Western Ireland
The Burren and Aran Islands
Saturday 24 – Saturday 31 May 2008 (8 days)
A spring visit to the far west of Europe combining the fabulous flowers of the Burren with an exploration of this lovely part of Ireland, including a two-night stay on the beautiful Aran Islands.
© Jamie McMillan/Nature Portfolio
Tomb with a view: the mysterious Poulnabrone Portal Tomb
The Burren, from the Gaelic An Bhoireann, meaning a stony place, is a plateau of carboniferous limestone. Worn bare by the last glaciation, only 15,000 years ago, the bare rock forms an amazing landscape of limestone pavements cut by gullies, swallet holes and underground rivers and caves. The area is renowned for these rock formations and its relics of ancient civilisations, but is best known for its unique and rich combination of Mediterranean and Arctic-Alpine flora. Here can be found together such gems as Spring Gentian and Mountain Avens, with oddities like a pure white form of Common Spotted Orchid. The gullies between the limestone pavements harbour rare ferns, including Maidenhair Fern, and the whole area is an exciting plant-hunting ground, with several endemic insects.
To the south, the spectacular Cliffs of Moher harbour superb seabird colonies, complete with Chough and Peregrine, and there is always a chance of whales and dolphins offshore. The area has much evidence of man's past, with megalithic tombs, portal dolmens, ring forts, round towers and castles.
We'll also be making a two-night visit to the delightful Aran Islands. First we aim to visit Inishmor, the largest of the islands, with some excellent limestone flora, and then travel across to Inisheer, where we stay for two nights at our friend Bríd Póil’s guest house, which offers superb views over the island, and across Galway Bay to the mainland. Bríd will be determined to ensure that we don’t starve during our stay!
Price: £ 1,045
Single supp.: £ 140
Deposit: £ 200 per person
The price per person includes 7 nights accommodation, meals from evening meal on day 1 to lunch on day 8, coach or minibus transport, return ferry crossing to Inisheer, admissions, tips, and the services of the leaders.
The price excludes travel to and from Shannon airport, holiday insurance, drinks, and other personal expenses.
*Guaranteed single rooms are not available for the two nights on Inisheer. The supplement applies to the five nights at Lisdoonvarna.
Principal Leader: Liz Charter
The islands are made of limestone, and have many of the Burren plants, but the unique landscape of tiny gateless fields with high stone walls seems much further back in time. Birds here include Red-billed Choughs and pleasingly numerous Cuckoos. But the charm of the islands lies mainly in their remoteness, and lack of traffic - we'll be on foot during our stay.
We start and finish the holiday at Shannon Airport.
Accommodation: On the mainland we stay at an excellent, small, family-run inn in Lisdoonvarna, with all rooms en suite. On Inisheer we stay at a guest house with views over the island. Here rooms are mostly en suite, but we regret that single rooms are unavailable, although we may be able to find one or two at other guesthouses on the island.
Travel
We meet at Shannon Airport at around 1430 on Day 1. This gives clients the option of travelling from their local airport, or by their own transport if wishing to combine the tour with a longer stay. We'll aim to get to Shannon Airport at around 1400 on Day 8 for return flights. Please do not book your flights before consulting us about the flight times!
Numbers: Max. 14 clients