Failte Ireland Buyers Guide for Group and FIT Organisers

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Lunch in Enniskerry
On the outskirts of Enniskerry is one of the county’s jewels – . The magnificence of the estate
here really is quite something, with its grand Palladian frontage and baroque domed towers – so much so that one architecture
historian described it as possessing “the massive dignity of a great Italian Renaissance villa”. Enjoy a coffee on the terrace, before
stepping down the grand staircase into the world-famous gardens, complete with Japanese garden, pet cemetery and gracious
statues. A perfect end to a perfect day.
Allow minimum 1½ hours for this experience
If you have more time: Head to , the views you’ll catch are breathtaking. Rebuilt in the early 18th century,
Borris House in Carlow is called home by the McMorrough Kavanaghs, former High Kings of Leinster.
Allow 1½ hours for this experience
Dinner & Overnight
DAY 4
From one grand expanse of green to another – this time into the heart of Ireland’s horse country in County Kildare. The flat
pastures of have made it world-famous for its thoroughbreds, and it has one of the finest racing tracks in Europe –
so get to a race day if you can, or tour early in the morning and witness the spectacle of long lines of thoroughbreds training across
miles of flat, rich plains. There’s still plenty of equestrian-related enjoyment to be had nearby at the , where
the winners of five Classics were produced and the tale of William Hall Walker is revealed. A true character,Walker used astrological
charts to determine the futures of his foals – any born under an undesirable chart were sold. Move from horses to horticulture next
at the . Designed to represent the “Life of Man”, the gardens were created by Japanese master horticulturalist
Tassa Eida, and help you to adjust and adapt to a slower, more peaceful pace.Walk the tranquil woodland and wetlands of the
restful St Fiachra’s Garden.
Allow minimum 1½ hours for this experience
Continue to Laois’s . Here, listen for the echoes of the 1798 Rebellion that once permeated the stillness of
these magnificent neoclassical parklands.West again, past the scenic and through the village of Kinnitty,
which according to legend has the head of a princess buried beneath it.
Allow 1½ hours for this experience
Lunch in Kinnity
Head for which, resides firmly in the realm of science with its huge Great Telescope sitting at the heart of this vast and
beautiful demesne. Designed and built in the 19th century by the Third Earl of Rosse, this telescope was the largest in the world
from 1845 to 1914 and was appropriately known as the “Leviathan”. Finish the day with a walk through the gardens, which bloom
with roses, wisteria and 300-year-old box hedges.
Allow 1½ hours for this experience
If you have more time: Make your way to The Rock of Dunamase. A gift to Norman Lord Strongbow in 1170 upon his marriage
to Aoife, daughter of the King of Leinster, has got to be one of Ireland’s most impressive wedding presents.
As legend goes, there’s even buried treasure lying beneath the castle – guarded by a fearsome hellhound.
Allow 30 minutes for this experience
Dinner & Overnight
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