Ireland Tour Overview
Ireland is a dream destination for anyone who loves literature. From a rich body of folklore to medieval sagas to the astonishing number of novels, poems, stories and plays beloved around the world, Irish literature contains multitudes.
This new tour will trace the history and spirit of the Irish people through story and song, focusing especially on the 20th and 21st centuries. Leader Wendy O’Brien will draw on her professional experience as a philosopher interested in beauty, wonder, and the natural world to help you explore Ireland and its literature more deeply.
We’ll start in Dublin, where through seminar discussions, walking tours, and museum visits, we’ll explore the city so famously described by James Joyce, Brendan Behan, Elizabeth Bowen, and many others. We’ll also dive into Dublin’s excellent theatre scene and attend a production, and explore the lively pubs and shops along the River Liffey.
We then head north to Sligo to explore the roots of the Irish Revival, led by W.B. Yeats, and the connections between Irish land, language, and literature. We’ll see the rugged yet lush countryside that Yeats wandered as a boy, and take a boat ride on Loch Gile, the setting for “The Lake Isle of Inisfree.”
Ireland’s extraordinary southwest coast will be our final stop. At Coole Park, we’ll learn about the legacy of Isabella Augusta Persse (Lady Gregory) as a longtime collaborator with Yeats and a fundamental figure in shaping modern Irish writing. From our base in Clare, we’ll hear traditional Irish music, enjoy beautiful vistas over the Atlantic from the Cliffs of Moher, and immerse ourselves in the blend of past and present on the Aran Islands.
Ireland Itinerary at a Glance
Day 1: Arrive in Dublin / opening discussion / welcome dinner
Day 2: Presentation with a local scholar / Yeats at the National Library / walking tour
Day 3: Glendalough, St. Kevin’s monastery and Sandycove
Day 4: Literary discussion / Bewley’s Lunchtime Theatre, the Book of Kells
Day 5: To Sligo via pre-Christian sites near Ardagh / Yeats Society
Day 6: Lough Gill and Inisfree cruise / literary discussion
Day 7: To Galway, with guided walking tour
Day 8: Exploring Coole Park, Thoor Ballylee and County Galway
Day 9: Literary discussion / Cliffs of Moher / Music in Doolin
Day 10: Aran Islands excursion
Day 11: Back to Dublin for departure
Accommodation
Hotel Belvedere, Dublin; The Glasshouse, Sligo; The Galmont Hotel and Spa, Galway
Readings
All Classical Pursuits tours include readings that we send directly to you, and that help you connect more deeply with the places you’ll see and the people you’ll meet on the tour.
On this tour we will read
- Irish Short Stories edited by Chris Monash
- Selected poems by W.B. Yeats, Seamus Heaney and other poets
Practical Details and Next Steps
Requesting an itinerary is a great way to help decide if this tour is for you. We’re also available to talk by email at info@classicalpursuits.com or on the phone toll-free at (844) 869-1001.
Once you’re ready to book, our colleague Abbie at our partner Worldwide Quest is happy to get you started with information about putting down a deposit and the tour payment schedule. You can reach her at abbie@worldwidequest.com or 1-800-387-1483. Classical Pursuits offers a number of pre-tour online experiences for each tour, all of which are free or deeply discounted for tour participants.
You can also book online here.
All Classical Pursuits tours are sold by and operate through our longtime partner Worldwide Quest, a licensed Ontario tour operator and an IATA Accredited Agent that was created in 1970 (as Quest Nature Tours and Worldwide Adventures). All participants on Classical Pursuits trips are covered by the terms of the Ontario Travel Industry Act (Worldwide Quest Inc., Ontario License #2667946).
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