An Ulster Sampler

Day 1: Air or ferry to Northern Ireland. We will meet you and transfer you to your hotel - the Ramada Encore. Situated near the Anglican Cathedral and many famous traditional pubs, this is the ideal base to sample the best of Belfast.

Day 2: After breakfast our luxury coach will take you on a tour of Co. Down. We will visit Glastry Farm near Newtownards to learn how to make real ice-cream. Then we journey through the rolling countryside, past fields of Comber potatoes to Downpatrick with its lovely cathedral and St. Patrick's Centre.

From there we drive to Newcastle where the Mountains of Mourne really do sweep down to the sea. Time for a bracing stroll along the promenade or a coffee in the Slieve Donard Hotel, and then it's back to Belfast via a visit to the Shortcross Gin Distillery in Crossgar. This is one of N.I.'s new breed of craft gin distilleries.

For dinner it's back to Belfast and the Mourne Seafood Bar, which does exactly what it says on the tin.

Day 3: This is CityDay. A short coach tour of the city's main sights followed by a morning cookery course at one of Belfast's best known restaurants.

The afternoon is free for shopping or a visit to Belfast's top tourist attraction - Titanic Belfast. We leave you to choose where to dine in one of the many restaurants in the city, and whatever your taste we will gladly help with advice and reservations.

One thing is certain: Belfast is no longer a culinary backwater.

Day 4: Today we travel to the North Coast. Considered one of the great scenic drives of the world, the Antrim Coast Road twists its way for forty miles from Larne to Ballycastle, and provides stunning views of the Glens of Antrim and the West Coast of Scotland. Our morning coffee stop will be at the Londonderry Arms Hotel in Carnlough.

The afternoon choice depends on the Irish weather - it does rain occasionally! - so it's either the Giant's Causeway or the Old Bushmills Distillery before the journey back to Belfast.

Our final dinner may surprise you - a short coach journey to a country restaurant where you will discover a cosy environment, friendly service and locally sourced food presented in an imaginative way.

Day 5: Sadly, time to go home but you will take with you many great memories and, just perhaps, a desire to return.

Prices on application.