Day 1   Walking Distance 2 miles (3.2 km)
The first part of our journey will take us directly north from Dublin to the coast of County Antrim. We will stop on the way for a visit to Hillsborough: the famous and historical village in County Down renowned for its beautiful castle and Georgian houses. For our first two nights we will stay at a lovely guest house with great views of Fair Head and the Antrim Coast, near the world-famous Giant's Causeway. Our evening meals will be taken in Ballycastle, and after dinner there should be time for a short stroll along the beach.
Day 2 Walking Distance 7 miles (11.3 km)
On the agenda today is a spectacular walk starting from White Park Bay on the Antrim coast and finishing at the Giants Causeway. On a clear day you will be able to see right across to Scotland. The Causeway is made up of 37,000 black hexagonal basalt columns. It is the result of a massive underground explosion some sixty million years ago. In 1693 the Royal Geographical Society publicized it as one of the great wonders of the natural world.
Our local expert guide will take you on this walk and entertain you with history, botany, geology, and folklore.
Day 3 Walking Distance 6 miles (9.7 km)
We now must move on into the west to County Donegal: our base for the next two nights is the Mill Guest House and Restaurant in the village of Dunfanaghy, in the Gaeltacht (Gaelic-speaking region).
Hopefully we shall find some excellent traditional music here. We will stop en route at Glenveagh National Park for a walk, which begins in the lonely wilderness of the mountains and finishes alongside the beautiful Lough Beagh and Glenveagh Castle gardens.
A visit to Donegal is like a trip back in time: hay is still stacked by hand, and most farms only yield enough produce for one family. For this reason farmers work in co-operatives and share their machinery. This has a positive effect on the survival in this region of the corncrake, one of Europe's rarest birds. Beautiful day-walks and spectacular sunsets are promised along the rugged Donegal coastline
Day 4 Walking Distance 8 miles (12.9 km)
Setting out on foot from the hotel, our walk today will be at the Horn Head Peninsula. This is one of the northernmost peninsulas of County Donegal. Our walk will commence though pine woods bring us through large sand dunes interspersed with wild flowers such as wild mountain thyme and pyramidal orchids. We then come down to a spectacular beach before taking a coast / cliff track around by the sea. We finish near a great natural arch in the sea before turning back towards Dunfanaghy to visit the Poor House Museum. We will round off the day nicely with another wonderful four-course dinner at the Mill.
Day 5 Walking Distance 8 miles (12.9 km)
This morning we will head south to County Sligo, but on our way we stop to walk near Dunlewy Lough and the Poisoned Glen, in Donegal. This is a magnificent walk through the hills and forests of Donegal in the shadows of mighty Mount Errigal. You will be guided by John McGroary, a local expert guide.
Tonight we will stay at the Drumcliff in County Sligo.
Day 6 Walking Distance 6 miles (9.7 km)
After visting Drumcliff Church and the grave of W.B. Yeats we will head south past Sligo Town to walk at Knocknarea Mountain overlooking a magnificent bay and the original Coney Island.
Tonight we will stay at Kilmena on the shores of Clew Bay on the outskirts of Westport Town, County Mayo. Our guest house is located on the sea shore and after dinner we can venture out to one of the islands via a causeway accessible at low tide.
Day 7
This is week one of a two week tour
If you are finishing your tour today, we will drop you at Galway City Bus / Railway Station just before noon.