Literary Tour to Ireland and Scotland – Literary Landscapes and Inspirations

Our 24-hour Tour Director will meet us at the airport and remain with us throughout our historical and literary tour of Ireland and Scotland until our final airport departure. We will have use of a private coach and driver while touring for the next four days.

Spend time at the Cliffs of Moher, a series of dramatic undulating cliffs plunging 700 feet down to the Atlantic Ocean, offering unforgettable views of Ireland’s west coast. On a clear day we may be able to see the Aran Islands in Galway Bay as misty shapes off in the distance. Those who choose may climb O’Brien’s Tower, a viewing point built for the benefit of Victorian tourists.

Enjoy one of Ireland's and Europe's most interesting and scenic areas, The Burren. Carved by nature from carboniferous limestone, the view manages to be both desolate and beautiful. Sheets of rock jut out and seem to undulate in a kind of moonscape as far as the eye can see. We will stop to view the unique rock formations, as well as the Poulnabrone Dolmen, a portal tomb dating back to 2500 BC. Somehow delicate wildflowers and curling ferns thrive in this strange landscape that was created 300 million years ago.

This historic city is strongly associated with Irish language, music, and dance, and is one of the most Irish cities in the country. The lively and bustling university town was very prominent in the Middle Ages, and was the site of a nine-month siege during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. With history, culture, and beautiful surroundings, Galway is a favorite of visitors to the west coast.

During the course of our tour we will gain from the knowledge and insight of one half-day local guides while we are here in Ireland.

Today we will travel from Galway to Sligo. En route, we will visit Thoor Ballylee, a beguiling tower house that was a summer home to William Butler Yeats. Our audiovisual tour will include readings from Yeats’ poetry and a wonderful view from the tower out across the forest and farmland of the area.

Spend time in nearby Coole Park, where Yeats often visited his friend Lady Augusta Gregory. The lake served as the inspiration for his poem, The Wild Swans at Coole. We will stroll through the fine gardens and view the Autograph Tree, a copper beech carved with the initials of George Bernard Shaw, JM Synge and WB Yeats, among others.

The intriguing town of Sligo sits at the mouth of the River Garavogue, and due to this important position it grew to prominence under the Normans. An ideal base for exploring the Neolithic and cultural sites of the countryside, Sligo is also the arts capital of northwest Ireland.

Visit Tobernalt to see the cliff well that is known for its healing waters. This pilgrimage site dates from Celtic times and still serves today as a shrine in the Christian tradition.

Follow the Yeats Trail to see some of the places immortalized in his poetry. The landscape of Sligo served as an inspiration for much of the poet’s work. Our tour will include Rosses Point, where Yeats used to spend his summers; Glencar Lough, where we will view the waterfall that Yeats described in his poems; a scenic walk around the Isle of Innisfree; and Dooney Rock.

Take a Cruise on the Rose of Innisfree and view the Isle of Innisfree, situated on beautiful Lough Gill, which straddles Co. Sligo and Co. Leitrim. The island inspired W.B. Yeats to compose Ireland’s most popular poem. The cruise across Lough Gill offers outstanding natural beauty steeped in myth and legend, all while enjoying live commentary and poetry readings.

View the waterfall at Glencar Lough that Yeats described in his poem 'The Stolen Child'.

Visit the Church of Ireland Cemetery in Drumcliffe, where William Butler Yeats is buried. The poet's grave bears the dramatic epitaph he composed: "Cast a cold eye on life, on death; Horseman, pass by." The cemetery also contains the ruins of an early Christian monastery founded by St. Columba and a monastic High Cross.

Dublin is a complex small city, whose 19th-century architecture conceals a modern place filled with trendy shops, pubs, restaurants and boutiques. Long perceived to be stuck in the past, Dublin has experienced a rebirth that has brought new life to the historic, modern, charming, and entertaining city. Spend time wandering the Victorian streets, visiting the incredible churches and museums, exploring the vibrancy of the Temple Bar area, and discovering why Dublin is one of the most popular destinations for Europeans and the world.

Visit St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the national cathedral of the Church of Ireland. It is said that St. Patrick baptized converts on this site. Consequently, a church has stood here since 450 AD, making it the oldest Christian site in Dublin. The cathedral’s design is primarily Early English in style, and features a 300-foot-long interior and a square medieval tower that houses the largest ringing peal bells of Ireland. St. Patrick's is closely associated with Jonathan Swift, who was dean from 1713 to 1745, and whose tomb lies in the south aisle.

Take an Introductory Walking Tour of Southeast Dublin. We will begin outside the Bank of Ireland, one of Dublin’s most treasured landmarks, then stroll along Grafton Street, the spine of Dublin’s most popular and stylish shopping district. After viewing the Molly Malone statue, we continue to St. Stephen’s Green, a beautiful 22 acre park in the heart of Dublin, filled with beautifully landscaped flowerbeds, fountains, a lake, and memorials to important Dubliners. Our tour concludes with a walk around Merrion Square, a marvel of Georgian architecture known for its colorful doors and for the famous literary figures that once lived here, including Yeats and Wilde.

Enjoy an evening meal with your group

Discover Trinity College, the oldest university in Ireland. Trinity was founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth I. The beautiful campus features cobbled squares, gardens, a picturesque quadrangle and buildings that date from the 17th to 20th centuries. Trinity College is also home to the Book of Kells, an 8th-century version of the four Gospels decorated with elaborate scripting and illumination. We will view this famous treasure and other early Christian manuscripts in the Colonnades, an exhibition area on the ground floor of the Old Library.

Explore the National Library of Ireland. Take a guided tour of the special exhibit on W.B. Yeats, and discover its large collection of first editions and papers by Irish writers like Yeats and Daniel O’Connell.

Visit the James Joyce Cultural Center, located in a restored 1784 Georgian town house that was once the home of Denis J. Maginni, a dancing instructor who appears briefly in Ulysses. The Ulysses Portrait Gallery on the second floor has a fascinating collection of photographs and drawings of characters from Ulysses who had real lives outside of the novel. The recently opened Paul Leon Exhibition Room contains the writing table used by Joyce while he was in Paris working on Finnegan's Wake.

Experience the Dublin Writers Museum, housed in a stunning 18th-century Georgian mansion with splendid plasterwork and stained glass. The museum is an impressive reminder of the grandeur of the Irish literary tradition: Yeats, Joyce, Beckett, Shaw, Wilde, Swift, and Sheridan are among those whose lives and works are celebrated here.

We will dine this evening in the lively Temple Bar area. Some of Dublin's best nightlife, restaurants, and unusual shops line these narrow streets between the Bank of Ireland and Christ Church Cathedral.

We will board a private coach for our transfer to the port city of Larne. We will take a ferry across the Irish Sea to Ayreshire, Scotland.

Our hotel in Ayr will be our base for the next one night. While here, we will enjoy breakfast and dinner at the hotel.

Today we will travel from Ayrshire to Edinburgh. En route, we will stop in Burns Country.

Travel back in time with a visit to the Burns Cottage, fully restored to its original state; view the world’s most important Robert Burns collection in the Museum.

Edinburgh is widely regarded as one of Europe’s most attractive cities, due primarily to its impressive medieval and Georgian districts and surrounding Lothian Hills. It is as famous for the arts as it is for its long and turbulent history. Both the Old and New towns are listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Enjoy an evening meal with your group.

Visit Edinburgh Castle, a place filled with history, legend and lore. Our visit will include St. Margaret's Chapel, the State Apartments, the Great Hall and the Crown Chamber, which houses the Honors of Scotland (Scottish Crown Jewels).

Enjoy a Walking Tour of Edinburgh. Begin at Holyrood Palace the official residence of the monarch in Scotland and continue along one of the most fascinating and historic walks in Europe from the Royal Mile to Edinburgh Castle. View the Scott Monument, which looks more like a church spire than a monument to a writer. The Gothic-inspired Scott Monument is Edinburgh's most famous landmark, completed in the mid-19th century. In the center of the 200+ft spire is a large seated statue of Sir Walter Scott and his dog, Maida, with Scott's heroes carved as small figures in the monument. Those that choose can climb 287 steps to the top for a spectacular view.

Visit the Writers’ Museum, a treasure trove of portraits, relics and manuscripts relating to three of Scotland's greatest men of letters: Robert Burns (1759-96), Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832), and Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894).

Enjoy an evening meal with your group.

Our rewarding and enjoyable literary and historical tour of Ireland and Scotland comes to an end as our Tour Director accompanies us to the airport on our final day.