Ancestry ProGenealogists launch Heritage Tours to Ireland, Italy, Germany and Sicily

With the first Heritage Tour successfully completed last October, and the second starting in just a few days, Ancestry's ProGenealogists have launched a new Heritage Tourism website channel. So far, the tours available include Germany, Sicily, Italy and Ireland. A genealogist is on hand throughout each tour.

Click/tap for Ancestry ProGenealogists Heritage Travel site

Two distinct Heritage Tours of Ireland have been designed. One starts in Dublin and takes in Cork, Kerry, Clare and Galway over 10 days (this is the tour starting this coming weekend), while the other heads from Belfast to Derry before picking up the Wild Atlantic Way through Donegal, Galway and Clare for 11 days.

Nine more tours of Ireland are planned, and taking bookings, for 2018 (starting in August, September, October) and 2019 (June, August, September). While the National Library of Ireland features as a group visit in Dublin, the travellers have free time to visit other archives wherever they are in Ireland.

Professional genealogist Kyle Betit, a founder of ProGenealogists and now managing the new travel programme, told Irish Genealogy News that the Heritage Tours aim to provide people with the 'walking in your ancestors' footsteps' experience. The journey starts long before the trip, with an Ancestry DNA test that analyzes the traveller's ethnic background, and a pre-trip family history review with a ProGenealogist expert.

"There are many options open to the client," says Kyle. "Their choices depends on their goals and existing knowledge. We want to help people know a more specific place of origin before they get to Ireland, to personalize the experience. We can do some research or make a list of next steps for them to carry out, or do in-depth analysis of their DNA results.

"If they already know the town or townland of origin, we can plan specifics places for them to visit in that place. Some travellers go the extra step of having us do an Ancestral Home Visit where a genealogist accompanies them to the home places and gives a personal guided tour."

To find out more about Ancestry's ProGenealogist Heritage Tours, click the image above.