In 2020, we were scheduled for the Ireland/Northern Ireland tour. Due to COVID, it was cancelled. We are considering that tour for 2022 but are concerned about the political unrest in Northern Ireland. If the unrest continues into 2022, would Rick:
1, Cancel the tour
2.Continue with just the tour of the Irish Republic.
We really are interested in seeing the western side of Ireland.
Please advise.
Vicki
You'll be quite safe on an organized tour. As is the case with most places, pockets of civil unrest are quite localized and will be well know to the locals, ie your guide, who will keep you well clear of any potential problems.
Northern Ireland is beautiful and worth including in your itinerary.
Unless NI gets A LOT worse, it would be a perfectly safe place to go.
When we were in Istanbul many moons ago, there were protests happening in Taksim Square. Our guide told us to avoid that area and we did. The protests were very localized and we did not see any protests in Istanbul. I have been told by several guides over the years that our health and safety is their paramount concern. If there is unrest where you are going the tour will avoid that area like the plague.
I started a RS tour in Barcelona in 2019 while major civil unrest was happening a few blocks from our hotel. The guides were very careful to keep us clear of anything remotely risky. I'm signed up for the Ireland tour next spring and I hope things will be quiet in Belfast and elsewhere, but if not I'm sure the tour will be modified to minimize any risk to us. I can't imagine that the tour would be cancelled, and I doubt very much that it would skip Northern Ireland entirely. If your main interest is the western coast you shouldn't worry about it.
As already stated, your guide will steer you away from any danger. Most unrest would probably be in Derry or Belfast and be localized. Unless you’re watching the local news you may not even know anything is going on. On our trip to Ireland years ago, we wanted to stop in Derry, but because of a recent bombing, we just kept driving. We had no problem finding an alternative place to visit.
