Connemara Tour
This tour includes the most interesting aspects of Connemara to
enable you to get the best possible view and knowledge of the
changes which have occurred over the centuries. This is an ideal
opportunity for you to forget about the left hand side of the
road for a day. Sit back and relax on our luxury highline yellow
and white Mercedes coaches. O'Neachtain's professional tour
guide will give you many stops to explore and photograph in each
area. Come and be entertained: Irish music, history, geography,
culture, stories and folklore.
Our tour leaves Galway City
along the very scenic Connemara coast road (see map) with breath
taking views of Galway Bay, the limestone Burren and the Hills
of Clare.
Approaching the charming village of Spiddal, we stop at
Standúns sweater and souvenir shop for refreshments. Next
it's on to the deserted famine village where ample time is
given to explore and photograph the village. Rossaveal is
the departure point for the ferryboats to the Aran Islands.
O'Neachtain's Connemara tour has pick-up arrangements with
the 9am ferry from the Aran Islands each morning.
Now we
journey on to Costello and Screeb. We are now in the Irish
speaking area where Gaelic or Irish is the spoken language.
At Maam Cross, the Connemara "crossroads", there is a
replica of the cottage used in the 1950's John Wayne and
Maureen O'Hara film "The Quiet Man" filmed locally. From
Maam Cross our tour heads out towards the world famous
Kylemore Abbey on a journey of unsurpassed beauty driving
through the green Inagh Valley that divides the two sets of
mountains - the Maam Turks and the Twelve Bens. The Ben Ban
is the highest mountain in Connemara. Here you can
photograph the mountains, and the lakes and pools shining
like little pieces of broken mirror.
Next we see the magnificent Kylemore Abbey which is an 18th
century castle that is now in the good hands of the
Benedictine Nuns, who run an excellent boarding school. This
is where we have our next long break with ample time for
lunch and a visit to the abbey and its beautiful gothic
church.
Moving on to Letterfrack where you have one of Ireland's
finest national parks. Our next visit is at Ocean's Alive
Aquarium and Maritime Museum. A fascinating and informative
exhibition of Connemara marine heritage. This is an
additional stop in the low season where you will have a
chance to see some of the hidden underwater treasures of our
waters and learn a little about the sea as a commercial
resource. Enjoy the fresh sea air, the peace, tranquillity
and closeness of nature. Connemara shores offer a wide
variety of habitats that include vast stretches of clean
white sand and pink toned coral beaches as well as
wave-lashed rocky areas. Each has its own unique Flora and
Fauna.
Clifden, the capital of Connemara, was founded by John
D'arcy in 1812. Clifden is an ideal holiday centre. Aviation
history was made at Derrygimlagh bog near Clifden when
Alcock and Browne crashed landed after their historic
transatlantic flight in 1919. The Connemara pony breeders
association come together every August to hold the world
famous Connemara pony show. As we leave Clifden we see the
Clifden Glen holiday homes.
Tickets can be purchased
from Galway and Salthill Tourist Office or on the Coach.
Group and Family rates available on request. Free pickup
from your accommodation by arrangement. Take both tours
and avail of special discount (winter months only).
Departures
7 days a week all year round.
Salthill Tourist Office: 09:45
Galway Tourist Office: 10:00
(O'Neachtain Bus Stop, Kinlay House) Return 5:15pm
Stops
Spiddal, Inverin, Deserted Famine Village,
Rossaveal, Traditional Thatched Cottages, Screeb,
Quiet Man Cottage
Maamturk Mountains, Twelve Bens Mountains, Kylemore
Abbey, National Park Letterfrack, Clifden
Dan O'Hara Pre famine Farm, Connemara Ponies, Turf
Cutting Bogs, Connemara Marble, Quietman Bridge,
Oughterard
Moycullen........... and many more places of interest
Cliffs of Moher Tour
Connemara Tour
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