Cork & Kerry

This Walking and hiking tour of the best of the southwest is split between two of Ireland's most beautiful peninsulas. We will spend three nights walking & hiking in the wild Beara peninsula, then on to the Dingle peninsula.

Half in Kerry and half in Cork, the Ring of Beara - the Beara Peninsula is Ireland in a nutshell, with a landscape that is beautiful, magical and full of rugged charm.

The most westerly of Cork's peninsulas, and arguably its most spectacular, the Beara Peninsula is shared by county Kerry and presents exhilarating hill walking along the 196km Beara Way and a drive circuit of breathtaking scenery in the Ring of Beara. A route much less travelled than the Ring of Kerry, Beara's secret is one that is still quite well kept.

There is no other landscape in Western Europe with the density and variety of archaeological monuments as the Dingle Peninsula. This mountainous finger of land which juts into the Atlantic Ocean has supported various tribes and populations for almost 6,000 years. Its beauty can only be viewed through your own eyes.

Price: €800

Day 1:

Pick up Dublin city centre at 8:00 am or in Shannon that lunchtime.

We will make our way down to one of the most Southern tips of Ireland. On the way we will sing songs, tell jokes and get to know each other. We will stop off to see some abbeys and have a picnic overlooking the Shannon River, Ireland's spine.

We will arrive late afternoon in West Cork and will be staying in the little village of Allihies. This village is cut off from the rest of the world by the Caha Mountains, home to Ireland's highest pub. Don't let Johnny Fox tell you otherwise!

It is a quaint place, with friendly and lively locals. After your dinner, we will discuss the agenda for the remainder of the week.

Day 2:

After breakfast, we will be making our way towards the aptly named Hungry hill. This hill is 685m tall and has superb views, both near and far of dramatic mountain scenery and coastal landscapes, including Bear Island to offer.

We will get to peep down the vertical cliff faces to observe Coomarkane Lake far below, and peat harvesting going on. There is an abundance of wild plants on this hill, so don't be afraid to ask your guide! On a clear day, you can see all the way to Carrauntohill in the MacGillycuddy's Reeks.

By the end of today in the Southwest hills of Ireland, you are guaranteed to be famished for your dinner!

Day 3:

Today's walk will start from our accommodation in Allihies. We will be Walking and hiking up Knockoura and Knockgour hills. There are excellent views along the Beara peninsula and across Kenmare River towards Iveragh and the MacGillycuddy's Reeks. Today is a nice and relaxed affair. The walking is not too strenuous and you can take your time to enjoy what this magnificent peninsula has to offer. Looking ahead of you, you will view Ireland's only cable car ride to Dursey Island. Don't be too shocked when you notice that the passenger's are not human but are generally cows and sheep! They have priority over us feeble humans on this ride. Dursey is an uninhabited island, but has a wild bird and whale sanctuary. Tranquility at its best!

Day 4:

So long, farewell, Auf wiedersehen, good night,
I hate to go and leave this pretty sight.
So long, farewell, Auf wiedersehen, adieu,
Adieu, adieu, to yieu and yieu and yieu.

As the Von Trapp children would say! Yes, we are leaving the Beara peninsula but don't fear. Where we are going will soon wrap you in comfort.

Goodbye to Beara and as we leave we go over the Healy Pass, down into Kenmare and onto Killarney where we will spend the afternoon. This is a vibrant town at the apex of the two peninsulas. We will be driving via part of the Ring of Kerry today. You can spend the afternoon, shopping or just taking in the atmosphere of this world famous town.

After lunch we will be making our way onto the Dingle peninsula via Inch Strand. We will take a stroll along the beach to get our hunger up before we arrive in Dingle itself.

Day 5:

When we get back to Dingle, I will bring you around the village and on to see Fungi the infamous Dolphin. You will have a couple of hours to walk around Dingle and see it many shops, and that evening we will experience some Gaelic music in the local pubs. 52 pubs for a population of just under 4000 people-fantastic. Watch out for the pubs that are also hardware stores.

Day 6:

Slea Head lies ahead of us today. National Geographic has put this peninsula in the top 10 drives in the world. I would put it in the top 3. We will meander slowly through the Fuchsia lined roads of Slea Head and follow the cliffs around to our view point of Great Blasket island. For millennia people have lived on this peninsula in stone beehive huts. There are more megalithic relics on this peninsula that on the whole of the rest of the island. It is an archaeologist's heaven. But the beauty of this area can only be experienced by walking on the bare cliffs and feeling the sea wind on your skins. It is where Far and Away with Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman was filmed! Today's walk will start at the Blaskets interpretive centre and we will follow the cliff line all the way Sybil Head.

View Clip

It is a nice easy walk with spectacular views out to the Atlantic and dead mans island. This is the closest you can get to America in Europe. The walk will finish in the village of Ballyferriter a Gaeltacht area, where all the locals speak in our native tongue. By this day I will expect everyone on the bus to be able to have a couple of sentences in Gaelic! After this walk, we will stroll down to a little beach where we will take the hurleys out and have a puc around. Hurling is a sport indigenous to Ireland-It's like a cross between hockey and hell! I think an Irish stew is on the menu for tonight.

Day 7:

Lough Annascaul and Beenoskee beckons for today's adventure. There is a great variety of walking, from treading along stony, mountain roads to trekking across challenging, open landscapes and avoiding peat hags. Delight the view of Lough Annascaul and the encompassing mountain scenery. You will pass by a series of waterfalls and the superb, panoramic view from the summit of Beenoskee is hard to beat.. Total height gained in this walk is 750m and it is around 12km in length. Not a bother to you!

We start the day driving the short hop to Annascaul village, home to the famous South Pole Inn. Tom Crean (20 July 1877 - 27 July 1938) was an Irish Antarctic explorer. He was born in the town of Annascaul in Co. Kerry. He joined the Royal Navy when he was 15 years old, lying about his age to get in.

Tom Crean was on three of the four major British expeditions to Antarctica. Two of these were expeditions led by Robert Scott aiming (amongst other more scientific goals) to reach the South Pole: the 1901-1904 National Antarctic Expedition on Discovery and the 1911-1913 expedition on Terra Nova . The third was the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition on Endurance led by Ernest Shackleton.

Inside the South Pole Inn, you can see all the pictures from his adventures. We will be stopping in here for refreshments after our walk today.

Day 8:

It's the end of the road as we know it. On our final day we must leave the serenity and make our way back to the capital. But you tour is not over yet. On the way back, I will be stopping into a good friend of mine. His name is Sean Ryan, and he happens to be the proprietor of Leap Castle, officially the most haunted castle in Ireland. We will stop for lunch with Sean in the castle. Sean is one of the greatest story tellers I have ever met and is an internationally recognised flute player. His Daughter, Ciara is an international Irish dancer, who plays the harp like an angel.

Sean will gleefully play a few tunes for us while we eat our lunch and he will tell you all about the castle and the spirits that live there. If you didn't believe in ghosts before you get here, I can tell you that after you will have no doubt.

After bidding farewell to Sean, we will get on the rocky road to Dublin once again, and if desired we will go to the Guinness factory.