When in Waterford, Ireland — like we were during our 14-day Celtic Explorer cruise on Holland America’s ms Prinsendam — the number one thing to do is to take the House of Waterford Crystal Factory Tour.
This very knowledgeable gentleman, pictured above, led our 1-hour tour.
The tour begins with a video tracing the history of Waterford Crystal from its beginning in 1793 in its namesake Irish city.
While there are many impressive things to see during the tour, we were most amazed in the blowing room, where you get an up-close view as craftsmen transform glowing balls of molten crystal into elegant shapes.
Blowing — we learned — is the best way to make a hollow in the crystal to hold water, wine, ice or anything else.
After blowing, the craftsman shapes the hot glass.
Another interesting part of the Waterford factory tour is the hand marking area, where the crystal is hand-marked to assist the Master Cutter in cutting the pattern onto the crystal.
While tour participants have to stay behind the yellow line, everyone gets an up-close view of each stage of the crystal-making process.
In the cutting department, master craftsmen use industrial diamond-tipped wheels to cut the crystal. The cutters have learned and memorized each pattern during their training years.
After cutting, the marker guidelines are removed during the cleaning process.
In this area, we saw some of the complicated planning that goes into the creation of each unique crystal piece, such as these awards for the People’s Choice Awards.
During the tour, we saw hundreds of examples of the vast variety of Waterford creations.
We also witnessed the last two stages in the creation of a piece of Waterford Crystal — the precision processes involving sculpting and engraving each piece of crystal.
The tour ends with a visit to the retail shop, where you’ll see the see the world’s largest display of Waterford Crystal.
Mr. Jones posed by the giant Waterford Crystal Bear on display.
While we did not make any purchases at the House of Waterford Crystal, the tour made us even more appreciative of the Waterford Crystal Millennium Collection “Love” Toasting Flutes 
You can book your House of Waterford Crystal Factory Tour here from Get Your Guide.
Have you visited Waterford, Ireland?
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We used this book to help plan our day in Waterford, as well as our days in other Irish ports:
DK Eyewitness Travel Guide Ireland
