DAYS 1 & 2: Detroit > Dublin > Galway

We depart USA en route to Dublin, with complimentary meals and beverages served aloft. Upon our arrival in Dublin, we will be met by our tour escort and start our pilgirmage with a drive to the Hill of Slane where St Patrick lit the Pascal Fire much to the dismay of Laoire, the local King. Patrick was the only man who could put it out and in doing so explained the holy trinity and converted the King who was impressed with his "magical” powers. We then drive to the beautiful port city of Galway where we will spend the next three nights.  After Holy Mass at the Galway Cathedral we check-in at the Hyde Hotel for dinner and overnight.   (B|D)​

DAY 3: Knock, Ballintubber, Murrisk Abbey &  Crough Patrick

After breakfast we depart Galway for Knock, visited each year by more than 1.5 million pilgrims. Upon arriving here as a pilgrim in the autumn of 1979, Pope John Paul II declared: ‘Now I am at the goal of my pilgrimage to Ireland!” We begin with Holy Mass at the Shrine, a guided tour of the grounds and museum.  After lunch on our own, depart for Ballintubber Abbey where Holy Mass has been celebrated daily for over 800 years. This was the traditional starting point for the annual pilgrimage to the Holy Mountain of Croagh Patrick, an isolated cone-shaped mountain rising 2,500 feet from the shore of Clew Bay. Here in the year 441 AD St. Patrick spent 40 days in prayer and fasting for the people of Ireland.  We will visit Crough Patrick and the 15th century Augustinian Murrisk Abbey on our way back to Galway.  Tonight dinner is on our own. (B)​

DAY 4: Kylemore Abbey

After breakfast we travel to Kylemore Abbey via the picturesque Connemara National Park in County Galway where we visit the convent of the Benedictine Nuns of Ypres, beautifully set on Lake Kylemore.  We will have time to stroll the grounds and admire the incredible Victorian walled garden, the enchanting neo-Gothic church and, of course, the Abbey itself.  After we celebrate Holy Mass with Benedictine community, we will have lunch on our own before returning to Galway and dinner at a local restaurant.  (B|D)

DAY 5: Cliffs of Moher, Adare & Killarney

Today we have an early check-out before Holy Mass in a local church.  After Mass, we are off to the Cliffs of Moher; sheer cliffs dropping 600 feet to the water below, one of the most impressive stretches of shoreline on the west coast of Ireland.  We will drive the mesmerizing landscapes of The Burren region of County Clare, Ireland. After lunch at a local pub in scenic Doolin, we will continue to Adare, “The Most Beautiful Town in Ireland.”  After a short stop in Adare, we finish the day in Killarney with dinner at a local restaurant.   (B|L|D)

DAY 6: Caherciveen & The Ring of Kerry 

Today we are off for a thrilling scenic ride (112 miles), a continuously changing landscape of dramatic cliffside views and breath-taking seascapes. Along the way, we will celebrate Holy Mass in Caherciveen at The Daniel O’Connell Memorial Church of the Holy Cross. This is the only church in Ireland to be named after a layman. This church was built, and named with special papal permission, after the great statesman Daniel O’Connell, a lay person, neither a saint, nor a deity, but a man who worked tirelessly for Catholic emancipation by way of mass movement of people, in Ireland in the 17th and 18th century.  Upon our return to Killarney, we will vist the beautiful Muckross House on Lough Leane (outside only). The rest of the afternoon and evening is free with dinner on our own in Killarney. (B)

DAY 7: The Rock of Cashel, Holycross Abbey & Kilkenny

Today we depart County Kerry and begin our journey back east.  Our first stop is the Rock of Cashel, one of Ireland’s most visited monuments. Here in 450 AD St. Patrick baptized King Aengus, and in the 10th century Brian Boru was crowned King of Ireland. We tour the ruins here, including the Cashel Cathedral, still in very good condition given its age. After lunch on our own in Cashel, we continue to Holy Cross Abbey, home to one of the first relics of the True Cross to have reached Ireland. It was at one time one of the most famous places of pilgrimage in Ireland during the later Middle Ages. Through a special Act of Parliament, in 1975 reconstruction of the old monastic cloister began. Here we celebrate Mass. We arrive in Kilkenny for overnight and dinner at the River Court Hotel. (B|D)​

DAY 8:  Glendalough & Dublin

This morning we are off to Glendalough, The Glen Between the Two Lakes, where St. Kevin retired to find  communion with God through nature and isolation. These sixth century ruins are from the monastic community he founded. In time, this community became a great center of learning, known as “Rome of the West.”  We will then have lunch in the traditional Wicklow Heather restaurant before celebrating Holy Mass at St. Kevin’s Church. We continue on to Dublin where we check into the hotel. The rest of the afternoon and evening are free with dinner on our own.  (B|L)​

DAY 9: Dublin (1.8 miles walking, no coach) 

We start our day at the Whitefriar Street Church to celebrate Holy Mass with the local congregation.  Next, we visit St Patrick's Cathedral. Built in honour of Ireland’s patron saint, Saint Patrick’s Cathedral was founded beside a sacred well where St Patrick is said to have converted pagans to Christianity.  Our next stop is Christchurch Cathedral, originally a wooden church built by the Vikings in the 10th century, and then built from stone following the capture of Dublin city by the Anglo-Normans in the 12th century.  The rest of the afternoon and evening is free to explore Dublin. (B)

DAY 10: Dublin (1 mile walking, no coach) 

This morning we start the day with Holy Mass at St Mary’s Pro-Cathdedral.  After, we walk to Trinity College to see the famous Book of Kells, a 9th century manuscript that documents the four Gospels of the life of Jesus Christ. The Book of Kells is Ireland’s greatest cultural treasure and the world’s most famous medieval manuscript. After lunch in the Temple Bar, it’s a short walk to visit the National Museum of Ireland where we will see relics of St Patrick including St Patrick’s tooth, the Domhnach Airgid which is a Latin manuscript of the four gospels said to have been owned by St. Patrick, and the Bell of St Patrick.  The rest of the day is free before our Farewell Dinner. (B|D)

DAY 10: Ireland > Home 

We transfer to the Dublin airport for our return flight to home after a wonderful pilgrimage through Ireland. (B)