ITINERARY :
06:30 - Depart Dublin from Suffolk Street by the Molly Malone statue
10:00 - Game Of Thrones – Dark Hedges
11:00 - Traverse the Carrick-a-Rede Rope bridge
12:30 - Lunch
13:30 - Giant’s Causeway UNESCO Heritage site
15:15 - Dunluce Castle tour ( self-guided ) - As seen in Game of Thrones
19:45 - Arrive back in Dublin
You depart early morning from Dublin heading North. We will have a comfort break on the way and then head into the Northern Irish countryside.
Along the drive you will visit the Dark hedges, a picturesque tree-lined road that looks as if it comes straight out of a story book. The Dark Hedges represents the King’s Road in the famous television series “Game of Thrones” and is an avenue of beech trees with branches hanging over the road..
Next we visit and cross Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge which connects a 23m-deep and 20m-wide chasm between the mainland and a small island that has been used over the years by fishermen to place netting to capture migrating salmon. Following a 20 minute scenic cliff walk, you can traverse the bridge to the island with its abundance of birdlife, and to enjoy the spectacular coastal views from a different vantage point.
After lunch it is time for The Giants Causeway which is the highlight of the trip . This UNESCO World Heritage site consists of a series of over 40,000 hexagonal shaped rocks that looks like a grand set of stairs leading into the sea, the formation of which has been astounding generations. These awe-inspiring stones have resulted in inspiring many a myth and stories surrounding their origin, some of which your guide will just to be happy tell you in full technicolour!
After the amazing Giants Causeway we continue to the spectacular Dunluce Castle, precariously perched on Cliffside , once home of the notorious McDonnell clan! This tour includes a self guided tour of Dunluce where you will get an insight to its fascinating history and the peerless family who owned it.
Finally, you will arrive back in Dublin at around dinner time to reminisce about your northern adventure.
Churchill Museum & Cabinet War Rooms
The Map Room
The Map Room came into use on the very first day that the Cabinet War Rooms were ready for occupation and remained the heart of the site throughout the war. The room was staffed twenty-four hours of every day, from August 1939 to August 1945. The principal function of the Map Room was to act as a round the clock central point for information about the war.
The War Cabinet Room
This was the inner sanctum of British Government, the room used for meetings of the Prime Minister, a select few ministers and advisers of his War Cabinet and his Chiefs of Staff. 115 meetings of the War Cabinet took place and momentous decisions were taken in this room. The scratched arms of the seat in which Churchill sat bear witness to the tensions of those crucial meetings at critical moments of the war.
Churchill's Room
Although his room in the Cabinet War Rooms boasted comforts of a higher standard than anywhere else in the complex, Winston Churchill preferred not to sleep there. He used his room at the Cabinet War Rooms for visits to the Map Room and for business, when forced to meet underground. He also delivered four of this wartime speeches from here, including his 11 September 1940 speech, warning of Hitler's plans to wage a war of terror against the United Kingdom.
The Transatlantic Telephone Room
The Transatlantic Telephone Room, to which a huge scrambler 'Sigsaly' was connected, created the original hot-line for allowing Churchill and the American President to conduct their vital strategic discussions in complete security. Like all the rooms in the complex, this originally had a more humble purpose - it was once a store for brooms and domestic equipment. It was adapted in mid-1943 to house this particularly secret installation.
The Churchill Museum
The Churchill Museum is divided into five chapters, spanning all ninety years of Churchill's life. To allow an easy transition from the historical context of the Cabinet War Rooms, the story begins on 10 May 1940 with Churchill's appointment as Prime Minister. The visitor can then explore his later years, his childhood, his early political career and finally the period known most famously as the 'Gathering Storm'.
Facilities
The Switchroom Café is a great place to relax with a range of hot and cold food freshly prepared on the premises, along with a variety of beverages on offer.
Open 7 days a week from 10:00 until 17:00, the café is located halfway through the tour but visits to the café can be taken at any time. The café also houses interesting photographic artefacts from the Second World War to view.
Thames River Rover Pass
With the River Red Rover ticket you travel in luxury on a fleet of river liners and may hop on or off at any of the piers as often as you like throughout the day.
As the River Thames weaves its way through the heart of London there is history around every bend and there is no better way to see and experience the sights and splendour of this great city than from one of City Cruises modern, wheelchair-friendly RiverLiners™.
Enjoy unsurpassed views of some of London's most famous landmarks from the vantage point of our open upper decks and spacious lower saloons with panoramic windows. Take advantage of two bars providing light refreshments and snacks .
Cruises depart frequently from Westminster Pier, Waterloo (London Eye) Pier, Tower Pier and Greenwich Pier every day of the year except Christmas Day (25th December).
Our shortest trips between piers last about 20-30 minutes while the full round trip takes about two-and-a-half leisurely hours.
LANGUAGES: English and Spanish
The tour begins at 09:00 am from the center of Bilbao to Vitoria go directly toward the highway. The tour shows the mountain scenery until reaching the plateau with its forests of oak and beech. Arriving in Vitoria embark on a panoramic city tour through the entire modern urban design.
Then stop in the Old Quarter of the city to visit and have free time to walk its streets, its old town, or a coffee in one of its many bars. From here, we go through different towns in Alava until finally arriving at Laguardia and Labastida, famous people of the Rioja Alavesa by a Historic Monument and also its magnificent wineries. We have time to walk its medieval streets, stately houses and two fortified churches. Free time for lunch at one of its typical restaurants, and our guide will offer details of restaurants and menus chosen. In addition, visiting a winery to taste their wines.
Direct return to Bilbao by highway and return to your hotel mid-afternoon.
