Introducing our Newest Tour: 9 Night North of Ireland Knitting & Craft

By Orla Spencer

Including craft demonstrations, craft based sightseeing, knitting workshops and some of Ireland’s best visitor attractions!

We’ve been running our Southern Ireland Knitting & Craft tours for a number of years now and we have found that there is great interest in this tour. Feedback from our previous guests has been very positive. So for 2015, we are mixing things up a bit and are running a new Knitting & Craft tour, similar to the previous tour but visiting areas in the North, Northwest & West of Ireland. For bookings made before the 31^st of December 2014, we are pleased to offer a discount of €100 per person, read to the end for more details about this!

This new tour begins in Dublin; the first day is pretty relaxed, giving our guests time to rest after their long journey to Ireland. In the afternoon, if participants are feeling up to it, we will take them on a panoramic tour of Dublin stopping at Dublin Castle and the Museum of Decorative Arts and History.  The latter has been a favourite stop of our past knitting tours due to the museum’s exhibition showing how different classes of people in Ireland’s past lived and what they wore. After visiting a few more attractions and enjoying an overnight stay in Dublin, the tour continues to Northern Ireland, on the way stopping at a Tapestry Weavers for a workshop as well as one of Northern Ireland’s famous Linen factories.

In Belfast tickets are included for the Creative Craft Show and time is allowed for guests to explore Belfast at their leisure. Also while in Northern Ireland we will take a journey around the spectacular Causeway Coast, visiting Dunluce Castle and of course the Giant’s Causeway itself. Then the tour continues to the City of Derry where a guided walk along the cities stone walls has been arranged. Continue to Donegal where you will first enjoy a hands on knitting class with Irish knitwear designer, Edel McBride. Then visit Studio Donegal one of Ireland’s premier hand weaving studios and stockists of a wide variety of local yarns. Other exploits in the Northern part of this tour include a visit the Belleek Pottery studio, a tour of Enniskillen Castle and a visit to the Sheelin Lace Shop and Museum.

In Mayo we will meet local knitting instructor Ciara Ní Reachtnín who will teach our group how to create the Deirdre of Sorrows Shawl pattern which is one of her own Celtic Designs. Our group will visit the museum of Country Life where traditional life in Ireland is presented through enlightening exhibits and Foxford Woollen Mills where the working of the woollen mill can be seen in great detail.

In Galway discover the wild and vast Connemara region, visiting the Sheep & Wool Centre and the famous Kylemore Abbey. On the way back we will spend time with local basket Maker Ciaran Hogan for a demonstration of traditional Irish willow basket weaving. When you return to Dublin take part in one final knitting workshop with Lisa Sisk from This is Knit before meeting in Nancy Hands pub for a wonderful farewell meal in a private area of the bar, reserved for our Knitting Tour alone.

For bookings made on our new Knitting & Craft tour by the 31^st of December 2014 we are pleased to offer a €100 discount per person! Places are limited to 25, so if you are interested, do get in touch with us!

For more information visit:

http://www.irishtourism.com/knitting/9-night-north-of-ireland-knitting-craft-tour/4573

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