Céad Míle Fáilte to dtí Carpe Diem Tours

Welcome to Carpe Diem Tours

Carpe Diem Tours is a unique tour company specialising in cultural tours and pilgrimages since 2007. We cater for the tourist who wants to get behind the scenes when they visit a destination, meet local people and experience the local culture. Some of our local tours visit Irish speaking or Gaeltacht areas in Ireland where Gaeilge or Irish is the everyday language. Beidh seans agat Gaeilge a chlos is a labhairt m’ás mian leat.

'Men build their dreams as they build their circle of friends.
God is in the bits and pieces of Everyday.
A kiss here and a laugh again, and sometimes tears,
a pearl necklace around the neck of poverty.’
- Patrick Kavanagh (from the Great Hunger)

We wish to advise that any decisions regarding our tours will be taken in accordance with official government guidelines as the safety of our pilgrims and cultural tourists is paramount.

Our trip of a lifetime to the Holy Land is taking place May 23 - Jun 2 2022.

Our annual pilgrimage to Skellig Michael, Co. Kerry will be taking place in September 2021.

Our weekend tour to the majestic Dingle Peninsula including a trip to visit An Blascaod Mór has also been rescheduled to 2022. We hope to announce the rescheduled tour dates as soon as possible to this magnificent Gaelic-speaking part of Ireland.

'Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine' is an old Irish saying meaning 'In the shadow of each other, people live'. In essence, we rely on one another for support; people need one another. We sometimes lose sight of this with the hustle and bustle of modern day life. In these times, this saying is eerily prescient as we witness great kindness and community spirit in our battle against Covid-19.

We at Carpe Diem Tours hope everyone is keeping safe and well in these very uncertain times. We look forward to brighter days when we can once again gather and enjoy diverse cultural experiences together; laughing, praying, singing and reflecting on these strange and difficult times.

Beir bua is beannacht,

Mícheál de Barra
Tour Director

Tá Carpe Diem Tours lonnaithe i mBaile an Fheirtéaraigh, sráidbhaile gleoite i gceartlár na gaeltachta in iarthar Chiarraí. Tugaimíd cuairteanna mórthimpeall na háite seo gach bliain. ‘Sé buachphointe an turais do ghach einne ná cuairt a thabhairt ar an mBlascaod Mór. Mar an gcéanna an turas to dtí Sceilig Mhichíl. Is breá linn Gaeltachtaí na h-Eireann a thaispeáint d’ár turasóirí, go mór mór turasóirí ó thíortha thar lear.

Bespoke Cultural Tours of Ireland

As well as booking one of our scheduled tours, Carpe Diem Tours would be delighted to design with you your bespoke cultural tour of Ireland which may extend to a week or ten days and which will begin as soon as you arrive at your Irish airport. We have had several groups from Canada who availed of this facility.

Contact Mícheál for further details.

What our Pilgrims Say...

Mícheál, you are amazing. Words cannot express our gratitude for all you have done to make this trip a trip of a lifetime for everyone. We've had a fantastic learning experience. Thank you for your insights and guidance. I hope we have many more opportunities to meet and it has been so wonderful sharing your culture with you. Tiniki come to Saskatoon and we will introduce you to our Cree Culture and hospitality and laughter. Jennifer, Bill, Vicky & Wanda 2017

The trip to the Holy Land was exceptional in every way, the attention to detail was profound. I felt very accepted, minded and safe all the time. It was most prayerful and the little Red Prayer Book is a lovely keepsake, together with Fr John’s handouts. I would love a copy of the DVD. It would be lovely to play around Christmas, to remember the glorious weather and think of good memories. Gemma 2016

The highlights for me were: having Mass and being able to take Holy Communion in amazing places, such as the cave where Jesus was born in Bethlehem; in the open air on the Mount of Beatitudes with the birds singing including the colonizing yellow canaries; ascending Mount Tabor by taxi; being in the boat on the Sea of Galilee. Our bus driver and our tour guide, Nimrod, were fantastic and so helpful they became our friends throughout the whole trip. Fr John prepared for us and gave us each day wonderful notes for each day ahead. This was most generous of him and greatly appreciated by everyone. Thank you Mícheál, for arranging this wonderful experience. Aideen 2016

Read more Pilgrim's Stories