Distillery, Jameson Distillery Bow St. Experience, or EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum. At 2:00 PM meet your new Irish tour director and tour group in the hotel lobby. Join a local guide for a Dublin City tour, and then tour Dublin Castle. This evening enjoy a traditional Irish dinner and show at Merry Ploughboy Pub. (B, D)
Day 10 Blarney Castle & Killarney
On the road to Blarney Castle, stop for a photo opportunity at the Rock of Cashel along the way. You might choose to climb the steep winding staircase to kiss the famed Blarney Stone, which legend says will give you the gift of the gab. Drive through Macroom, built around a fine old castle, and into County Kerry where the scenery becomes more mountainous. Arrive in Killarney, picturesquely set beside lakes with Ireland’s highest mountains, Macgillycuddy’s Reeks, forming a backdrop. Check into your hotel and relax before dinner. (B, D)
Day 11 Ring of Kerry & Skellig Experience
Take the Ring of Kerry drive – a winding route with awesome mountain and coastline views. In the beautiful Gap of Dunloe, visit our CIE Tours preferred shopping partner, Moriarty’s. Enjoy lunch before crossing to Valentia Island and the Skellig Experience, which describes nearby islands. Watch a demonstration of highly skilled dogs herding flocks of sheep. Spend a free evening in Killarney. (B, L)
Day 12 Cliffs of Moher & Medieval Castle Banquet
Take a ferry across the River Shannon and visit the Cliffs of Moher, a spectacular wall of sandstone that reaches high above the Atlantic. Check into your hotel, relax and enjoy free time before heading out for a memorable medieval-style feast complete with songs and harp music evocative of the Middle Ages. (B, D)
Day 13 Tour Ends in Limerick
Your tour ends this morning after breakfast. (B) >
extensive gardens, which are open to the public; as is the Main House. There is a lovely restaurant in the house, overlooking the gardens and Wicklow Mountains, which offers the finest in Irish artisan, home cooked cuisine. The 34,000 acres of this estate extend along both shores of the River Dargle . Powerscourt is one of the finest properties in Europe, designed and laid out by Daniel Robertson between 1745 and 1767. This property is filled with splendid Greek and Italian-inspired statuary, decorative ironwork, a petrified-moss grotto, lovely herbaceous borders, a Japanese garden, a circular pond and fountain with statues of winged horses, and an occasional herd of deer. Opportunity for shopping at Avoca Handweavers now located in Powerscourt House. Enjoy lunch here at Powerscourt or at a traditional Irish pub in the city centre.
number of city parks, such as St. Stephen’s Green and indeed Merrion Square. The highlights of any tour in Dublin may include a visit to Trinity College, the Guinness Storehouse… and –if time permits –St. Patrick’s Cathedral.