An Taisce The National Trust for Ireland Volume 1 Issue 3 The 13th International Conference of National Trusts 13-17th September, 2009, Dublin Castle Optional Post Conference Tours We have organised for you four tour options of 2 nights and 3 days to each of the 4 corners of Ireland that provide outstanding value for money. If you desire we can arrange individual tailored itineraries at extra cost. Discover Ireland’s natural beauty, outstanding coastlines and its cosmopolitan cities mingled with spectacular countryside and unique cultural heritage. Coupled with great entertainment and superb outdoor facilities, Ireland ensures visitors have a unique personal experience. Immerse yourself in our tradition of creativity, entertainment and openness. It is a place to reconnect with ones self and colleagues. Ireland’s diversity in history, landscapes and heritage has made it difficult for us to choose our most appealing places to visit and there is surely something for everyone. Further information or bookings: [email protected] Conference Tours Ireland East Hugh de Lacy was granted the Liberty of Meath by King Henry II in 1172 in an attempt to curb the expansionist policies of Richard de Clare, (Strongbow). Construction 17th-19th September of the massive three storied Keep, the central stronghold of the castle, was begun c. 1176 on the site of an earlier The Boyne Valley is probably one of the most interesting wooden fortress. This massive twenty-sided tower, which areas in Ireland to visit. The massive megalithic tombs and is cruciform in shape, was protected by a ditch, curtain passage graves at Newgrange, Dowth, Knowth and wall and moat. Loughcrew, Newgrange were constructed over 5,000 years ago (about 3,200 B.C.), making them older than Stonehenge The Boyne is renowned for its diverse wildlife. The river in England and the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. Newgrange was built during the Neolithic (or New Stone contains many protected wildlife habitats and contains a range of wildlife species including whooper swans, Age) by a farming community that prospered on the rich lands of the Boyne Valley. Knowth and Dowth are similar otters, salmonid fish and many others. The navigation, mounds and together with Newgrange they have been running 30 km from Navan to Drogheda, is held in trust by An Taisce, it runs through the UNESCO World designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Heritage Site, Battle of the Boyne site, historic mills and designated nature reserves. The royal site at The Hill of Tara, known as Temair in Gaeilge, was once the ancient seat of power in Ireland – 142 kings are said to have reigned there in prehistoric and Rates per Person = € 212.00 (minimum of 10 people) historic times. In ancient Irish religion and mythology, Temair was the sacred place of dwelling for the gods and was Single Supplement: € 50.00 per person. the entrance to the otherworld. Saint Patrick is said to have INCLUSIONS: come to Tara to confront the ancient religion of the Pagans at its most powerful site. 2 Nights Accommodation at Trim Castle Hotel, Trim, Co. Meath or similar. The Monastery at Kells was founded in 804 by monks from Full Irish Breakfast Daily. St, Colmcille’s Iona. As well as the Book of Kells, finished Dinner on each evening at the hotel. here around the 9th century, the monastery is famous for its Luxury motor coach transportation with Round Tower and High Crosses. driver/guide as per the itinerary inclusive of driver’s maintenance. Entrance fee to Loughcrew Cairn; Trim Trim Castle, the largest Anglo-Norman castle in Ireland, was Castle; Battle of the Boyne Visitor Centre and constructed over a thirty-year period by Hugh de Lacy and the Hill of Tara. his son Walter. Hotel service charges & taxes. Northe rn Ireland includi ng Visits to Nation al Northern Ireland incomparable plant collection. Frances and Charles, the 3rd 17th-19th September Marques of Londonderry, became celebrated figure, leading a glittering social life and travelling extensively. They collected Officially, part of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland’s beauty is works of art and furniture on their travels and brought them back intertwined with tragic history, rich culture and the renowned friendliness of its people. The to Mount Stewart and among their more spectacular acquisitions wild craggy mountains, splendid lakes and sweeping coastline make it an ideal playground for were the 22 chairs used at the Congress of Vienna. walkers, cyclists, hikers, rock climbers and sailors. But there are lots of things to keep those after a dose of culture enthralled, too. With castles and cathedrals, forts and scenic gardens, get Stop off at Strangford Lough – The great sea inlet of Strangford set for some spectacular sightseeing. This spectacular part of Ireland is packed with things to Lough is one of Northern Ireland’s greatest attractions, and one do. of Europe’s most important wildlife sites. It is recognised globally as a Ramsar Site – a designation given to wetlands of international Derrymore House is a National Trust property, open again after a closure of importance for large numbers of breeding or over-wintering birds. more than twenty years, albeit to a very limited extent. The parkland of the 18th-century thatched cottage, once a manor house, was laid out by John Enroute back to Dublin visit Castle Ward in Strangford, Co. Sutherland, 1745 to 1826, a disciple of Capability Brown. There are fine views Down. Castle Ward is full of personality. Situated in a stunning of the Mournes and Newry. The walled garden is under cultivation and with location overlooking Strangford Lough, the lawns rise up to the some impressive mature trees. The 18th-century mansion was home to Isaac unique 18th-century house and its Gothic façade. Continue to Corry, General in Chief of the Irish Volunteers and later Chancellor of the Irish Murlough Nature Reserve in Strangford, Co. Down. Murlough Parliament. National Nature Reserve is a fragile 6000-year-old extraordinarily beautiful dune landscape, fringing on one of Northern Ireland’s Belfast City is nestled beside the River Lagan and Belfast Lough clanked by the most popular beaches and overlooked by the rounded peaks of Castleereagh Hills on the south and the Antrim Hills on the north. Belfast the Mourne Mountains to the south. blossomed as a commercial and industrial centre in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, and thanks to its thriving linen, rope-making, tobacco and shipbuilding industries, became the most industrialised city in Ireland. Check in for dinner & overnight at Jurys Inn Belfast – Located near the Crown Bar, also Rates per Person = € 221.00 (Minimum of 10 people) part of the National Trust. Single Supplement: € 62.50 per person. After breakfast, enjoy a short panoramic tour of Belfast City. Your city tour will extend from one end of the city at Belfast Castle which affords fine views of the INCLUSIONS: city, the port and the river to the magnificent edifice of Stormont on the far end 1 Night Accommodation at Armagh City Hotel or of the city. In between you will see prominent Victorian buildings intermingled with new modern contemporary and classical building. View the murals of the similar Shankhill Road and the Falls Road which marks a bygone turbulent time in 1 Night Accommodation at Malone Lodge Hotel Belfast not so distant past. Belfast City or similar Full Irish Breakfast Daily. Travel north of Belfast to visit Patterson’s Spade Mill (NTNI Property) – Dinner on each evening at hotel accommodation. Patterson’s Spade Mill is the last surviving water-driven spade mill in Ireland. Luxury motor coach transportation with driver/guide as All of the original machinery is intact and the mill is still producing garden and per the itinerary inclusive of driver’s maintenance. turf-cutting spades on a daily basis. Half Day City tour in Belfast City with local tour guide. Hotel service charges & taxes Afterwards travel to the Ards Peninsula to visit Mount Stewart House & Gardens which offers the visitor one of the most complete gardens in the care of the National Trust. The garden, designed by Edith, Lady of Londonderry from 1921, includes almost every style of gardening and supports an Visit the ArgoryStrangford (NTNI Lough Property) which was built in the Belfast1820s on City a hill Halland Mount Stewart House & Gardens has wonderful views over the gardens and 320 acre wooded riverside estate. This former home of the MacGeough – Bond family has a splendid stable yard with horse carriages, harness room, acetylene gas plant and laundry. Take a stroll around the delightful gardens or for the more energetic along the woodland and riverside way-marked trails. Th e We st of Ireland Ireland West Mullaghmore (An Taisce Property) located just north of Gortlecka, in the heart of the Burren National Park and bordering onto Lough 17th -19th September Girraun is one of the best known features of the Burren. Mullaghmore The West of Ireland boasts a unique cultural heritage rich in tradition. This enchanting place is is part of the internationally recognized Karst landscape of the Burren, filled with wonderful atmospheric towns and villages, extraordinary scenery, dramatic forts, created by prehistoric agricultural practice and maintained today by abbeys and shrines, stunning countryside, long stretches of amazing coastline and superior hotel farming activity. accommodation. Continue to the Cliffs of Moher, stretching for 8 kilometres and 214 In the afternoon, depart Dublin City and travel west towards the Midlands of metres over the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Unchanged for millennia Ireland. In the heart of Ireland, visit Mongan Bog (An Taisce Property) owned the landscape of the Cliffs of Moher has, for centuries, welcomed by An Taisce.