my3grlz

After 12 days in England, we will be flying to Dublin for four days before heading back to the US. We really want to experience the best of Ireland in our short stay. Any recommendations on where we should visit and stay within a few hours of Dublin Airport. We will be traveling with our 3 daughters ages 12, 16 and 19. One daughter is a flautist and loves Irish music and my husband loves pubs. I want to tour the beautiful countryside. Thanks for your help.

Tony2phones

I would not fly into Dublin.. Consider flying into Shannon and having 2 or 3 days in Galway on the west cost which will meet the music and Pubs requirement along with beautiful countryside.. Having spent 12 days in England you will have seen the likes of Dublin which is a Typical English built Edwardian/Victorian town and not atypical of Irish Ireland.

garyincary

I absolutely agree with Tony. I spent two weeks in Ireland, starting in Dublin, and ending up in Galway. For me, Galway and the area around Galway were the highlights of the trip. Even if you have to fly into Dublin, I would recommend that you drive go Galway, and fly out of Shannon. Galway makes a great base for seeing Connemara, which for me, was the most beautiful part of Ireland. Galway has traditional Irish music, pubs, shopping, and is also a university town, all of which should appeal to everyone in your family.

my3grlz

I know it's been a long time but I wanted to thank you for your responses. we had a family emergency and ended up postponing our trip. We are finally making the trip June 26th. We will be flying into Shannon thanks to the great advice on this forum.

Edward2005

I was not terribly impressed with Galway. Urban Ireland is best in Dublin and Belfast, whereas Galway seems like a less interesting, more cluttered version of either. If I return to Galway, it will be on the way to the Aran Islands.

My absolute favorite areas of Ireland are on the west coast at the Dingle peninsula and on the southwest coast at Kinsale.