Join storyteller Phil Cousineau on a pilgrimage and cultural adventure to the Wild West of Ireland, where Celtic folklore and Viking legends exist side by side with Christian mysticism and the finest Irish music, literature, and movies.
Today’s Ireland is a place where art and poetry, legends and mysticism converge in a seamless manner. Travel with us to explore the spiritual genius of what the ancient Celts used to call “The Back of Beyond,” the world of saints and scholars, poets and singers. Our pilgrimage focuses on the glories of Western Ireland, including three glorious days in the Aran Islands, as well as the sacred sites of Clonmacnoise Monastery, the Holy Well of Saint Brigid; the lunar landscape of the Burren, Thoor Ballylee (Yeats’ Tower), Lady Gregory’s Coole Park, Roundstone’s Bodhrán (Irish drum) Shop, and much more. Invited speakers, contemplative nature walks, time for journaling, and lively discussions with Phil Cousineau make this a truly unforgettable tour. We look forward to seeing you there! READ MORE
Phil Cousineau is a writer, teacher, independent scholar, documentary filmmaker, travel leader, storyteller and author of over 40 books including the national best-seller The Art of Pilgrimage, The Book of Roads, and Stoking the Creative Fires, winner of the Book of the Year Award from “Spirituality & Health Magazine.”
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Phil has a way of provoking a sense of wonder in us that allowed me to open my heart, mind & soul to everything and everyone we were exposed to.Christina Moore, Springfield, MO
TESTIMONIALS
Tour Description
Join writer and filmmaker Phil Cousineau on a sacred journey that spirals into the heart and soul of one of the most unique cultures in the world, the magical, mythical, and mystical Land of Ireland. The spiral approach is inspired by his work in his worldwide bestseller The Art of Pilgrimage and The Hero’s Journey, which he worked on with mythologist Joseph Campbell, and is poetically reflected by the iconic Irish triple spiral. This poignant symbolism was etched on ancient megalithic monuments, painted in illuminated manuscripts, and incised on swords and jewelry, while representing the life force itself, the journey of the soul from birth to death, as well as the movement between the three realms of Earth, Sea, and Sky.
For us, it will represent the subtle and respectful way we will seek the presence of Ireland’s incantatory storytelling, hypnotic music, and the sheer beauty of glorious countryside.
Meander with us along Ireland’s scenic roads that hug the rugged Irish western shore, roam about the undulating countryside and beautiful boglands, and ferry to the luminous lunarscape of the Aran Islands, as we explore the depths the magical heart of Ireland.
Highlights include visits to the towering Cliffs of Moher, the limestone moonscape of The Burren, Thoor Ballylee, the twelfth-century Norman Tower home of poet W.B. Yeats, a contemplative afternoon in the gardens of Lady Gregory’s Coole Park, Clonmacnoise, and live session of traditional Irish music with the Connemara group “Don’t Tell Dad,” a live Irish play performed by actors from The Curlew Theater, a visit to the brooding ruins of Clifden Castle, and two days and nights at Renvyle House, one of the most historically important and award-winning hotels in Ireland. We will enjoy three nights on the serene Aran Islands and conclude our tour with a rich day in the colorful capital of Dublin, where we will see the Book of Kells at Trinity College.
Our journey will also be enriched by daily morning group discussions with Phil Cousineau and Jo Beaton Cousineau, and augmented by guest appearances by several of Ireland’s leading authorities, including the music historian and novelist P. J. Curtis, the Celtic mystic-priest and author Dara Molloy, the founder of the Clifden Art's Festival Brendan Flynn, Ireland’s most famous drum maker Malachy “Bodhrán” Kearns, as well as local Irish actors and musicians, and the founder of the Letterfrack Poetry Trail Leo Hallissey. Other guest speakers and performers include archaeologist Padraigin Clancy, Sean Coyne and Tegolan Knowland from Connemara’s much honored The Curlew Theater, and Connemara musicians Fionnuala Hannigan-Dunkley and Ricardo Dunkley.
To get a sense of what’s in store, feel free to view photos from our 2025 journey with Phil. We look forward to seeing you there—Sláinte! (Cheers! in Irish Gaelic, a word you'll often hear from locals on the island).
Arriving early morning in Shannon you will be greeted and taken by coach to the bustling market town of Ennis (from Inis Cluain Ramh Fhada, Island of the Long Rowing Meadow) where you will have a traditional Irish breakfast at the Old Ground Hotel, a venerable 18th century coach inn. After breakfast we will have time to wander the meandering medieval lanes of Ennis, which has won multiple Tidy Town Awards and the Friendliest Town in Ireland Award. There we will explore its traditional Irish music shops and woollen stores, and the haunting ruins of the 13th century Ennis Friary. (Your flight must arrive by 7:30 am today, otherwise please arrive on Apr 5). (Travel time Shannon Airport/Ennis approx. 30 mins.)
We then begin our pilgrimage with a short drive to the venerable Saint Brigid’s Well and Grotto in nearby Liscannor, one of an estimated 3000 holy wells around Ireland. Long considered to have healing powers, this still widely used well by locals around County Clare retains a connection to the Celtic goddess Brigid and her sisters, who personified the Triple Goddess in ancient times. Here we will take our time to pay our respects to the well with a traditional Irish ritual for use at holy wells.
From there we continue on to the majestic Cliffs of Moher, which rise 700 feet above the Atlantic. For many centuries the site has inspired poets, photographers, and musicians, including the Wolfe Tones’ ballad about star-crossed lovers, The Cliffs of Moher. While looking out over the Aran Islands, Galway Bay, as well as the Twelve Pins mountain range in Connemara, we will engage in our first journaling exercise.
After some traditional tea and scones at the Visitor’s Centre (at own expense) we return to Ennis and the Old Ground Hotel. At the Old Ground you will have ample time to refresh yourself from your long flight and morning excursion before meeting for our Welcome Dinner at the hotel (included in Tour price).
(Overnight in Ennis at the Old Ground Hotel or similar)
Today we travel to the quaint village of Doolin, often regarded as the music capital of Ireland, made famous by the Russell Brothers, from where we will take the ferry to Inishmore – a stunning journey across Galway Bay, which until recently was made only by curraghs, the traditional wood and tar boats (the ferry crossing takes approximately 1 hour 30 minutes).
Arrive at Inishmore, the larger of the three Aran Islands. Here, on the very edge of Europe, is an island rich in the language, culture, and heritage of Ireland, unique in its geology and archaeology and in its long tradition of gentle hospitality. Inishmore is a place to sense the spirit of Gaelic Ireland, but with all the comforts and facilities of the present. Aran will take you back to an Ireland of Celts and Early Christians. This is an island of great peace and tranquility, but it is also an island of great fun and activity. Irish is spoken by most of the locals on the island.
Upon arrival we will check in at the Aran Islands Hotel and enjoy an included lunch with your fellow pilgrims. In the afternoon we will make a short drive to Dún Eochla, one of the island’s remarkable ancient stone forts, perched high above the surrounding landscape and offering sweeping views across Inishmore and out toward the Atlantic. Here Phil will guide us in exploring the site while sharing insights into the island’s ancient past and the lives of the early inhabitants who built these remarkable structures.
There will also be some free time to relax at the hotel or wander into the nearby village of Kilronan to browse the shops and famous Aran sweater stores.
This evening we will walk into town for dinner and live traditional music at the rollicking Joe Watty’s Pub, also known for its brilliant local seafood (at own expense).
(Overnight in Inishmore at Aran Islands Hotel or similar)
After breakfast we will gather with Phil for a morning conversation at the hotel before setting out to visit Dún Aonghasa, the most famous of the prehistoric forts on the Aran Islands. Perched dramatically on the edge of towering Atlantic cliffs, this remarkable Iron Age stronghold commands sweeping views across the Atlantic and stands as one of the most powerful ancient sites in Ireland. We will have time to wander the fort and experience the striking beauty of this rugged Atlantic landscape.
Afterwards, we will have lunch (at own expense) and return to our hotel.
In the afternoon we will meet with Celtic philosopher, author, poet, and guide Dara Molloy, who has lived on the island with his family for many years. With Dara we will journey to Killeany, where we will visit St. Enda’s Oratory, a nearby labyrinth, and climb up to Teampall Bheanáin, a tiny stone church perched high above the island and dedicated to one of Ireland’s earliest saints.
In the evening, we have the option to walk into town for dinner at Joe Watty’s Pub, where music, storytelling, and good company are rarely in short supply (at own expense).
(Overnight in Inishmore at Aran Islands Hotel or similar)
Enjoy a full Irish breakfast at the hotel, followed by a morning conversation with Phil about the history of the islands, including the many Irish writers who ventured here in search of their literary voice, among them J. W. Synge and Oscar Wilde.
From here we set out across the island by traditional horse-drawn jaunting cars, continuing our exploration of Inishmore in the company of Dara Molloy. Our pilgrimage takes us through the stark and beautiful landscape of the island to Mainistir Chiaráin, a remarkable early Christian monastic site, along with a 5th-century beehive hut and the evocative ruins of the Seven Churches. As we wander among these ancient places, Dara offers reflections on the spiritual traditions that have shaped life on the Aran Islands for centuries.
Along the way we will pause for lunch (not included) before continuing to take in the beauty and atmosphere of the island.
Tonight we will once again make our way into town for dinner at Joe Watty’s Pub (at own expense).
(Overnight in Inishmore at Aran Islands Hotel or similar)
This morning we check out of our hotel and transfer by coach to the ferry port for our departure to Doolin. From Doolin we transfer by coach for a day exploring some of the impressive prehistoric sites of Co. Clare.
We'll stop at Vaughan's Pub for lunch (included in Tour price) - a traditional Irish pub serving delicious bar food - before visiting Kilfenora Cathedral to see the famous Seven Celtic High Crosses, dating back to the ninth century.
On our way back to Ennis we will have a stop in The Burren, a karstic plateau – a stony chaos to the casual observer – with a full assemblage of the curious landforms that characterize such limestone landscapes. Here we will visit the 6,000-year-old Poulnabrone megalithic tomb, engage in our daily contemplative writing exercise, and visit the highly regarded Burren Visitor’s Centre. Here we will discuss the folklore surrounding holy wells and fairy mounds and pay tribute to the Irish mystic and poet John O’Donohue by reading passages from two of his books, Beauty and Blessings. John discussed these works at length with Phil (who was writing his own book on beauty at the time, Who Stole the Arms of the Venus de Milo) in Ballyvaughan, County Clare, only a few months before John died, in 2008.
Late in the afternoon, we transfer to the Temple Gate Hotel to check in.
(Overnight in Ennis at the Temple Gate Hotel or similar)
Enjoy a full Irish breakfast followed by a morning talk in the hotel conference room on the history of Irish music in County Clare and Connemara in the 1950s. After our session, we travel to the village of Gort for a private tour of the Kiltartan Gregory Museum. Housed in a former school, the museum offers a fascinating look at the literary and cultural heritage of the region, with exhibits dedicated to Lady Gregory, the Irish Literary Revival, and the local history of County Clare.
Afterwards, we will explore the recently restored Thoor Ballylee, Yeats’ Tower, the former summer home of the great Irish poet, playwright, and statesman, which inspired his long poem The Tower. While there we will enjoy a locally produced video about Yeats, his muse Maude Gonne, and Lady Gregory, read some of his poetry, and then have time for a leisurely country stroll.
Following our visit we will stop for lunch in the nearby village of Gort (at own expense) before continuing on to Coole Park, one of the most beloved landscapes in Ireland. The grounds are an impressive monument to Lady Augusta Gregory’s incalculably important collecting of ancient Irish myths and legends. Coole Park was once home to Lady Gregory—dramatist, folklorist, and cofounder of the Abbey Theatre Dublin with W. B. Yeats—and in the early 20th century it became a center of the Irish Literary Revival. Yeats, George Bernard Shaw, John Millington Synge, and Sean O’Casey all came to experience its magic. Although the house no longer stands, one can still appreciate the surroundings that drew so many here. We will have time at leisure to wander the magnificent grounds and take in the atmosphere of this storied place.
Dinner at own expense this evening with optional pub crawl to experience the town’s legendary traditional music.
(Overnight in Ennis at the Temple Gate Hotel or similar)
Enjoy a full Irish breakfast this morning before departing for the wild beauty of Connemara. As we journey west, we will reflect on the history of the Irish Famine—known in Ireland as The Great Hunger—and its profound impact on the people and landscape of this region.
Our destination is Kylemore Abbey Estate, set in the heart of the Connemara mountains. The home of the Irish Benedictine Nuns—and the famous girls’ school once attended by actress Angelica Huston when she lived in Ireland with her filmmaker father, John Huston, in the 1960s—Kylemore is one of the most evocative places in the west of Ireland.
Here we will enjoy a simple lunch together before exploring the picturesque Abbey reception rooms, video, and exhibition. We will also stroll to the beautiful Neo-Gothic Church and Mausoleum where the original owners are buried, browse the Craft Shop, and view Kylemore Abbey pottery as it is produced in the Pottery Studio.
In the afternoon we continue on to the nearby village of Letterfrack (from the Irish for The Speckled Hill), founded by the Quakers in the 19th century to provide help for the people of Connemara during the Great Hunger. Today it is known as a vibrant center for music and crafts. Here we will meet Leo Hallissey, local schoolteacher and founder of the Letterfrack Poetry Trail, which features plaques bearing poems by Irish poets placed on buildings around the village and its environs. Leo—and perhaps a local poet or two—will accompany us on a walk along the trail.
Afterwards we continue on to the legendary Renvyle House Hotel, the former home of poet, statesman, surgeon, and novelist Oliver St. John Gogarty (Buck Mulligan in Joyce’s Ulysses), and now a family-run establishment of the Coyle family.
After checking in, we will gather later in the evening for a discussion before enjoying dinner together in the hotel’s award-winning restaurant.
(Overnight in Renvyle at Renvyle House Hotel or similar)
After breakfast and our morning discussion at the hotel, we depart for the coastal village of Roundstone, one of the most picturesque settlements in Connemara and famously featured in the 1997 romantic comedy The Matchmaker.
Here we will enjoy lunch at O’Dowd’s Seafood Bar & Restaurant (included in the tour price), recipient of the James Joyce Irish Pub of the Year Award.
Afterwards we visit the Roundstone Music and Crafts – I.D.A. Craft Centre for a personal tour led by Ireland’s renowned bodhrán maker Malachy Kearns, known among musicians as Malachy Bodhrán. Malachy practices the ancient craft of making Ireland’s traditional frame drum, the bodhrán, an 18-inch one-sided instrument made from goatskin prepared through a traditional process. His instruments are played by musicians ranging from Van Morrison and U2 to Christy Moore and the Riverdance troupe.
This evening we gather for dinner at Renvyle House Hotel, followed by a special performance by the Curlew Company of The Muse and Mr. Yeats, a one-hour play inspired by the lives of Maud Gonne and W. B. Yeats. Afterwards, we may enjoy a traditional seisiún of Irish music in the hotel bar.
(Overnight in Renvyle at Renvyle House Hotel or similar)
Following breakfast and our morning discussion, inspired by Thomas Cahill’s classic book How the Irish Saved Civilization, we depart Renvyle in our coach and travel to the enchanted ruins of Clonmacnoise, an early Christian site founded by St. Ciaran in the mid-6th century. Entering along the fifteen-hundred-year-old pilgrim’s trail, we saunter down the time-burnished cobblestones to the three magnificent Round Towers and its Scriptorium. There, we will have an unforgettable chance to discuss in situ just how the Irish helped create the modern world by preserving and copying a remarkable number of Greek and Roman manuscripts. The long and varied history of the monastery, one of the great seats of learning in medieval times, is recounted in an audiovisual presentation shown in the Visitor Centre. There are also exhibitions that deal with the flora, fauna, and landscape of the region.
From there, we continue to Athlone, an ideal regional site and the largest town on the River Shannon, standing on the boundary of two counties, Westmeath and Roscommon, in the center of Ireland. It is a historic town because of its strategic location and is commonly referred to as the Gateway to the West. Here you will have time for lunch under your own arrangements. Those who wish may also stop for optional refreshments at Sean’s Bar, which dates back to 900 AD and is regarded by some as the “Oldest Pub in Ireland,” and by others as the oldest pub in the world.
We then drive on to Dublin and stop at the hauntingly beautiful Famine Memorial along the River Liffey, where bronze figures silently commemorate the millions who suffered during the Great Famine. It’s a powerful and moving reminder of Ireland’s history and resilience.
The evening is free to enjoy Dublin with an optional pub crawl to the haunts of James Joyce, Samuel Beckett, Eavan Boland, Patrick Cavanagh, Edna O’Brien, and others.
(Overnight in Dublin at the Iveagh Garden Hotel or similar)
We’ll begin the day with breakfast at our hotel and a morning discussion, before heading into the city centre to enjoy a pot of tea at the legendary Bewley’s Tea House (at own expense) and a visit to Ireland’s spectacular National Archaeological Museum.
Founded in 1890, the museum houses over two million artefacts from every era and region of Ireland. Here, we’ll encounter unforgettable treasures spanning from the Neolithic Period through the Middle Ages—including a 4,500-year-old dugout canoe, a bog body, the Glenisheen Gold Gorget, and the Tara Brooch, once worn by an ancient High King or warrior. Other highlights include the Ardagh Chalice, Bronze Age axes, swords, and cauldrons, beautifully cast bronze horns (believed to be the oldest known Irish musical instruments), religious relics, and even Viking treasures such as the Oseberg ship.
Afterwards, enjoy a free afternoon for journaling, flaneuring, or shopping.
In the spirit of Chaucer’s pilgrims in The Canterbury Tales, we will have a final and informal meeting at the hotel, where we will make time to tell our favorite stories about our time together and discuss what the great gift was of our journey to Ireland. Then we will depart for our Farewell Dinner!
(Overnight in Dublin at the Iveagh Garden Hotel or similar)
We enjoy our final full Irish breakfast at the hotel this morning as we bid our farewells to our new found friends and the beautiful Land of Eire. As the old Irish blessing goes, “May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind always be at your back. May the sunshine warm upon your face, and rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of his hand.”
Transfer to Dublin airport for flights home.
Slainte!
(B = Breakfast; L = Lunch; D = Dinner)
Note: Itinerary and speakers are subject to change due to conditions beyond our control.
And a gentle pilgrim's reminder: Out of respect for our sacred time and space, please, no mobile phones during our leader's morning talks or at on-site events. We will be offering everyone a special Pilgrim's Notebook, if you need to take notes. Thank you for your cooperation.
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