
Shannon + Joe
A Celtic Elopement
The Trip of a Lifetime
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Day 1 - Welcome to the Emerald Isle!
✈️ Fly to Dublin and explore to your heart’s content!
🏨 Stay: The Wilder
🌟 Highlights:
• Kilmainham Gaol Tour (worth the full tour, what a haunting, stunning place) Visit
• Dublin City Exploration
• Walk to St. Stephen’s Green, Temple Bar, Ha’Penny Bridge, + Guinness!
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Day 2 - On to Glendalough!
🚗 Drive to Glendalough (≈ 1ish hours)
🏨 Stay: The Glendalough Hotel
🌟 Highlights:
• Powerscourt Estate (for amazing tea & scones, wander the grounds, check out the ENORMOUS waterfall) 🍵
• Glendalough Monastic Site (walk to the lower or upper lake) Visit
• On your way you can see: Ballinastoe Wood Walk, Molls Gap, P.S. I Love You bridge, Lough Tay (Guiness Lake) also, if you’ve seen Vikings, that is where Kattegat is set, and finally, the Spinc, right outside the hotel.
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Day 3 & 4 - A Handfasting to Remember
🏨 Stay: The Glendalough Hotel
🌿 Elopement Photoshoot Locations:
• Glendalough Monastic Site & Lakes - Stone ruins, lake views, mossy forest paths, waterfalls!
🎉 Celebratory Dinner & Dessert your magical guests in the pub OR at the Wicklow Heather Inn!
• Rest, relax, and wander around Wicklow National Park the day after your beautiful ceremony.
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Day 5 - Glendalough to Kilkenny
🚗 Drive to Kilkenny (≈ 1.5 hours total)
🏨 Stay: Butler House
🌟 Highlights:
• Wander the charming and stunning Medieval Mile + check out the castle Visit
• River walk with stunning views of Castle!
• Hidden streets, closes, and beautiful bookstores and shops.
• Live music in pubs + Petronella for a delicious dinner!
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Day 6 - Kilkenny to Cork
🚗 Drive to Cork (≈ 2.5 hours)
🏨 Stay: Hotel Isaacs of Cork
🌟 Highlights:
• Rock of Cashel (Take the guided tour!) Visit
• Hoare Abbey (just below the main Rock, worth a wander!)
• Middleton Distillery Tour! Visit
• Possible Irish Football Game! Check Schedule
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Day 7 - Cork to Kenmare
🚗 Drive to Kenmare (≈1.5 hours)
🏨 Stay: Rookery Lane
🌟 Highlights:
• Blarney Castle - Go FIRST thing in the morning, kiss the stone before anything else!
• Fly Fishing in Kenmare? Guided or Solo!
• Wander this special little downtown and catch live music literally in Every pub. Look out for The Wishing Tree and Cromwell’s Bridge (fun little secret spots!)
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Day 8 - Ring of Kerry
🚗 Ring of Kerry Day!
🏨 Stay: The Brehon
🌟 Highlights:
• Start in Kenmare, End in Killarney!
• Muckross Abbey & the ancient yew Visit
• Killarney National Park Visit
• Ross Castle
•Stop at the gorgeous Killarney Brewing & Distilling for a dram and a bite!
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Day 9 - Killarney to Dingle
🚗 Drive to Dingle (≈1 hours)
🏨 Stay: AirBnB with Grainne or Dingle Benners Hotel
🌟 Highlights:
• Slea Head Loop Drive (jaw dropping views, stop often!) Scenic Drive
• Hike Cruach Mhàrthain (a short steep hike for insane views!) Hike
• Take your time on one of the world’s most beautiful drives, you have all day!
• Wander downtown, get ice cream at Murphy’s, and listen to music at Dick Macs Pub!
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Day 10 - Dingle to Doolin
🚗 Drive to Doolin (≈ 3.5 hours total)
🏨 Stay: Fiddle + Bow
🌟 Highlights:
• Optional stop at Quinn Abbey (20 extra minutes but it’s rad)
• Bunratty Castle + Folk Park (stretch your legs, & grab lunch at Durty Nelly’s, the original castle shebeen) Visit
• Explore Shannon, your namesake!
• Gus O’Connors Pub for the best live music in Ireland (we think!)
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Day 11 - Cliffs of Moher to Athlone
🚗 Drive to Athlone (≈ 2 hours)
🏨 Stay: Wineport Lodge
🌟 Highlights:
• Cliffs of Moher early! Just explore literally around the visitor center, the views don’t change much the further you walk!
• Head East towards Dublin!
• Overnight in Athlone, the center of Ireland
• Sean’s Bar, the oldest pub in Ireland!
• Optional Viking river boat tour on the River Shannon! Visit
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Day 12 - Athlone to Dublin
🚗 Drive to Dublin (≈ 2 hours)
🏨 Stay: The Clayton Dublin Airport
🌟 Highlights:
• Hill of Tara on your way to Dublin
• Drop Rental Car off and leave luggage at hotel. Taxi into Dublin if you have energy, or Malahide if you don’t!
• Wrap up what you missed, be it St. Stephen’s Green, Temple Bar, Ha’Penny Bridge, etc. Grab a Guinness!
• See the Molly Malone statue (for Good luck!☘️) then taxi back to your hotel
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Day 13 - Homeward Bound
✈️ Fly home! Take time to rest & reminisce about your incredible trip! ☘️
Sláinte & Safe Travels!