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Advice for Traveling to Ireland
Advice for Traveling to Ireland
Hi everyone!
I'm in the beginning planning stages for a trip to Ireland next year and, therefore, am asking the standard questions:
What's the best city to fly into? (Will be flying out of Denver.)
I'm not really into the "stay in one hotel downtown the entire trip" thing, so any advice on some city hopping (I'd even be willing to get a rental car-- signs are all in English, right?!
) would be great.
Like the standard new traveler, I'm open to any and all suggestions and advice.
Thanks, all!
I'm in the beginning planning stages for a trip to Ireland next year and, therefore, am asking the standard questions:
What's the best city to fly into? (Will be flying out of Denver.)
I'm not really into the "stay in one hotel downtown the entire trip" thing, so any advice on some city hopping (I'd even be willing to get a rental car-- signs are all in English, right?!
) would be great.Like the standard new traveler, I'm open to any and all suggestions and advice.
Thanks, all!
I like the Rick Steves guides for cultural attractions and the Lonely Planet guides for out of the way and less expensive attractions.
Consider tying this in with a short visit to London, if you've never been. The discount airlines from London to the Irish cities are silly cheap. But, London can be silly expensive.
Cheers, RickG
Consider tying this in with a short visit to London, if you've never been. The discount airlines from London to the Irish cities are silly cheap. But, London can be silly expensive.
Cheers, RickG
S/V Echoes - Coral Bay - St. John, VI
Hi! We went to Ireland in 2003 (had a fantastic time!). We flew into Shannon, rented a car and drove along the south coast, staying in various B&B's along the way. Ended in Dublin, and then flew out of there to come home.
We met some wonderful people in our travels from town to town (Adare, Tralee, Dingle, Kilarney, Cork, Waterford, Kilkenny, etc etc). A completely different experience than flying into Dublin and staying in a hotel for a week, that's for sure!
We met some wonderful people in our travels from town to town (Adare, Tralee, Dingle, Kilarney, Cork, Waterford, Kilkenny, etc etc). A completely different experience than flying into Dublin and staying in a hotel for a week, that's for sure!
LMG, we did it just the way Canuck did on a couple of visits. Flew into Shannon, rented a car then spent the night in the charming village of Adare to catch our breath. Then we continued south to the Killarney Lakes then on to the Dingle Peninsula (Ryan's Daughter was filmed there)...just spectacular! Since you are an old STJ pro, the switchbacks won't scare you to death like they did to me in our pre STJ days.
I still dream about those oysters poached in warm Guiness sauce on garlic pumpernickle toast points at Doyle's Seafood Restaurant in Dingle. Most delicious thing I've tasted in my life this far. We continued to the southwest coast and then east on the southern coast to Kinsale, the gourmet capital of the country. You'll hear people make fun of Irish food but don't you believe it. Some of the best chefs in the world vacation in Kinsale because of its concentration of great restaurants. The fact that it is an impossibly charming seaside village is icing on the cake. We too, then drove east and up the east coast through Waterford, the Wicklow mountains (You'll begin to wonder if those fairy and leprechaun stories are real, it's that pretty) and on to Dublin. There wasn't an inch of that country I didn't love. I hope you have a ball!
I still dream about those oysters poached in warm Guiness sauce on garlic pumpernickle toast points at Doyle's Seafood Restaurant in Dingle. Most delicious thing I've tasted in my life this far. We continued to the southwest coast and then east on the southern coast to Kinsale, the gourmet capital of the country. You'll hear people make fun of Irish food but don't you believe it. Some of the best chefs in the world vacation in Kinsale because of its concentration of great restaurants. The fact that it is an impossibly charming seaside village is icing on the cake. We too, then drove east and up the east coast through Waterford, the Wicklow mountains (You'll begin to wonder if those fairy and leprechaun stories are real, it's that pretty) and on to Dublin. There wasn't an inch of that country I didn't love. I hope you have a ball!
Last edited by Agent99 on Wed Mar 12, 2008 7:26 pm, edited 2 times in total.
LMG-
I agree with Canuck and Agent 99...we flew into Shannon, rented a car and off we went! To me each city had its own charm...the Dingle Pensinsula is absolutely gorgeous!! Far and Away with Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman was also filmed there....
Also, Irish babies are the most beautiful babies I have ever seen...must be all those potatoes (or Guiness
)
Whatever you decide, have a wonderful time!
I agree with Canuck and Agent 99...we flew into Shannon, rented a car and off we went! To me each city had its own charm...the Dingle Pensinsula is absolutely gorgeous!! Far and Away with Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman was also filmed there....
Also, Irish babies are the most beautiful babies I have ever seen...must be all those potatoes (or Guiness
)Whatever you decide, have a wonderful time!
Hi,
I used to live in Ireland and that is where my husband is from. Have literally been all over, and I can second the idea of a trip that includes the west--which is absolutely stunning and full of wonderful people. Fly into Shannon--rent a car, tour the west, one place is more beautiful than the next....everyone does the Ring of Kerry. Do the Ring of Beara --- even more beautiful and you'll have it all to yourself.
Then drive to Dublin to see a bit of this wonderful city. You can fly out from there.
I used to live in Ireland and that is where my husband is from. Have literally been all over, and I can second the idea of a trip that includes the west--which is absolutely stunning and full of wonderful people. Fly into Shannon--rent a car, tour the west, one place is more beautiful than the next....everyone does the Ring of Kerry. Do the Ring of Beara --- even more beautiful and you'll have it all to yourself.
Then drive to Dublin to see a bit of this wonderful city. You can fly out from there.
I guess this will also be a kind of repeating advice. We have been to Ireland five times, and always travel with rental car. Never stayed in the same place for long. There are wonderful B&B and farmstays on the way.
Our favorite part is also the west coast or south coast. Have been from Cork in the south around the coast all the way up to Connemara. Hard to say what you like the best, but Killarney is a beautiful area, with lots of lakes and mountains.
If you play golf, Ireland is full of wonderful, inexpensive courses and they are welcoming guests almost everywhere (maybe not the championship courses but there are so many others).
Last time we were there (2005) I felt that the prices had raised a bit, from the earlier visits. Still worth going absolutely.
Ireland has in my opinion much better food than the UK.
For sure one of our favorite countries in Europe.
Our favorite part is also the west coast or south coast. Have been from Cork in the south around the coast all the way up to Connemara. Hard to say what you like the best, but Killarney is a beautiful area, with lots of lakes and mountains.
If you play golf, Ireland is full of wonderful, inexpensive courses and they are welcoming guests almost everywhere (maybe not the championship courses but there are so many others).
Last time we were there (2005) I felt that the prices had raised a bit, from the earlier visits. Still worth going absolutely.
Ireland has in my opinion much better food than the UK.
For sure one of our favorite countries in Europe.
One more thing: you know how when you are driving back from the East End and at one point, you are climbing the steepest hill and if you look over your right shoulder, the beauty of the angled sea and hills of Tortola takes your breath away?
Ireland has that same kind of non-stop beauty. Just different colors...
Ireland has that same kind of non-stop beauty. Just different colors...
-
Kathyzhere
- Posts: 527
- Joined: Thu Dec 27, 2007 5:04 pm
- Location: Cape Cod & SW FL
Hey there LMG,
How exciting...the emerald isle! Hubs and I visited in July of '98. My 1st visit and his 2nd or 3rd. Anyway we flew Boston-Shannon and rented a car. Stayed in Killarney and did the Ring of Kerry over the week we were there. I absolutely LOVED it...so green and ruggedly beautiful!! The pub and traditional music scene was great.
I guess depending on which part of Ireland you want to visit would be the deteremining factor for your choice in airport. If you do the SW corner hike the Gap of Dunloe, visit the fishing village of Dingle, Muckross House, Cliffs of Mohr, etc. Maybe a boat over to the Aran islands where Gaelic is mostly spoken. Even kissed the Blarney stone Even AFTER they told us what the the Italians do to it after dark!!! 
Of course they were joking.
In some areas you may smell the bricks of peat burning. I loved that smell and actually brought some home with me for the fireplace, but it really didn't have the same effect on me then.
You're lucky to be planning this trip. I have vowed to return and next time will probably go for at least 10 days.
Anyway, enjoy your planning and you're going to LOVE it...guaranteed.
How exciting...the emerald isle! Hubs and I visited in July of '98. My 1st visit and his 2nd or 3rd. Anyway we flew Boston-Shannon and rented a car. Stayed in Killarney and did the Ring of Kerry over the week we were there. I absolutely LOVED it...so green and ruggedly beautiful!! The pub and traditional music scene was great.
I guess depending on which part of Ireland you want to visit would be the deteremining factor for your choice in airport. If you do the SW corner hike the Gap of Dunloe, visit the fishing village of Dingle, Muckross House, Cliffs of Mohr, etc. Maybe a boat over to the Aran islands where Gaelic is mostly spoken. Even kissed the Blarney stone
Even AFTER they told us what the the Italians do to it after dark!!! Of course they were joking.In some areas you may smell the bricks of peat burning. I loved that smell and actually brought some home with me for the fireplace, but it really didn't have the same effect on me then.
You're lucky to be planning this trip. I have vowed to return and next time will probably go for at least 10 days.
Anyway, enjoy your planning and you're going to LOVE it...guaranteed.
Hi – enjoy your planning. I would so love to return.
My first trip to Ireland was back in the 80’s with my Irish mom. Neither my Sicilian husband nor my German father was interested in what they thought was going to be a nostalgic trip to the old sod so off we went on our own. We flew into Dublin, spent a couple of days at Jury’s, shopped Dublin, met my cousins who had a businesses in Co. Wicklow and lived in Brittas Bay and then we took off on two CIE tours back to back – one of the south and one of the west all the way up to Donegal where my mother’s people are from. My mother was born there and then the family left for America when she was three so being first generation here this was a pretty emotional trip for her. We didn’t get to spend much time in Donegal but it was great to meet some cousins and some shirt-tail relations (I never understood where that phrase came from but I know that it means distant cousins – lol). CIE then took us into Northern Ireland as there was a postal strike on in the south and we were unable to mail out postcards. We crossed into Co. Armagh where we saw first hand what was going on up there at that time. What we saw there was quite enough - I'm glad we never made it to Belfast. The British soldiers boarded our tour bus and were quite nasty to us Yanks. Then, since we were already up there, the tour took us to Tyrone to see the Ulster American Folk Park, home of Thomas Mellon – interesting and very pretty but there was a pall on the day for everyone on that tour bus. Right before we left home I had finally succeeded in talking Mom into a couple of days in London at the back end of our trip for a shopping spree but after that experience in Armagh, London was out of the question – she’d swim home before she’d give the Brits 1p - lol. I came home after three weeks and she stayed to travel back to Donegal by train to spend more time with relatives. As there was also a fuel strike going at the time we were glad to have been touring with CIE as it was very difficult to get gas. We had rented a car but canceled it when we saw the effects of the strike. BTW, they were also striking McDonalds at that time, due to low starting wages so a Big Mac at the Dublin airport was totally out of the question. Lots of strikes on at that time – lol.
The second trip in 2001 my husband went along as his sister’s family was organizing the trip. We stayed at Adare Manor in Clare which was quite posh and had activities. I did get them all out to the Burren and to the Cliffs of Moher but, other than a medieval castle banquet that was about it – we all languished in luxury at Adare, which was absolutely gorgeous. I agree with another poster about the food. There are several culinary schools in Ireland, the students apprentice at the various accommodations and the cuisine was quite even good back then. Now, with the coming of the Celtic Tiger, Ireland is getting more and more renowned for cuisine as it is attracting high level chefs. There is a demand and the money to hire the best.
What I would love to do if we ever get to return is to rent a self-catering thatched cottage near Galway, base there, and drive around at our own pace. I think that would be wonderful and I would take my husband to all of the beautiful places I saw on those two tours but where we could not spend enough time.
Have a wonderful time planning and going – there’s an old country song (Johnny Cash?) about 40 shades of green and I heard it but I just didn’t get it until I looked out the window of the plane and saw the fields. The place is just mystical. My grandmother used to talk about the fairies and wee people she saw dancing around the fire. We all put that down to too much potcheen but once I was there I could sort of understand the whole thing – it kind of takes you in. STJ was formed from volcanos but Ireland was formed from the glaciers and the rock formations are unbelievable – you’d think that giants caused some of what you will see – what else could construct such things? If, in your travels, you come across the opportunity of an entertainment that includes a genuine Shanachie ( Irish story teller), avail yourself of the opportunity (as they say there), have a couple of drams of Paddy’s or Jameson’s, sit back, enjoy the tales, and soon you might be seeing the wee people, too. I think it’s kind of like seeing the green flash – the more you have on board the better your chances of seeing…
My first trip to Ireland was back in the 80’s with my Irish mom. Neither my Sicilian husband nor my German father was interested in what they thought was going to be a nostalgic trip to the old sod so off we went on our own. We flew into Dublin, spent a couple of days at Jury’s, shopped Dublin, met my cousins who had a businesses in Co. Wicklow and lived in Brittas Bay and then we took off on two CIE tours back to back – one of the south and one of the west all the way up to Donegal where my mother’s people are from. My mother was born there and then the family left for America when she was three so being first generation here this was a pretty emotional trip for her. We didn’t get to spend much time in Donegal but it was great to meet some cousins and some shirt-tail relations (I never understood where that phrase came from but I know that it means distant cousins – lol). CIE then took us into Northern Ireland as there was a postal strike on in the south and we were unable to mail out postcards. We crossed into Co. Armagh where we saw first hand what was going on up there at that time. What we saw there was quite enough - I'm glad we never made it to Belfast. The British soldiers boarded our tour bus and were quite nasty to us Yanks. Then, since we were already up there, the tour took us to Tyrone to see the Ulster American Folk Park, home of Thomas Mellon – interesting and very pretty but there was a pall on the day for everyone on that tour bus. Right before we left home I had finally succeeded in talking Mom into a couple of days in London at the back end of our trip for a shopping spree but after that experience in Armagh, London was out of the question – she’d swim home before she’d give the Brits 1p - lol. I came home after three weeks and she stayed to travel back to Donegal by train to spend more time with relatives. As there was also a fuel strike going at the time we were glad to have been touring with CIE as it was very difficult to get gas. We had rented a car but canceled it when we saw the effects of the strike. BTW, they were also striking McDonalds at that time, due to low starting wages so a Big Mac at the Dublin airport was totally out of the question. Lots of strikes on at that time – lol.
The second trip in 2001 my husband went along as his sister’s family was organizing the trip. We stayed at Adare Manor in Clare which was quite posh and had activities. I did get them all out to the Burren and to the Cliffs of Moher but, other than a medieval castle banquet that was about it – we all languished in luxury at Adare, which was absolutely gorgeous. I agree with another poster about the food. There are several culinary schools in Ireland, the students apprentice at the various accommodations and the cuisine was quite even good back then. Now, with the coming of the Celtic Tiger, Ireland is getting more and more renowned for cuisine as it is attracting high level chefs. There is a demand and the money to hire the best.
What I would love to do if we ever get to return is to rent a self-catering thatched cottage near Galway, base there, and drive around at our own pace. I think that would be wonderful and I would take my husband to all of the beautiful places I saw on those two tours but where we could not spend enough time.
Have a wonderful time planning and going – there’s an old country song (Johnny Cash?) about 40 shades of green and I heard it but I just didn’t get it until I looked out the window of the plane and saw the fields. The place is just mystical. My grandmother used to talk about the fairies and wee people she saw dancing around the fire. We all put that down to too much potcheen but once I was there I could sort of understand the whole thing – it kind of takes you in. STJ was formed from volcanos but Ireland was formed from the glaciers and the rock formations are unbelievable – you’d think that giants caused some of what you will see – what else could construct such things? If, in your travels, you come across the opportunity of an entertainment that includes a genuine Shanachie ( Irish story teller), avail yourself of the opportunity (as they say there), have a couple of drams of Paddy’s or Jameson’s, sit back, enjoy the tales, and soon you might be seeing the wee people, too. I think it’s kind of like seeing the green flash – the more you have on board the better your chances of seeing…
We flew into Shannon, rented a car and headed north up the west coast. Dublin is supposed to be a great city to visit, but we were more interested in small villages. Our first night was in Doolin, which is a center of traditional Irish music. We thought to go out to the Aran islands, but the weather was a bit rough. We then spent time in the Burren and headed for Galway. But when we reached Galway, we realized that we really wanted to spend our time in rural Ireland rather than in a city and kept going. We stayed at B&Bs, sometimes one night, occasionally two. We had no real plan. At some point we turned around and worked our way back towards Shannon. We used the Lonely Planet's Ireland guidebook and it served us well. We found some wonderful pubs and heard some wonderful music every night.
We'll go again one of these years. Maybe we'll fly into Shannon again, but this time make our way south and get to Dingle. We'd definitely travel the same style---rent a car and stay at B&Bs.
We'll go again one of these years. Maybe we'll fly into Shannon again, but this time make our way south and get to Dingle. We'd definitely travel the same style---rent a car and stay at B&Bs.