Quiet roads lined with wild, deeply scented flowers, this tour covers all types of landscape, from rolling green fields  to spectacular coastal rides. West Cork is also best known for its colourful villages all of which are brightly painted in a wonderful array of vibrant colours, with wonderful hanging baskets brimming with flowers out the front of every pub and shop. This is the more cosmopolitan part of rural Ireland with many choosing to settle in this idyllic setting.  This tour finishes in the colourful town of Kinsale,  easily accessible to Cork Airport and city

DATES 2008: May 3 and 31, June  14 and 28, July 12, August 2, September 13

2008 price:
May, June & September €635. (US$902 / Stg£438 approx.)
July & August €665. (US$944 / Stg£459 approx.)
Please see booking information)

Tour includes seven nights in good quality guesthouses and small hotels, bike hire ( 21 speed Trek T30 ), guide & luggage van and all route details.

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Itinerary:
Day 1 Saturday
The meeting point for the tour is in the town of Ennis, which is very close to Shannon airport.

Day 2 Sunday
We head out towards West Clare, cycling along quiet country roads through rolling green fields to the Coast, where we stay the night at Spanish Point named after those Spanish Ships from the Armada which sank here in 1588. We spend the night in a Hotel overlooking the Atlantic Ocean where the breakers roll in.

Day 3 Monday
Cycling along quiet roads we eventually come to the popular holiday town of Lahinch where we stop for lunch . In the afternoon we visit the spectacular Cliffs of Moher rising 660ft up from the Atlantic waves below, making them the highest marine based cliffs in Europe. You can stroll along the cliff face and watch the birds gliding in the updraft. After visiting the cliffs we head to the village of Doolin . That night we have a pub meal and enjoy the wealth of traditional music for which the village is famous.

Day 4 Tuesday
In the morning we begin to see the first hints of the limestone landscape of the Burren and visit the monastic site at Kilfenora and its stone high crosses. Kilfenora is also home to the Burren Heritage Centre which gives you an excellent insight into the formation and history of the Burren. Later we stop off for lunch at the matchmaking town of Lisdoonvarna . The afternoon's cycle is a beautiful run where the road hugs the coastline with Galway Bay and the Aran Islands on your left and the limestone cliffs of the Burren on your right. There is a wonderful dolphin called Dusty on this stretch of the coast who you can keep your eyes out for! We stop for two nights in our comfortable Hotel in the seaside village of Ballyvaughan.

Day 5 Wednesday
The day can be spent doing a wide variety of activities . The guide can organise a wonderful four-hour walking tour of the Burren with a local man who is a very entertaining character and an encyclopaedia of knowledge on the area. There is also an optional short cycle to the impressive ruins of a Cistercian Abbey or you can visit the nearby Ailwee Caves. Alternatively the day could be spent relaxing in this attractive village.

Day 6 Thursday
The cycle heads straight into the heart of the Burren where we visit the Burrens most famous historical sight, the Poulnabroune Dolmen a small ancient burial site dating back to 2500BC. Veering off the beaten track we stop at the village of Carran for lunch in an old police barracks. In the afternoon we cycle through quiet backroads to visit the Burren Perfumery which makes a wide variety of perfumes using the local flora and has a wonderful slide show illustrating the beautiful and unique botany of this region. You then descend through a limestone lunar landscape to the pretty seaside village of Kinvarra where we spend the night.

Day 7 Friday
For the last day we head back into the Burren through another limestone moonscape, passing Lough Buny and the impressive Mullaghmore before stopping for lunch in Corafin. In the afternoon we visit a 16th Century Tower House and an even older monastic sight . This is also the site of the famous battle of Dysert O'Dea where the Irish Chieftains defeated the Normans and kept them out of Clare for another 200 years. We then cycle back into Ennis for a final farewell night on the town together

Day 8 Departure Day
After breakfast you make your way home with a head full of memories.

2008 price:
May, June & September €635. (US$902 / Stg£438 approx.)
July & August €665. (US$944 / Stg£459 approx.)
Please see booking information)