London-Dublin & The Best of the West

Check-in is 20 minutes prior to Train Departure Time - look for our check-in hosts in the yellow jackets!

Check-in at London Euston Station at the Network Rail Mobility Assistance Reception for the 09:02 departure of your train direct to Holyhead. You will be met by your Railtours Ireland host and escorted into your reserved seats.

Your train, complete with snack car/bar will speed through the heart of England and along the North Wales coast to reach Holyhead in just 3 hours and 40 minutes. Holyhead rail station is also the cruise ferry terminal so after a short bus transfer to the berth you walk onto the ship – The Irish Ferries ‘Ulysses’ to Dublin.

Enjoy an invigorating 3 hours and 15 minute voyage across the Irish Sea to Dublin. Facilities on board the ship include a range of restaurants and bars, a 2-screen cinema and a traditional promenade deck, from where you can enjoy the fresh sea air.

Arrive into Dublin at 17:25hrs where you will be welcomed by your Railtours Ireland host and transferred to your hotel in Dublin City Centre.

Free to discover Dublin with your 48hr Hop-On-Hop-Off Bus Tour ticket.

The popular tour, the 2-day Hop-On Hop-Off Tour, is offered with both live and multilingual commentary. All drivers are Fáilte Ireland approved, which means that not only are they great story tellers, they're also brimming with information and history of Dublin's past, and will have you laughing all the way around the tour route.

Check-in is 20 minutes prior to Train Departure Time.

Check-in beside the Customer Service Desk at Heuston Station where our representative will be waiting for you in their bright yellow jacket!

Check in for 07:00 departure from Dublin Heuston Station, opened in 1844 as the headquarters of the Great Southern & Western Railway. Heuston Station is now the official principal station of Iarnród Éireann, Ireland’s national railway company.

As your train departs, we travel in a south westerly direction, through Dublin's western suburbs and then through the lush, fertile countryside of Co. Kildare. Our journey takes us through the Curragh which is famous for its racecourse, home of the Irish Derby, and there are many stud farms in the vicinity. One of the train stops is Thurles, where the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) was founded in 1884. The GAA is the sporting body responsible for promoting Ireland’s National sports - Gaelic football and hurling.

We change trains at Limerick Junction for the Limerick bound train. You don't need to worry about this change as you will be fully escorted from Dublin to Limerick Station by our Railtours Ireland host.

Upon arrival to Limerick, we will join our Railtours Ireland tour coach. Limerick has a population of about 90,000 and its city charter was granted in 1197AD, making it older than London! As we cross the river Shannon - Ireland’s longest river - you will see views of King John’s Castle to the right. The castle was completed in 1200 and marks the origins of the city.

Limerick’s most famous author, Frank McCourt, grew up here and the city was the setting for his famous book Angela’s Ashes. Limerick is also the birthplace of celebrated BBC radio DJ, Terry Wogan and Hollywood star, Richard Harris. We will pass the GAA grounds of Páirc na nGael –the home ground of County Limerick’s Hurling and Gaelic Football teams. Limerick is also the home of Irish Rugby and we will pass Thomond Park, the Rugby stadium.

After a brief city tour we travel onto Bunratty Castle and Folk Park. The castle was completed in 1425 and, after many years of neglect, has been restored to its former glory. There is also a folk park here which you will have time to explore.

After the visit to Bunratty Castle and Folk park we make our way to Co. Clare. There is a lunch stop at O’Connor’s Pub in Doolin before arriving at the Cliffs of Moher, which are among the highest sea cliffs in Europe. There is plenty of time to visit Ireland’s second most popular tourist attraction and your host will advise you of the departure time. From here, we take the coast road for much of the way to Galway, with time for photos along the Burren. This is a national park and the word 'Burren' comes from the Irish Language, meaning ‘rocky place’. It is a unique lunar landscape of limestone which was described in 1649 by one of Oliver Cromwell’s men as: “No tree to hang a man, no water deep enough to drown him and no soil deep enough to bury him”. Today the Burren is noted for its diverse flora with few parallels elsewhere in Ireland or, indeed, Europe.

We continue along the coast road to Black Head, passing the quaint coastal villages of Ballyvaughan and Kinvara before joining the main road to Galway.

After the days touring, you will be brought back to Eyre Square in Galway City Centre, which is adjacent to your hotel and Galway Train Station.

Enjoy your full Irish Breakfast at Leisure.

Depart Galway City for transfer to Inis Mór, the largest of the three Aran Islands. Irish is the spoken language on the Aran Islands, although the locals will be more than happy to speak to you in English. For many, the highlight of the tour is the formidable pre-Christian fort of Dún Aonghasa, with spectacular sea-cliffs on the western side and unspoilt views of the Atlantic Ocean. Transfer times may vary seasonly.

Notes on Aran: Your tour of Inis Mór includes stops at 'Seven Churches' (15 minutes), Dún Aonghusa (75 minutes & admission not included) and Kilronan for lunch (45 minutes).

After your tour of Inis Mór you will be transferred back to Eyre Square in Galway City Centre.

Depending on your day of departure tours on Day 2 and Day 3 may be reversed.

Please note: Should weather conditions be such as to curtail transfer to the island you will be refunded for this portion of the tour.

Enjoy your full Irish breakfast at leisure.

Depart Galway and our conducted tour of Connemara leaves Galway to the village of Moycullen. From Moycullen the road rises and falls towards the lovely village of Oughterard on the shores of Lough Corrib, traditionally regarded as Ireland’s premier angling centre. Now the gateway to Connemara opens, and the breathtaking colours of this unspoilt countryside are revealed in all their natural splendour.

At Maam Cross, the "Connemara Crossroads", there is a replica of the cottage used in the 1950s John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara film The Quiet Man, which was filmed here. From Maam Cross, our tour heads out to Leenane, Kylemore Abbey and Letterfrack, in the shadow of purple mountains rolling down to blue and green rocky valleys, reflecting the rich and varied colours of Connemara.

There is a lunch break at Kylemore Abbey and Gardens, a nineteenth-century castle now owned by the Benedictine nuns who run an excellent pottery, gift shop and restaurant here. Letterfrack is one of Ireland’s major national parks. The colourful town of Clifden has been one of Irelands leading holiday resorts for generations. It is an excellent touring centre beloved by the walker, the biker, the hiker or the fisherman. It was here too, at Derrygimlagh Bog, near Clifden that aviation history was made when Alcock and Brown crash landed after their historic transatlantic flight in 1919.

Back at Maam Cross again and the road turns southwards now through the Screeb, Costello and Rossaveal. Rossaveal is the departure point for ferryboats to the Aran Islands and is also a major fishing port. We are now in the Gaeltacht or Irish speaking area of Connemara where Gaeilge or Irish is still the everyday spoken language of a bilingual people.

Our tour of Connemara heads homewards towards Galway City now, along the shores of Galway bay, through the Gaeltacht villages of Inverin and Spiddal and looking out across the blue waters of the Atlantic at the unique limestone of the Burren and the hills of Clare.

After your day's touring you will be returned to Galway Station. Upon arriving at Galway Station please present your Railtours Ireland ticket and travel pack at the ticket barrier and you will be directed to your reserved seats on the train, where you host will be waiting for you.

Depart Galway for Dublin Heuston Station at 19:20hrs.

Returning to Dublin Heuston at 22:00hrs.

Depending on your day of departure tours on Day 2 and Day 3 may be reversed.

Your Railtours Ireland host will transfer you to the Dublin ferry port.

Dublin – London (via Irish Ferries Ship - Ulysses):

Monday-Saturday: 08:05am Depart Dublin by cruise ferry.

11:30: Arrive Holyhead by ferry.

12:38: Depart HolyHead Direct.

16:38: Arrive London Euston Station

Sunday: 08:05am Depart Dublin by cruise ferry.

11:30: Arrive Holyhead by ferry.

12:38: Depart HolyHead and change at Crewe.

16:44: Arrive London Euston Station.