Ireland: County Mayo
This tour is based in Westport, the charming county town of Mayo, in the middle of Ireland's west coast. From there we’ll make daily excursions to far-flung places such as Achill Island in the north and the edge of Connemara in County Galway to the south. Ruined abbeys, the castles of Mayo’s legendary Pirate Queen Grace O’Malley, and deserted-village timescapes all await.
Workshop Details
June 2-10, 2023 — Completed
This is an 8-night, 9-day workshop. Your adventure begins with an overnight flight on June 1. You’ll meet the group at Dublin Airport (DUB) on the morning of June 2, and you’ll be dropped at Dublin on the afternoon of June 10 in time for your flight home.
$6,295 (singles), $10,595 (couples) + applicable taxes. Register below.
Skill level
Open to all who have an understanding of the basic principles of photography and of their cameras.
Group size
10, with 2 instructors — 5:1 ratio
Workshop Leaders
Registration
This event has passed. Thanks for your interest!
| • Deposit of $1,295 for singles or $2,595 for a couple is required to reserve your spot on the tour. |
| • Balance of $5,000 for singles or $8,000 for a couple is due on March 5, 2023. —> Pay balance here. |
| • You may choose the “Pay in Full” ticket if you desire to pay all at once. |
| • Last day for a cancellation request is March 4, 2023 (see cancellation and refund policy). |
| • The tour fee does not include airfare to Shannon, or meals other than breakfasts. |
The County Mayo Experience
County Mayo is just north of Galway on Ireland's west coast. Mayo is not as busy as the better known parts of the west coast further south, but it has everything a photographer could ask for. Dramatic landscapes of rolling hills criss-crossed with ancient stone walls, seascapes of the beautiful Clew Bay dotted with dozens of islands, ruined abbeys with churchyards filled with Celtic crosses, tiny villages, and even a few castles that once belonged to Mayo’s notorious Pirate Queen.
Each day (and night) will be an adventure. We’ll make excursions in different directions each day to explore and photograph different aspects of the Irish landscape and culture. We’ll choose from a wide range of locations and subject matter based on the group’s interests, with an eye to the ever-changing weather.
A typical day begins with a late breakfast at our hotel, and then setting out to explore an area with both a planned itinerary as well as unscheduled stops as things catch our attention. Most evenings we’ll have dinner back in Westport, with some downtime to refresh and regroup before heading back out to photograph. If there’s a rainy night, or we don’t feel like photographing, Westport has a lively pub scene with traditional music sessions every evening.
For those wishing to stretch their legs or spread their wings a bit, Lance will lead a walk up to the top of Croagh Patrick, Ireland’s holy mountain, where St Patrick is said to have fasted for 40 days and 40 nights. It’s just one stage of a three-part pilgrimage made by many Irish Catholics every year in July in what’s known as “Reek Sunday.”
The perfectly pyramid-shaped reek is just over 2,500 feet high, and climbing the last 500 feet takes as long as the first 2,000 due to the sudden increase in pitch and loose quartzite at the top. It’s well worth the effort, but the reek can also be enjoyed from sea level, as it’s visible from miles around in all directions.
Tim will lead those who defer on a gentler adventure, and the two groups will meet up later to share tales of the day.
One day will be spent circumnavigating Achill Island, in the lonely northwest corner of County Mayo, with its dramatic sea cliffs, quiet villages, historic archeological sites and the blue flag beach at Keem Bay.
Another day will be spent following the coast south past Barnabawn and the Silver Strand to the Lost Valley, where we will have a guided walking tour by a member of the Bourke family, who have farmed the land there for over 3 centuries.
There’s just so much to see and do–Mayo really is a cornucopia of opportunities.
What You Should Know
Participants must have at least basic photo skills, know their cameras well, and be comfortable shooting RAW in manual mode with a DSLR or high-end mirrorless camera.
Like most of our Voyager Series tours, this trip is well-suited for couples, even if one partner isn’t a photographer. The days and nights are full of photographic opportunities, but the days are so rich with cultural, historical and natural experiences that there’s something for everyone.
Every day and night will be filled with activities, but there’s always the option to take a day off and spend it in town, or a night off to hear some music in the pubs, or even just to take a break.
Tim and Lance will always be ready to answer your photography questions, or to help you in the field with techniques or composition tips. You can make what you will of our photographic locations, whether you are a casual photographer or a professional on a mission to develop a portfolio of Irish images.
We generally spend a minimum of an hour and as much as 3 or 4 hours at each location, so you’ll never feel rushed.
If you would like to attend this tour but are unsure whether you have adequate night photography skills, we can offer pre-workshop tutoring to get you ready for your adventure with us. Alternatively or additionally, a few of us have written books that may be productive pre-workshop reads.
What You Will Learn
As this is a photo tour rather than a workshop, the emphasis will be on getting participants to great locations with great light, and making sure that everyone has the trip of a lifetime. We figure that you don’t travel to Ireland very often, and you wouldn’t want to spend your time in a classroom. As with most of our international tours, we will not be offering formal lessons or image reviews, but rather assistance as needed in the field. We’ll be photographing day and night.
That said, we do encourage you to think about and set goals for the trip.
WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO GAIN FROM THIS EXPERIENCE?
great images?
lasting memories?
a break from the work-a-day stresses?
learn some new photography skills?
learn about the history and culture of Ireland?
all of the above?
The instructors will be available for one-on-one guidance in the field. We’ll be glad to review your images with you during quieter moments, but there won’t be formal group image-review sessions.
Night Conditions
Logistics & General Info
Travel
Your adventure begins with an overnight flight from North America on June 1. You’ll meet the group at Dublin Airport (DUB) on the morning of June 2, and we’ll drive together to Westport, our base for the week.
If you arrive early, plan to stay at the Maldron Hotel on the airport grounds. We’ll get you back to Dublin in time for the afternoon flights on June 10. Westport is about a 2.5-hour drive from the airport. Exact pickup and drop-off times will be announced once flight schedules are published.
Lodging & Food
We’ll spend all 8 nights at the Westport Plaza Hotel, a comfortable, 4-star hotel convenient to town but just outside of the busy center. Breakfasts are included each day, but except for a welcome dinner on the first night, other meals are not included in the cost of the trip.
We’ll have some meals together as a group, and others on our own, based on each day’s schedule and where we find ourselves. Westport has a huge variety of restaurants catering to all tastes.
Weather
Expect temperatures ranging from 50 to 65 F day and night. There will be sunny spells and spotty showers. It might rain a lot. It might not rain at all.
Recommended Attire
Comfortable, layered clothing (including waterproof top and bottoms) is essential.
A sweatshirt and medium-weight jacket will be useful, and a base layer might not be a waste of packing space. Layers are good.
Comfortable and waterproof shoes are recommended for getting around. There won’t be long hikes (other than the optional climb of Craogh Patrick), but we will be on trails, so quality trails shoes or hiking boots would be optimal. We’ll be outside, all day, in nature.
Exertion Level
The exertion level of this workshop is Easy, with Moderate optional. (See more about our classifications.)
No vigorous activity will be required during the workshop, but please consider your physical abilities prior to registering.
You will have the opportunity to climb the “Reek,” formally known as Croagh Patrick, Ireland's holy mountain. Thousands of Irish do it barefoot each year on the last Sunday in July, so you can do it if you want to. It takes about 2 hours to get up and 1.5 hours to get down. A pint of Guinness awaits at Campbell’s pub at the bottom. They’ll even lend you a walking stick to make sure you stop in for that pint when you finish.
We will also be traipsing around cemeteries in the dark, so be prepared to carry your gear over uneven ground at night.
Most locations are relatively close to our parking spots, but there will be opportunities to get in your 10,000 steps if you’d like.
Considerations
Please read our FAQs section for more information about skill and gear requirements, and other information that pertains to all our workshops.
If you have questions, please contact us—we're happy to talk it over with you.
2 Decades Later, a Return …
“The radio was turned off, the TV was never turned on, and back then we didn’t have international plans on our primitive cell phones.”
When I moved from San Francisco to Massachusetts in 1998, my colleague and friend Tim Baskerville introduced me to his friend and longtime workshop and tour leader Ron Rosenstock, who also lives in Massachusetts. I was just getting started with my teaching career, and Ron was very generous with his time and advice. Ron owned a house in County Mayo that he had purchased specifically to use for photo tours, and he invited me to bring a group to Ireland and base it at Hillcrest House. Let’s just say that I was game for it.
My first international photo tour was scheduled for October 2001. Let that sink in for a second. Less than a month after 9/11. Nonstop news about the attacks, fear of travel, and the uncertainty of whether or not we’d even be able to go made for a very anxious few weeks leading up to our departure date.
Fortunately the stars aligned, and we were delivered to the very capable hands of our local guide, Olcan Masterson. He picked us up at the airport, and we were off on a new adventure.
The radio was turned off, the TV was never turned on, and back then we didn’t have international plans on our primitive cell phones. Olcan took us around to many of his favorite places in Mayo with a keen understanding of what photographers were interested in.
It was a really great trip, and the time in a new environment, away from the 24-hour news coverage was exactly what we needed at that moment.
Here we are 21 years later. I’ve developed and led trips to many destinations, but I’m truly excited to bring a group back to Ireland for the first time since 2009. Whether you’re wanting to visit your family’s ancestral home, are just intrigued by all things Celtic, or just want to have a pint of Guinness in an authentic Irish pub, I hope you’ll join Tim and me on this journey to Ireland’s west coast.
