Vacationing with Friends - Ireland, Northern Ireland, & Scotland - 2025

These repeat clients wanted to experience Ireland with buddies from high school, so they contacted me to plan a trip for 7 across Ireland. The two pictured above were also celebrating a milestone anniversary, so they extended their trip to Northern Ireland and Scotland.

Starting in Shannon, the group rented a couple cars and caravaned across Ireland to Dublin. They stopped along the way, enjoying the music of Doolin, checking out the Cliffs of Moher before heading on to Killarney. There they took a tour of the Ring of Kerry - so everyone could see the vistas, without having to be worried about driving - and continued to Cork. While in Cork, they had a free day to explore the area, then went on to Dublin via the Rock of Cashel. In Dublin, they explored the Epic Emigration Museum (one of my favorite museums), toured the Guinness Storehouse, saw the Book of Kells and drove around the city in the Hop On Hop Off bus. Here their friends left and these two continued on.

They went north to visit relatives in Belfast before heading to Islay in Scotland for some “whiskey business.” There are quite a few whiskey distilleries on this island, and they enjoyed their time visiting some of them, with a highlight being Lagavulin (if you’re a fan of Parks and Recs, this is where Ron Swanson went on their trip to the United Kingdom).

Photo credit: Jason & Anna S.