Luxury Tour of Ireland and Scotland

Secrets whisper from the walls in Rosslyn Chapel. They tell of knights and the Holy Grail, early freemasonry, and the extravagance of medieval architecture. It’s hard to separate fact from legend, but that shouldn’t be surprising, this being a chapel made famous by The Da Vinci Code book and movie. Heading west, you inspect a private art collection in Maybole, paintings found behind closed doors that lead from an astonishing oval staircase. A grand welcoming waits at Glenapp, a hidden 19th-century castle overlooking the Irish Sea. A six-course gourmet dinner fills the evening here as you drift into the atmosphere of Royal Scotland, this just the start of the castle experiences on the tour. A log fire crackles, wee drams of whiskey are sipped, and an old baronial style is showcased.

Like any alcohol, whiskey is best understood when those who make it tutor you. See a whiskey distillery at work and taste with the distiller, a private experience that opens up rare whiskeys and considers why they are so revered. This is just one part of today’s private tour as you travel north to Glasgow, the city’s stunning 12th-century cathedral one of the iconic attractions. Glasgow is vastly different from Edinburgh – gritty, artsy, somewhat unusual, and best understood by the locals. A Glaswegian tailors a tour to your interests and you’ll find this a great city for getting to grips with Scottish culture.

Propellers whirl and you soar across Scotland, on a private helicopter flight that first travels north towards the Highlands. Lochs glisten down below, javelins of light piercing the clouds, dancing across the water’s surface. Hills are rugged and rounded at first, but grow higher as the valleys narrow. Slopes are painted purple by the heather as sheep add white dots to the landscape. Flying southwest you look out towards Ireland then touch down on the Isle of Arran, where the wind whistles past your ears and there’s a solitude that’s central to the atmosphere on all Scottish islands.

Spend the afternoon on a round trip of the coastline. Ruins stand evocatively, the remains of Lochranza Castle just some that stud the Isle of Arran. Narrow valleys and tempestuous waves meet along the coast, creating a sense that Arran is the edge of the world. Step inside at Brodrick Castle, a 13th-century structure packed full of porcelain and silverware, plus historical furniture that’s been carefully preserved for almost a millennia. It’s wild and imposing from the ground yet tranquil and tempting from the air. You fly over the island by helicopter and return to the mainland, where your castle hotel is perched on the edge of a loch and continues your affair with baronial architecture.

Loch Lomond is a place to unwind, an open lake hemmed in by rolling glens and a yearning for history. When the sky is clear you find endless reflections on the water, so many shades of green shimmering back at you. After a private cruise on the loch, you spend a relaxed day in Stirling, home to arguably the finest medieval old quarter in the British Isles. A local takes you on a tour of the castle, stories of William Wallace (made famous by Braveheart) beating the English seeping from the walls. Stirling is a great place to explore without a guide, perhaps without a map. Just take a stroll and soak your senses into the mazy old town streets.

Like most of the days, there’s no pressure on what time you start this morning. So take it easy if you wish, or travel across Scotland while mist still hangs low on the glens. For lunch, you board the Royal Yacht Britannia, the Queen’s floating residence and a place to indulge your taste buds on the delicate foods her royal majesty regularly enjoys. Later in the day, you’re given a private viewing of the Scottish Crown Jewels before another night at a five-star castle hotel. This one has a restaurant in the dungeon, an atmospheric space that’s a complete contrast to lunch on the yacht.

Hawks and owls and eagles fly, above the castle’s landscaped lawns, landing flawlessly on your outstretched hand. Falconry is the sport of kings and you learn the basics this morning, admiring the precision of every flight. It’s a short flight to Dublin and an afternoon amid the art. Modern classics in a pre-eminent gallery, enormous canvases in national galleries, then small private collections that give Dublin its name as an art capital. With art as a lens, you also discover the city’s character and charm, the guide able to customize where you go based on your interests. That could be James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, Arthur Guinness, or St. Patrick.

The Emerald Isle is where verdant fields give off a lustrous glow and there’s no escaping the iconicity. Ireland is beautiful from ground level when you’re getting lost in all the valley folds. It’s even more impressive from the air, an elevated vantage point bringing the true scale and green nuance. Fly across rolling farmlands to County Claire and the west coast, where the pilot descends in altitude, and you swoop low over the country’s ultimate postcard – the Cliffs of Moher. The cliffs loom high, and they are joined by other icons, like the Maam Tuck mountains and Twelve Bens. On most days, you watch Aileen’s wave surfing its way to shore and Galway Bay extending out to the Atlantic Ocean. Touch down, and you have half a day to explore whatever you wish in a private car with driver, before a five-star castle hotel that inspires further Irish panoramas.

Hardly anyone knows about the island you’re going to. It’s kept a secret by everyone, so, for now, you’ll have to be satisfied to know that you’re traveling on The Azul, Ireland’s only skippered motor yacht. This is part of the country that hardly anyone has seen, and it’s yours for the next two days. Travel along the river to a manor house, where Irish whiskey tasting takes place. Then continue into a more private realm, a secluded castle set upon its own island. Used as a private summerhouse for the international glitterati, it’s a place where you can escape the world and live out a regal fairytale.

Few people know of its existence, and nobody will know you are here. The owners give you a tour, leading up to a roof terrace overlooking the water and onwards across Ireland. Indulge in artisanal food and afternoon liqueurs, listen to your footsteps down the old stone staircases, imagine your own tale from yesteryear, and feel the serenity of your own island. Ireland isn’t the place you would expect such an experience, but it exists, even if it isn’t advertised. On day nine you do the exploring while on day ten you do nothing at all, other than wallow in the exclusiveness of where you are.

Cruise back down the river and take to the skies once more, this time flying above the orange beaches and craggy cliffs of Ireland’s southwest Atlantic Coast. Dolphin fins pierce the water down below, wild Atlantic waves crash beneath majestic cliffs, and Irish dreams are made on the quintessential landscape. You touch down and can explore the land, from cliff-lined walks to the solitude of a beach hidden from the world. Later in the day, you return to Dublin and your last night in Ireland, reservations at the city’s ultimate fine dining restaurant ensuring superb final memories.

After a morning at leisure, you’re transferred to the international airport for your homebound flight.