Never have I experienced such warmth, friendliness excellent food and pampering as I have on a recent five-day holiday, and at £349, the value was amazing. The price included of all meals, transport, top quality walking garments, even down to a good walking stick - and I found it difficult to spend money while away. This amazing value was the Connemara Safari, a walking and island-hopping trip. Arriving the first night at the Abbeyglen Hotel in Clifden, Connemara, we were greeted by Brian Hughes, our host and Gerry MacCloskey, an archaeologist who would guide us around the islands.
The group of 14 assembled in the lounge where we made our introductions and were treated to a glass of our favourite tipple followed by a five-course gourmet meal. Over dinner Gerry entertained us with information on the west of Ireland. Following dinner there was a pianist in the lounge and if you felt inclined to sing, well the night was young! People in our group were from the US, Denmark, Waterford, Cork, Kerry, Belfast and Dublin, and were of mixed ages - from twenty-somethings to young-at-heart sixty-somethings. The hotel has a swimming pool, sauna and jacuzzi, so, the following morning I tried them out. And when it came to breakfast, afterwards, there was almost everything one could desire: from freshly squeezed juices to exotic fruits, cheeses and the most succulent smoked salmon and yummy brown bread or freshly caught fish, to croissants and cereals. Visitors to our country must be impressed by the way we start our day.
We met in the foyer, where we were kitted out in suitable walking gear, with walking sticks to test the surface of the bogland we would traverse. A minibus took us by Kylemore Abbey, the magnificent home built in the 19th century by Mitchell Henry MP, which is now a boarding school for girls run by the Benedictine order of nuns from Ypres. This enchanting valley lies between the Twelve Bens in the south and the Doughruagh mountains further north. The mountains rise almost perpendicularly from the lakeshore. We passed Connemara National Park, two miles from Leenane, alighting to begin our first walk along Killary Harbour, Ireland's only fjord. We walked along the Famine road, which dates back to the mid 1840s. It was built to help locals during Famine times, giving them relief work in return for food.
Killary is truly spectacular. After about three miles we stopped beside a small waterfall for our picnic lunch. Wow! what a feast: fresh melon, salmon, scones, yogurts and vino or soft drinks. The chat was flowing, people swapping stories and then, as we walked along further, the peace - it was magic.
We passed a Famine village, where just the stone houses - roofless, windowless - are reminders of the fact that families once lived there. Gerry pointed out the potato ridges and explained why they were on raised beds - to get as much sunlight as possible - potatoes and buttermilk were the staple diet of that time. We climbed along the rocky and boggy fields to get our minibus to Cleggan and catch the ferry to Inisbofin. Our luggage was transported for us, so no worries.
Inisbofin is eight miles offshore and one of the most westerly islands, renowned for its natural harbour, dominated by a 16th-century castle at the entrance to the pier. For those of us energetic enough, a short walk took us to our hotel, the minibus delivering the less enthusiastic to th e door. The waters around the island are crystal clear and many scuba diving clubs go there for courses and holidays. After another excellent dinner, there was music and craic in the hotel bar, then a comfortable night's sleep.
There are some wonderful walks on this remote island, which has a population of just 180. And there is so much to see: cliff forts, monastic sites and a Cromwellian castle, sandy beaches and a seal colony. Lichen grows on rocks, indicating there is little or no pollution. Standing on the promontory with a fresh breeze, sprays of sea foam were blown around giving a landscape fairyland appearance.
We then headed for the pier to our ferry to take us to the uninhabited island of Inish Shark. The last islanders left there in the 1960s and were re-housed on the mainland. As there is no pier, so we had to get into a currach from our ferry to get to the island. Having picnicked on arrival, we walked up to the old school and further along we were shown a house where Lady Speranza Wilde - Oscar Wilde's mother lived for a while.
On then to Inishturk, which is inhabited by about 90 people. Some of the group were staying in one B & B, while the rest of us were about a mile away up the mountain where the views were spectacular - we looked directly across Croagh Patrick. En route we stopped at the community centre for refreshments. We all thought that a sheebeen would have been the only place to enbibe, but discovered that former president, Mary Robinson officially opened the centre in 1993. It is well-situated, so that most of the islanders can avail of activities being run there.
Then on to our B & B. Our hosts, the O'Tooles, were wonderful. Dinner that night was by candlelight, with a choice of fresh sea bass or home produced lamb for main course, with freshly dug up vegetables. After dinner, the fear an tigh played music, and there was ceili dancing until the wee hours.
The next day we went on more wonderful walks, lunching at Concannon's (the B & B at the harbour where some of our group stayed), tasting wonderful home-made brown bread with walnuts and sultanas.
We left for Clare Island, some nine miles from Turk, and found more breathtaking views there, when we reached the lighthouse. Along the way, we watched a girl shearing sheep and visited a house where Beth Moran spins yarn from local sheep's wool, and makes rugs, wall hangings and fabrics with it, trading as Ballytoughey Loom.
Clare Island is synonymous with the pirate queen, Grace O'Malley, and one of the interesting places on the island is the remains of a late 15th-century Cistercian Friary where, according to local legend, the remains of Grace O'Malley were interred. By late afternoon, sadly the ferry awaited us to take us back to the mainland.
Apart from the wonderful walks, the holiday is also worthwhile as a way of visiting the islands - some of those we visited do not have a daily service. I'm looking forward to returning.
The island-hopping trips start in April and finish in October. Contact Connemara Safari, Clifden, Co Galway. Tel: 095 21071 for details.