Survfan

I will be leaving for Ireland next Saturday, July 23rd and will have 10 full days to tour. My flight will be arriving into Shannon Airport and we are renting a car from there here is what I have planned so far:
Sun 7/24 Arrive about 10 am in Shannon and drive to Doolin and have first night reserved at Bed and Breakfast. Will tour Cliffs of Moher and hit pubs at night.

Mon 7/25 leave Doolin in morning and drive to Galway visit and stay the night

Tues 7/26 off to Dublin stay at the Burlington hotel for the night hit Temple Bar

Wed 7/27 will spend the day in Dublin Book of Kells, Guinness Factory, tour area. Stay overnight at Burlington.

After Wednesday night I did not reserve any B&B or hotels. Do you all think I am crazy? i just wanted the freedom of having the car and didnt want to tie our selfs down if we found somthing we wanted to see. I have a friend from College who lives in Cork City where I was planning to make my way South by weekend. This is what I was thinking:

Thursday: head South of Dublin tour Glendalough and then stay the night in Kilkenny.

Friday: I wanted to tour the Rock of Cashel but didnt know if it made sense to stay 2 nights in Kilkenny and drive to Cashel and back to Kilkenny Friday night or stay somewhere around Cashel. This is where I need most help.

Saturday and Sunday night: I was planning on staying in Cork City near my friend and visiting the Blarney Stone, Cobh, maybe Kinsale,

Monday: Off to Dingle or should I stop for the night in Killarney. Our flight leaves Wednesday and everyone say's see Dingle.

Tuesday night I thought of staying in Limerick or somewhere closer to the airport.

Any suggestions I would love.


Thanks

John

Danna

In short... yes, I think you are crazy. In as much as you don't have a reservation for your last night. I want to know that I have a place to arrive and a place to leave from (from which to leave?) But that is just me.

We loved our stay in Dublin's Stephens on the Green guesthouse, well situated and very welcoming.

My Irish travels took us farther north, but it seems like you are really zooming around.

Good luck, and good travels!

janis

I think your route needs a bit of re-thinking. You are landing at Shannon, heading south, then north, then all the way across the country to Dublin, then SW to Kilkenny, then waaaaay SW to Cork, then west to Dingle, then back north near where you stayed the first night. You are to-ing and fro-ing too much.

Survfan

I actually just booked the last night in Bunratty. However, I am still very confused about what to do after I leave Dublin. I know that I want to to see Glendlough and stop in Kilkenny. My question was Do I stay in Kilkenny 2 nights. If I stay in Kilkenny two nights it means the first day I am driving from Dublin to Glendlough and then stay at Kilkenny for the night and explore. Then next day though I want to see the Rock of Cashel. However, do I go out to Cashel for the day and then drive back to Kilkenny or stay in Cashel for the night? Does driving back to Kilkenny make sense if my next destination after Kilkenny is County Cork? Is Cashel worh a visit? Please help. Thanks!

Survfan

Janis:

Upon arriving at Shannon we are not heading south and then North but North from the get go. So if you were to fine tune my plan what should I cut out. I know everyone says see Dingle but I dont think its going to work given my time. Maybe after Cork I should just desend North towards the airport for the last night. Janis what would you cut out given my route and don't say Dublin cause it is not an option! LOL

Thank you

Clifton

Cashel is very worth a visit, as is Cahir just south (and enroute, more or less, to Cork)

Personally, I'd probably stay in Cashel that night instead of backtracking to Kilkenny again. Others complain about packing and unpacking and one night stops. I can see their point, but backtracking even that short distance seems more a pain than taking some things out of a suitcase. Actually, I'm not that big a fan of Kilkenny as it turns out, so maybe that's coloring my view.

I don't usually dispute other's advice, but thought I'd say that I think Janis may have misread your itinerary. Shannon - Doolin - Galway - Dublin - Cork - Kilkenny/Cashel - Cork - Dingle - Shannon is about as close to a circle as you'll get. Mind you, it's a big circle and a hurried one. Do try to wander into small towns and villages as you move from city to city. There's a lot to be said for this side of Ireland. And Cobh and Kinsale make excellent day trips from Cork. Blarney... eh. The gardens are nice, the rest doesn't do much for me.

I don't think you can go wrong with either Killarney or Dingle for scenery or for crowds - Killarney more so for high season tourism, I hear. (We do off-season and even then there are fair numbers). I would, however, suggest one or the other for the tight time that you have. Both can absorb several days.

Good luck and all that...

Faux

I have stayed in Killarney and although it is full of tourists it is a lovely town with lots of places to eat and drink and also beautiful places to see, many accessible by foot. We stayed at a nice hotel in College Street in the centre of it all called the Arbutus Hotel (Arbutus is the strawberry tree) that has a really good bar called Buckleys where there is usually traditional Irish music (as opposed to the "Whisky in the Jar" type although it is possible you will get some of that) It's website is http://www.arbutuskillarney.com/

janis

Oh, Duh! Of course you are right. My eyes saw "Doolin" but for some reason my mind read "Dingle". (must be the 105F temps we're having here - my brain is fried) Anyway, that explains my south then north remark.

No, you have done a good plan for a circle tour. I think it will probably be too rushed, but not nearly as crazy as some we see on this board.

Clifton has given you terrific advice - and I'd pass on Blarney. There is just so much more that is more worth your limited time.

Jackie

You might want to think about reducing your time spent in cars as well as packing/unpacking by making your circle as small as possible by cutting out Galway and not backtracking after Cashel. I think Doolin is a good stop if you're going to the Cliffs, but it was my least favorite overnighter (pubs were packed,we couldn't get near them; didn't like the B&B nor the resturant we ate in).

In the interests of closing down your circle, I'd also skip Killarney and head to Dingle. I liked Killarney, but that extra drive between there and Dingle was a killer. I also think you need more time in anyone location to appreciate it.

Should tell you my comments are biased. I am doing a similar trip in the opposite direction; our paths will probably cross. Arrive in Shannon and onto Dingle, Kinsale, Cashel and fly out of Dublin--leaving the 25th!

travfirst

John,
You don’t need to stay at Kilkenny for the second night. We left Kilkenny around 1 pm, after visiting the castle, other attractions and couple of shops; then toured the Rock of Cashel; visited Cahir castle (just 15 min drive from the Rock) and arrived in Kinsale before dinner time. The drive from Kilkenny (via Rock and Cahir) to Cork area takes about 2.5 h, it probably will take you 2+h from Kilkenny to the Rock of Cashel and back.

We enjoyed our stay at Kilkenny Alcantra, http://homepage.eircom.net/~alcantra just 10-15 min walk from the city center.

Stay one night at Killarney area if you can. I enjoyed Kenmare, but staying in Killarney might give you more time to explore.
See if you need to purchase the Heritage Pass, you can buy it at the first sight you visit. For Euro20 it covers fees at Glendalough, Kilkenny castle, the Rock of Cashel, Cahir castle, Muckross House and many other locations http://62.73.177.39/en/HistoricSites/.
Have a wonderful time!

Survfan

Thank you for everyone who has replied to my post. I am getting very exicited as I leave one week from tonight. After reading some of your commentarys I am thinking about skipping Galway. Do you all think I am nuts? I am still planning on doing the first night in Doolin and instead of traveling North to Galway for the day/night and off to Dublin on Tuesday maybe we will drive from Doolin Monday and head towards Dublin and stop somewhere half way for Monday/night instead of doing Galway. Since we are doing Dublin/Cork we should have our urban fix. Can anyone recommend maybe a cool small city/town between Doolin and Dublin where we can stay on Monday night instead if we choose not to do Galway. Any suggestions would help.

Thanks you all!

cailin

The day you travel south of Dublin to Glendalough, you should also stop off at Powerscourt House & Gardens in Enniskerry. You would have time to do both in the one day.

rogerb

I recommend you drive straight thru Doolin to Dublin, giving you n extra night there - it is not a long distance, and the roads are pretty good - less than a 1/2 day journey.

I also recommend that you leave your car on Dublin outskirts - airport is a possibility and I'm sure there are others, then take a cab or public transit into city. Driving in the city is hectic at best, parking is a hassle, etc.

I ditto the Powerscourt recommendation!!

Have a great trip!