Ireland Incentive June 2006

Before Arrival we offer monthly teasers to promote the award trip, including a Guinness tee shirt in a pop-off can and authentic shamrock seeds to “Help Your Sales Grow.”

This  itinerary takes in some stunningly unspoilt parts of the Irish countryside and goes through mountainous areas, the rolling landscape of river valleys, and seascapes. They will be able to visit some of the finest gardens, historic mansions and splendid medieval ruins, as well as museums art galleries and wonderful little shops in the cities of Dublin, Tipperary & Cork. They will be in places where some of the best golfing, walking, fishing and riding is available and there are really outstanding restaurants in the areas that we would suggest for overnights. With a pub to every 300 of the population they are never far from a convivial meeting place, often with impromptu music sessions. :-

Day 1 Wednesday evening.  Depart US

Day 2 Thursday AM Arrive Shannon where entertainers and jugglers serving Irish Coffees will assist the group to the coaches. For the first two nights there are several possible venues at different price ranges and with slightly different activities available.  The itinerary developed here is based on a private country house in County Tipperary.  These are some of the alternatives.

Dromoland Castle, near Shannon

Adare Manor in Limerick

 The Merriman Inn, on Galway Bay

Ballyseedee Castle, Kerry

The Old Ground, Ennis

Cahernane House, Killarney

Woodstock, Ennis

 

A 60 minute ride will bring the Group to Kilshane - your own stately home for the next two days.

Starting at the charming stone gate lodge, the half-mile long drive passes formal lines of lime trees, splashes of wild indigenous plantations, open & peaceful pastures, & then, over the bridge & up the hill to the spacious & elegant Kilshane House. At the house traditional Irish dancers greet the group.  

The group enter into a very large & handsome Victorian conservatory with a curvilinear glass roof where a glass or two of champagne awaits.

After some time to rest the fun starts out on the lawn.  The group is divided into teams who vie with each other at bygone arts - weaving, dressing your knight in his armour (all 20 pieces of it, blacksmithing, candle making, word turning, archery.... For more details click here

5.00 depart Kilshane for entertainment.  Depending on the date in June in the evening  you could have a reception at the local horse-racing course with a leading jockey as your personal tipster to advise you on the winning horses, or go to the dogs at the greyhound race track at Thurles. It is possible to sponsor a race if required. 

An alternative would be a night of music and dance in the local pub.  A traditional pub  is O'Heney's Bar. Landlord Eamon O'Heney is a larger than life character who has been dispensing hospitality here for more than 16 years. His welcoming hostelry has won awards for both its food and Guinness and the live music sessions.  Some local colour would be introduced.

Day 3 Friday

After a leisurely breakfast there are two options.  Some could play golf at one of the local courses

Ballykisteen Golf & Country Club Narrow fairways dominate this course. However the golfer has a variety of tees to play from thus altering the difficulty of the course & accuracy required to suit ones handicap. Plenty of water.

Limerick County Golf Club Limerick County is a par-72 parkland championship quality golf course, situated in rolling hills.. The course, measuring 6712 yards was designed by Ryder Cup & European Tour veteran Des Smyth. It has been described by professional & amateurs alike as a robust but very fair golfing challenge.

Cahir Park Golf Club Parkland. 18 holes 5740 metres. A stunning setting in the old Demesne of Cahir castle, with the River Suir running along below.

County Tipperary Golf Club Using the natural features of woodland & parkland interwoven by the Multeen River. Philip Walton created a challenging par 72, a real test of golf.

The non golfing option would be The Cork Tour with a visit to Blarney Castle, with its magical stone that bestows the gist of eloquence, & The Blarney Woolen Mill.

 

This evening fine dining is on a grand scale surrounded by an 18th century panorama in the Orangerie with French windows opening onto the terrace overlooking the lake.

Then retreat downstairs, where there is a full-size Victorian billiard table under a skylight in the games room just off a large, comfortable room with leather club chairs & a Chesterfield in front of a marble fireplace. In addition traditional musicians, a fortune-teller & a conjurer will be on hand in the old vaulted brick wine cellar to provide interesting diversions.

Day 4 Saturday

After breakfast head towards Dublin.  Stop off for lunch at Ballghmore Castle, a haunted tower house

On to Dublin.  The group would be divided into teams and left by the statue of Molly Malone with a few clues and a camera per team and have to find their way to their hotel whilst the bus disappears with their luggage.   Three actors will make the challenge that bit tougher.  

Overnight. 5 * Overnight  at The Four Seasons, or The Merrion, or 4*  Brooks or The Herbert Park

 The Four Seasons

 The Merrion

Brooks

The Herbert Park

Or slightly further out of town

Killiney Castle

 Clontarf Castle

Dublin has long been a centre of art and culture. As they follow the clues they will stroll through the elegant Georgian streets of Merrion and Fitzwilliam Squares, the elegant shops of Grafton Street and Powerscourt Townhouse, explore the collections of the National Museum and National Gallery, and will have no problem spending many hours enthralled.


The city is over a thousand years old, and many of the towns and settlements that surround it are equally ancient. Successive centuries have left their distinctive overlays of character and architecture which means that Dublin has a wealth of historically significant and fascinating sights to explore such as Dublin Castle, where the Normans ruled from the 12th Century, St Patrick's Cathedral, of which Jonathan Swift was Dean, and Trinity College, famous for The Book of Kells and for its alumni who include Oscar Wilde and Oliver Goldsmith. Once they have found their hotel they will be leaving again for dinner in an 18th century town house where Oscar Wilde was a regular visitor. It is now the home of Dublin socialite Desiree Shortt, who will be our hostess for dinner.  After dinner VIP passes will be available to Dublin's top nightclub, whilst others might prefer to explore the city's nightlife on their own

Day 5 Sunday 

Jazz Brunch in one of Dublin’s trendiest pubs, followed by one or more of the following: 

Dinner and traditional entertainment at the Castle Inn

Day 6 Monday

Golf at Druids Glen or The K Club, where the Ryder Cup will be played in 2006.  Non golfers could try there hand at  cookery classes teaching the participants to bake traditional Irish soda bread, or risk their stomachs on the sea in a Dublin Bay Sea safari in a RIB.       

 

 In the afternoon there would be free time for shopping, followed by a farewell banquet at Drimnagh Castle.

Dinner this evening will start with an Irish whiskey tasting reception where you will sample 3 different Irish Whiskeys against Scotch and Bourbon, discover the history of Irish Whiskey and the differences between each whisk(e)y, and end your session with a glass of Irish Whiskey, a Whiskey Cocktail or an Irish Coffee, as well as receiving your very own Whiskey Tasting Certificate. Followed by dinner of modern Irish cooking

 

Day 7 Tuesday

After breakfast depart for the airport.

 

 

 

 

 

Corporate "Medieval Days" – rough outline

Spend a day (or afternoon) as a Medieval Knight. Learn the Code of Chivalry and all the knightly skills and virtues, feast and quaff your fill, woo Fair Maidens, test your prowess in feats of bravery and skill, etc., etc.

Activities:

Arming the Knight: teams of squires compete to dress their "champion" in a full set of 15th century armour (all 20+ pieces are laid out and teams must figure out which piece goes where, and how it attaches). Team with the fastest time and most accurately dressed Knight wins.

Skill-at-Arms: demonstration fighting with several types of weapon.

Swordsmanship skills: qualified instructors safely teach the basic moves with wooden "waster" training swords, progressing to (blunted) steel weapons. This is very realistic-but-safe training with real effort required. Can progress to one-on-one bouts with point-scoring system.

Skill with the bow: learn to shoot with the longbow. Progressing to scored target competition.

"Paintbow" shooting with rubber blunt arrows and light bows through the woods. Will need some safety equipment (goggles, helmets, shields). Team competition rules apply (consider this one carefully – opportunity for accidents unless well supervised).

Jousting at the Quintain: train with the wooden Jousting Horse run on a pully. Learn how to steady the lance and score a "hit" on the swinging shield called a quintain (if you miss it hits you back!), or see how many rings each team can collect when "running at the ring".

Jousting (non-contact) demonstration with real horses and weapons skills from horseback.

Falconry demonstration and hands-on.

The Art of Heraldry: devise a Coat of Arms using the heraldic colours and symbols to blazon your team’s shield. An expert in heraldry shows how to create your personal statement.

Courtly Love: compose a sonnet to your Lady Fair, or sing a song of unrequited love. A knight is expected have a facility with words and music.

Learn to play a Medieval tune on an authentic replica instrument (large selection) and hear our court musicians play a lively and/or soothing accompaniment.