6 Day Northern Island

Tour Includes:

• Explore and discover the island in a Driftwood mini coach tour vehicle.
• Your own expert professional Driftwood tour guide
• 6 FULL days touring Northern Ireland
• Five nights’ accommodation
• Five Full Irish breakfasts to start your day
• Most daily activities and visits
• All relevant taxes
• Guaranteed Euro tour price once you make your deposit
• Lots of laughs

Optional Extras:

• Lunches and evening meals
• Some optional entry fees and additional activity options, for example:
  • Black Cab taxi tour of Belfast – GB£10
  • Entrance to the Titanic Experience – GB£17
• Bushmills Whiskey Distillery- GB£7
• Dunluce Castle – GB£3
• Boat trip to the Slieve League Cliffs – €20
• Hot, relaxing sea-weed bath – €25

Revel at some of Europe’s very best scenery:

• Absorb the wild and rugged Atlantic Ocean coastline
• Head truly off the beaten track in Donegal, one of Ireland’s most remote and beautiful
  regions
• Immerse yourself in the pristine beauty of Glenveagh National Park
• Tour the epic Causeway Coastal Route
• Lose yourself amid lush, green inland scenery

Relish some of Ireland’s most worthwhile tourist destinations:

• Step onto the stunning Antrim coast at the legendary Giant’s Causeway
• Test your fear of heights at the Carrick a Rede rope bridge
• Discover the world’s largest Titanic attraction

Wonder at some of Ireland’s historical treasures:

• Shout from the battlements of mythical castles
• Peer into portal tombs older than the pyramids
• Stand in awe at ancient Celtic ring forts
• Dig into the contested history of buzzing Belfast on a Black Cab Tour
• Walk the ramparts of Derry, Ireland’s only complete walled city
• Admire the world’s finest medieval Celtic crosses at Monasterboice

Some fun side trips during the day:

• Take a boat trip to see the dramatic sea cliffs at Slieve League
• Tour Bushmills, the oldest working whiskey distillery in the world
• Meet master weavers, craft brewers and artisans of crystal carving

And at night:

• Live traditional music in some of Ireland’s best pubs
• Delicious fresh and locally sourced food from Ireland’s clean waters and green farms
• Overnight in comfort at quality local guesthouses and boutique hotels, located in small,
  friendly communities

• Greet your guide, meet your fellow Driftwooders and board your super-comfy, slick Mercedes Benz/Volkswagen mini-coach for the adventure of a lifetime.
• We’ll head out of the city, thousands of years back in time…
• At Corlea, you’ll find an Iron Age trackway, or together, constructed around 150 BC. This is the largest prehistoric roadway in Europe, hinting at a sophisticated society in pre-Christian Ireland.
• Your guide will select a lunch stop along the route.
• Discover Ireland’s rich rural heritage at the Museum of Country Life’s modern exhibition space and Victorian landscaped gardens.
• You can’t go wrong with accommodation tonight. You’ll be staying at Mount Falcon Estate, with a romantic woodland setting and a wealth of history; or the iconic Belleek Castle, characterful 19th-century country home close to Mayo’s Atlantic coastline.

• We’ll stop at Donegal town, with the option for a guided tour of 15th century Donegal castle.
• Heading deeper into Donegal, we’ll arrive at the towering sea cliffs of Sliabh Liag. Landlubbers are welcome to relax and soak up the stunning view from afar.
• If you’re in possession of sea legs, take a guided boat trip to gaze up at these dramatic 600m /2000ft cliffs from below (Tour Option – €20 per person). You’ll be on a small boat with 12 person capacity. We can’t guarantee it but birdlife and sea mammals make regular guest appearances.
• Look out for rugged mountain sheep and the golden sand of Maghera Beach as we journey up and over the scenic Granny Pass.
• Did you spot Maghera? Now it’s time to go truly off the beaten path, with a stroll along this wild and lovely strand. You should have the entire stretch of coastline to yourself!
• Arriving in the small country town of Ardara, we recommend a visit to Eddie Doherty. Friendly and informative, Eddie is one of the few remaining.

• It’s all aboard for the short hop to the pristine wilderness of Glenveagh National Park. Keep an eye out for wild deer and eagles as we pass along lakes and through the glacial,
  granite-lined, ‘Valley of the Birch’.
• No matter the time of year, dramatic displays of colour await you in the romantic 19th century Glenveagh Castle Gardens. Your guide will select a lunch stop along the route.
• Look behind you! Panoramic 360° vistas await you at the beautifully preserved Celtic stone ringfort at Grianán of Aileach. Cross the border into Northern Ireland (remember, UK £ sterling required).
• We’ll pass historic city gates to enter Derry.
• Walk the ramparts of Ireland’s last remaining walled city on the excellent historic guided tour of Derry (Tour Option – £4 per person).

• We hope you’re thirsty! Visit Bushmills, the oldest whiskey distillery in the world (Tour Option – £7 per person), followed by a sneaky photo stop at the iconic clifftop stronghold of Dunluce Castle.
• Next, it’s time to experience the natural phenomenon that is The Giant’s Causeway. Walk in the footsteps of mythical Irish figure Finn McCool, by stepping onto 40,000 wave-washed hexagonal basalt columns.
• Game of Thrones fan alert! Look out for Theon Greyjoy stepping ashore at tiny Ballintoy harbour.
• There’s an added chance to visit a former GoT set in an abandoned lime quarry.
• Brave Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge, suspended over the ocean and reached via a steep descent.
• Enjoy views to Rathlin Island and, on a clear day, even Scotland (Tour Option – £7 per person).
• Cameras at the ready! You’re about to begin one of the world’s most spectacular coastal drives, the Causeway Coastal Route.

We’ll roll into Belfast, the vibrant capital of Northern Ireland.
Enjoy lunch in the Titanic Quarter of Belfast.

You are then free to choose from the following options:

• The highly recommended Black Cab Tour of Belfast, explaining the origins of the Troubles era (Tour Option – £10 per person);
• Self-guided visit to the Titanic Centre, the world’s largest Titanic visitor experience (Tour
  Option – £18.50 per person);
• Or free time to explore Belfast’s shopping and cultural attractions.
• Stop off at Saint Patrick’s Centre, an interactive exhibition showcasing the life and legend of Ireland’s patron saint.
• Witness the saint’s grave at nearby Down Cathedral.

Before we say goodbye, there’s still time for some of Ireland’s top highlights.

• Take a morning stroll on the beautiful dune landscape of Murlough National Nature Reserve.
• Keep an eye out for seals, butterflies and the blazing colour of wildflowers.
  Step back in time to imagine kings, earls and lords battling over Dundrum Castle.
• Built in 1177, this strategically-located stronghold commands fine views over the coastline and nearby the Mourne Mountains.
• Then it’s time to amble back towards Dublin, taking the scenic route – of course! – through the rolling granite peaks of the Mourne Mountains.
• Cross the border into the Republic of Ireland, and the euro currency zone (€)

Your last stop is guaranteed to be historic.

• Revel at the medieval tower and monastic ruin of Monasterboice, with its beautiful Celtic high crosses – the most impressive examples in Ireland of this unique form of sculpture. What better way to wrap up your Irish odyssey!