Best of Scotland and Ireland (9020)

9 Day Tour from Edinburgh to Dublin

2025 Tour Details View 2026 Tour Details »

Discover the treasures Scotland and Ireland on your affordable tour from Dublin to Edinburgh. In 9 days, you’ll visit Highlands and Lowlands and three capital cities. Starting in Scotland, a city tour of Edinburgh introduces you to the home of scientists, inventors, and novelists, not to mention the imposing castle. The home of golf, St Andrews, and the beautiful Victorian resort town of Pitlochry are on the way to the Cairngorms National Park and Highlands of Scotland. Look out for Nessie as you drive along the shores of Loch Ness, and through the lush and rugged countryside to the “Bonnie Banks” of Loch Lomond to Glasgow. Your budget-minded travel through Scotland ends with the ferry across the Irish Sea to Belfast, where the Titanic was built. Plenty of time to immerse yourself in this unique city before moving south to Dublin, Ireland’s capital city. Here you’ll drive along the statue-lined O’Connell Street and see the elegant Georgian squares with their red-brick townhouses, Trinity College, and St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Your value-minded tour of Scotland and Ireland is chock-full of priceless experiences, sights, and memories brave and true!

The world is within reach with everything you need for perfectly affordable touring. Cosmos includes hand-selected accommodations, guided sightseeing, and seamless transportation between destinations and an Irish Sea ferry crossing—with value-minded travel lovers in mind. Explore with expert Cosmos Tour Directors and Local Guides, complimentary headsets, and a private, first-class, air-conditioned motorcoach with free Wi-Fi. Enhance your free time to explore like a local with your CosmosGO mobile app!

Special departures: Departures August 3, 10 and 17 include Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

Dates & Prices Book Online

800.646.5374

Photo Highlights

Meals

Meals & Itinerary

8 Breakfasts, 2 Dinners

Notes:

This tour requires some uphill walking on rough terraine at Edinburgh Castle which may pose a challenge to guests with physical limitations or reliant on mobility devices such as wheelchairs.

Itinerary

Day 1 ARRIVE IN EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND

Check into your hotel. In the afternoon, there’s time to rest or discover Scotland’s great capital city. This evening, meet your Tour Director and travel companions for dinner at the hotel.

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Dinner

Day 2 EDINBURGH

A full day to enjoy the Scottish capital. Morning sightseeing with a Local Guide introduces you to the 200-year-old “New Town”, home to famous scientists, inventors, and novelists. In the “Old Town,” visit Edinburgh Castle to admire Scotland’s Crown Jewels. Afternoon at leisure. No trip to Scotland is complete without an authentic Scottish night out! Join an optional evening filled with traditional food, drinks, singers, dancers, bagpipes and of course the unforgettable Ceremony of the Haggis! For departures August 3, 10 and 17, tickets are included for tonight’s performance of the world-renowned Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, a vast spectacle of amassed Scottish pipe bands that takes place in an arena on the esplanade of Edinburgh Castle.

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Breakfast

Day 3 EDINBURGH-ST. ANDREWS-PITLOCHRY-CULLODEN MOOR-INVERNESS-HIGHLANDS

A day of memorable sightseeing: cross the Firth of Forth and head to St. Andrews, whose Royal and Ancient Golf Club has given us the rules of golfing; then cross the Firth of Tay and, via Dundee and Perth, head into the Highlands with a stop in the Victorian mountain resort of Pitlochry. Cross the battlefield of Culloden Moor with its memories of Bonnie Prince Charlie before reaching your Highland destination.
Today’s Distance: 225 mi/ 260 km

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Breakfast

Dinner

Day 4 HIGHLANDS-FORT WILLIAM-GLASGOW

Look out for signs of the mysterious Loch Ness monster and proceed via Fort William, beneath Ben Nevis. Glen Coe, where the MacDonald Clan was massacred in 1692, and a drive along the “Bonnie Banks” of Loch Lomond are scenic highlights on the way to Glasgow.
Today’s Distance: 183 mi/ 293 km

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Breakfast

Day 5 GLASGOW–ALLOWAY–BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND

On this morning’s orientation drive through Scotland’s largest city, see the fine 12th-century cathedral, imposing university buildings, and elegant Georgian squares, built by wealthy tobacco barons. Stop at Alloway, the birthplace of Robert Burns, before boarding the ferry for the Irish Sea crossing to Belfast.
Today’s Distance: 143 mi/ 229 km

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Breakfast

Day 6 BELFAST

A full day to enjoy Belfast on your own or experience the legend and legacy of the ill-fated ocean liner, Titanic, on a morning optional city tour that includes a visit to Titanic Belfast. Be moved by the compelling story of the Titanic from conception to construction and launch and its subsequent place in history. This afternoon, why not join an optional to the UNESCO World Heritage site of the Giant’s Causeway. Taking its name from the legendary Irish giant Finn McCool, 40,000 basalt columns were formed around 60 million years ago to create a unique rock formation that is a sight to behold.

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Breakfast

Day 7 BELFAST–DUBLIN, IRELAND

Head south this morning for arrival in Dublin before lunchtime. Your orientation drive through Ireland’s capital includes statue-lined O’Connell Street, elegant Georgian squares, and St. Patrick’s Cathedral. This evening’s optional excursion toasts Irish tradition with a visit to the Guinness Storehouse where Ireland’s most famous export has been brewed since 1759. A guided tour is followed by a “pint of the black stuff” and dinner.
Today’s Distance: 105 mi/ 168 km

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Breakfast

Day 8 DUBLIN

A day to explore the “Fair City” of Dublin on your own. Your Tour Director will have suggestions. Everyone’s Irish on tonight’s popular optional outing to the legendary Taylors Irish Cabaret, featuring a delicious dinner, drinks, and outstanding Irish music, dance, and comedy.

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Breakfast

Day 9 DUBLIN

Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning.

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Breakfast

Tour Director

With COSMOS, there’s no better way to get to know your destination than through the eyes of a Tour Director. We’d like you to meet one of our Tour Directors, who average over a decade of experience and are representative of the type of expert that will be with you on your vacation.

WILL COLLINS

Escorting tours for more than 20 years

“For more than 20 years now I've had the great pleasure of being a Globus and Cosmos tour guide. Nothing beats the joy of watching people from all walks of life get so excited about seeing an iconic site like the Tower of London or Ireland's Cliffs of Moher for the first time. Being central to this joy is what give us tour guides that great sense of satisfaction and reward from the work that we do and the friends we meet along the way.”

Accommodations

Optional Excursions

No matter what you’re into: food, wine, history, art, music or anything else, we give you the freedom to personalize your vacation with optional excursions that speak to your interests.

When you book your excursions with us, you can be assured that every optional excursion that we offer coordinates with the free time that you'll have in your destination, so you'll never have conflicts between included and optional activities. Our team of travel experts carefully selects each optional excursion that we offer to ensure that you receive the highest quality at a great value. Our tried-and-true partners have a finger on the pulse of the city in which they operate so they deliver the very best experiences. We offer experiences you cannot create on your own and because you’re booking with us, we coordinate all your transportation and timing needs.

The following optional excursions are examples only for this vacation. These may or may not be offered, and availability is subject to days of operation and seasonality. Please select a departure date to view optional excursions and pricing for a specific date (due to currency fluctuation, pricing shown is subject to change until purchased). Optional excursions are available for purchase on our MyCosmos site 90 days prior to the tour start date.

Price Ranges

$ ($50 USD and under)
$$ ($51 - $100 USD)
$$$ ($101 - $150 USD)
$$$$ (Over $150)

Edinburgh

Belfast

Dublin

Edinburgh

Scottish Evening

No trip to Scotland is complete without an authentic Scottish evening filled with traditional food, drinks, singers, dancers, bagpipes, and, of course, the unforgettable Ceremony of the Haggis!

Price Range: $$$

Belfast

Belfast City Tour and Titanic Experience

In the company of a local guide, discover the best of Northern Ireland's vibrant capital on this exciting guided sightseeing tour and visit to the world-famous Titanic Experience.

Price Range: $$

Giant's Causeway Excursion

This afternoon travel to Giant's Causeway, the UNESCO World Heritage site. Visit this geological wonder made up of approximately 40,000 massive black basalt columns sticking out of the sea. Learn the legend about an Irish giant named Finn McCool who created a causeway to get across the Irish Sea and face his Scottish rival - Benandonner!

Price Range: $

Dublin

Guinness Storehouse Visit and Supper

Discover the history, traditions, and brewing techniques behind one of the world's most popular beer on this fascinating tour, tasting and dinner at Dublin's legendary Guinness Storehouse.

Price Range: $$

Taylors Irish Cabaret

You won't want to miss this popular outing to the legendary Taylors Irish Cabaret, featuring a delicious dinner, drinks, and outstanding Irish music, dance, and comedy.

Price Range: $$$

Private Touring

Private Touring: Cosmos European Private Touring enables you to experience all of the attractions, sights and highlights of your selected Cosmos tour as a private experience - delivered just for you and your traveling party. With Private Touring, you'll have your own dedicated Tour Director, your own private transportation and driver, and your own professional local guides. All with greater flexibility in pace and your experience. For your selected tour, there will be additional per-person cost for the size of your party - from 1 to 24. This additional supplement is reduced with each traveler you add to your party. Here's a sample of the additional cost:

6 guests in a party: $2,681*
18 guests in a party: $550*

Contact Cosmos or your preferred travel agent for pricing for your specific party size as well as any other information on Cosmos Private Touring.

*Supplement pricing is per person (USD) and will be added to the standard published price for your given departure date and is based on availability. Supplement price is valid for 2021 travel year. Occasionally some included and optional activities & excursions may be operated with other guests. Additional restrictions may apply. Not applicable for custom groups. No Group allowances or promotions are available on Private Touring. Published itineraries only. Note that blackout dates may exist where the Private Touring option is not available.

The "Starting at" or listed price is based on the lowest price available to book. Price is per passenger based on double occupancy and does not include International airfare; additional fees/charges are not included. If a price is crossed out, the new price includes a limited time promotional offer(s) – please review current promotions or deals for additional information. Some tours require intra-vacation flights (and in some cases intra-vacation segments must be purchased from Cosmos).