trajeang

My husband & I are in the midst of planning our first trip to Ireland. We decided at the last minute to go for a week at the end of Aug (to escape Repub convention in NYC).

We've only got a week, so we're trying to keep a reasonable itinerary without too much non-stop driving (we battle NYC commuter traffic every day, so while we want to see beautiful countryside, we don't relish hours & hours behind the wheel).

Here's our basic itinerary. Thanks for any comments or suggestions on places to stay or "don't miss" sights to see:

Sat AM -- arrive in Dublin, staying at Westbury Hotel
Sun - Dublin exploring
Mon - Drive to Westmeath (where husband has family roots). Staying at Hodson Bay Hotel 2 nights
Tues -- Westmeath & Offaly exploring
Wed - Drive to Galway and/or Connemara - ANY SUGGESTIONS FOR GOOD HOTELS? (i sent email to Ballynahinch to try and stay 1 night)
Thurs -- Galway
Fri -- Galway. Maybe drive to Cliffs of Mohr?
Sat -- Drive to Limerick/Shannon area? BEST THINGS TO SEE? SUGGESTION FOR GOOD HOTEL TO STAY RELATIVELY CLOSE TO SHANNON AIRPORT?
Sun - Fly 9 AM out of SHannon

Thanks for any input.

merrittm

You are trying to do too much, especailly if you are doing your own driving. What they don't tell you is that the rock walls are as tall as the little cars, so if you want to see something, you have to stop anyway. Also, Dublin deserves more than a day.

buongiorno

You may be trying to do too much. You may want to consideer doing Dublin on another trip. Nonetheless, we stayed at the Westwood House Hotel in Galway in May and it was very nice. Remember, all the stuff you want to see, the Connemara, Cliff of Mohr, etc. will be crowded at the time of year you're going so you'll spend time in traffic getting to them. That being said, they are well worth the effort. Have a Guiness for me.

jbmonts

The Cliffs of Moher were lovely and well worth it. We were there in July and saw a streaker on the Cliffs. Hmmm. Not what I thought I would see but....I kinda liked Lahinch, too. Nice little town. I,too would save Dublin for another time, but we are more of an adventureous bunch and prefer the Irish landscape and small towns, but thats just us.
I hope your weather is great while you are there, ours was fantastic and we got to see sooo much, I wouldn't change anything we did other than the 2 days in Dublin.
PS, I drank the cider instead of the guiness and it wasn't too bad.

trajeang

Thanks for all your comments. Problem is, we already made our flight arrangements -- into Dublin, out of Shannon (thinking it was better not to back-track). We're two days in Dublin for sure. 2 days in Westmeath for sure. 3 days are up for grabs. Need to spend our final night near Shannon, since we fly out in the early AM.

should we forget Galway and/or Connemara?

allisonm

I guess I am the dissenting vote here. I think this is very doable, but then we tend to cover a lot of territory when we are in Ireland. You have some good bases for exploration and a couple of days in each area. You could drive through Connemara on Thursday or Friday. Save the cliffs for your Saturday drive down toward Shannon, take the coastal route. I can't recommend any hotels since we stay in B&Bs exclusively. (Well, by accident and good fortune, we once stayed in a lovely hotel in Cork!)

Itallian_Chauffer

I too, think your plan is doable. There will be a fair amount of driving, but nothing at all like what you are used to. Think of liesurely tooling along at 25-40 MPH, with some of the most incredible scenery you can imagine...
You are ignoring Cork and Kerry, so you should be able to spend a reasonable amount of time with what you have narrowed yourself down to.
The Jury's Inn in Galway would be a good choice to park and walk to most of the 'attractions' -- Spanish Arch, Quays Pub, the Spanish Quarter, etc.
In Corrandula (just north east of Galway Town) is Cregg Castle (actually a fortified Manor House), which is definitely worth a night, though a little pricey (I would guess about 50-55 Euro per person, sharing PPS).
Drive out to Kylemore, then continue on to Lenane, turning off there for Delphi and Louisberg, past Doo Lough. You will end up in Westport (Matt Malloy's Pub)and then return to Galway, or spend the night.
You really do need to see the Burren and the Cliffs of Moher and should stop off in Doolin at Gus O'Connor's Pub.
Other than the Jury's in Galway Town, we are B&B people, so can't make any recommendations on lodging except as noted. Irish B&B are NOTHING like U.S. B&Bs, though, and really should be experienced.

pnestor

Itallian_Chauffer

When you say that Irish B&Bs are nothing like US B&Bs can I ask as an Irish man planning on making a trip to the US next summer, is that a good thing or bad thing???

P

trajeang

I can't speak for all B&Bs in the U.S. but we I had a bad experience last winter at one on Long Island. The house itself was clean and nicely decorated -- nice bedlinens & whatnot. But there was no heat in the room...and it was January! The hostess was very kooky and seemed to disappear when we needed her and not leave us alone when we wanted some privacy. I absolutely know that this is the exception, not the rule!! But we're newlyweds and my husband hasn't traveled extensively -- so he's not anxious to test the waters with B&Bs again. Although I know it's a special experience in Ireland, we'll stay in hotels on this trip. My secret plan is that we'll have such a great time and meet wonderful, friendly people that he'll be convinced to consider B&Bs on our next trip!

trajeang

and most importantly, THANK YOU everyone, for your advice!

wojazz3

Hi trajeang:

I'm actually surprised that someone would say this is too much. Certainly you could slow down some, but this is very doable.

Italians suggestions are very good and I'll second the Cregg Castle stay, though I believe it's up to about E70 pps per night. It's a great place to stay though reservations at this point could be a challenge. If you want something out of the ordinary, try Cregg. The owners are musicians and they give nightly concerts in the great room. http://www.creggcastle.com

Oh, and ask Anne Marie if the drum patch is working out. She'll know you've talked to me.

I also second the B&B experience. I much prefer that to Hotels which are more expensive and not as personal. To pnestor's question, though I have not used B&Bs in the States, my understanding is that they are usually more expensive than hotels. My only US experience was in Texas for my niece's wedding and I don't have any terribly interesting memories of it.

Have fun and let us know how it went! Your only a few weeks away.

Bill

strass

I would scrap Galway and try to see Dingle and the Dingle Peninsula instead. It's a much smaller town than Galway, and it's beautiful--lots of fun pubs, right on the ocean, etc. The scenery on the peninsula is just amazing. We live in Chicago, so I understand about trying to escape city life for awhile--you'll already have been in Dublin; I'd aim for smaller towns the rest of your trip. Dingle was our favorite spot during our two-week trip to Ireland.

Have fun planning!

Ann41

Connemara can hold its own with Dingle.

As others have chimed in, you're really not doing all that much driving, particularly since you don't have to drive back to Dublin.

In Connemara, my favorite hotel is the Cashel House Hotel. It's remote and romantic.

There's a Great Southern Hotel right at Shannon airport (unlike the one at Dublin, it's literally about 200 yards from the airport entrance). It's fairly inexpensive during the week, and then they jack the rates way up on the weekend to hit the Americans flying in and out.

If pnestor is still looking here--B&Bs in the US typically tend to be fairly upscale (obviously some exceptions). Hotels and motels will probably be cheaper if you're traveling. And the hosts at American B&Bs tend to be pretty overbearing (yes, I know there are exceptions) and talk endlessly.

strass

We didn't get to Connemara, sadly.

I just know that we were disappointed in Galway. We preferred the smaller towns. Dublin was fun, and I'm glad we spent two days there, but that was all of the "city" that we needed on our trip. Just us!

Itallian_Chauffer

To pnestor: Everyone has pretty much covered my objections to US B&Bs. Too fancy, and WAY too expensive. Based on our wonderful experiences in Ireland, we 'splurged' on a B&B in the Berkshires, during a "Foliage Tour", back in 2001. It was over $200 per night per couple and the landlady was so persnickity that we still refer to her as 'The B&B Nazi'!

To wojazz3: Oops, my bad. When we stayed at Cregg in '99, it was pre-euro. We paid 45 punt (IEP) PPS. Didn't factor in the conversion! Your figure is probably much more accurrate than mine.
To trajeang: Irish B&B are generally much cheaper than hotels, much more personable and usually the hosts are as visible or invisible as you wish them to be.
Galway is an Irish city. And while it is much more fast-paced than most of the towns and villages, I seriously doubt you will cofuse it for N.Y.C. I would say it is worth a stay

allisonm

Here's another plug for Galway. You can park your car and walk the town. There are wonderful pubs and lots of shopping. (My favorite potter, Judy Green, is here.)You can go to Salthill and walk the promenade. The sunsets over the bay are lovely. While the scenery of Dingle is spectacular, the town itself is small. You would be doing a lot of additional driving to see the penninsula.

hopingtotravel

Having hit some of these spots 3 years ago, I think my husband and I would vote for Connemara over the Dingle Penn any time. Saw your note on Ballynahinch. We ate lunch there and it's a place my husband would choose to spend a couple nights and trout fish if he ever went back. Shabby chic I guess is the best description. A good place to curl up with a book. I've never seen Cashel House but I think it's a good recommendation. Also, Clinton stayed there. We bypassed Galway. However we stayed at St. Cleran's 18 mi south of Galway. It was once the home of John Huston. One of the loveliest country hotels I've ever seen. BTW, I don't think you're tackling too much, but we do like to drive. One day probably isn't enough for Dublin.

Ann41

I'm discovering that B&Bs in the Republic are no longer the deal they used to. A lot of hotels run good midweek specials, and with a lot of standard B&Bs charging up to 50 euro per person, hotels are making a come back.

Italian-we once had to sneak beer and chips into a B&B in Virginia to watch a Notre Dame football game in our room. We knew our hosts would frown upon such an activity, particularly after they yelled at us for sleeping through breakfast (can't imagine that happening at an Irish B&B, where it's hard to get breakfast before 9 a.m. to begin with).

Itallian_Chauffer

To Ann41:
Our B&B Nazi made three of us (of four)remove our "hiking boots" before she would even let us into her house -- she said they weren't "condusive to her floors"! Had we not been required to still pay for the rooms anyway, I would doubtless have told her what she might better do with her floors.

SiobhanP

It's a shame but there are a few narky people who run B&B's. Any unpleaseant experiences I had were in more upmarket B&B's.

One in particular was the Barrow House B&B in Carlow. Its a lovely B&B with feather duvets and was very warm and cosy in the rooms.....but the guy running it was a real uptight jerk. He had lots of small antique silver Knicknacks everywhere and you felt he watched you so you would not steal them. Then when brought to the room we were informed no food was to be brought or eaten in the room. He was really prissy and uptight like we were some 18 year olds renting a room and we would wreck it. Needless to say I bought a bag of chips on my way home with a large coke and ate it in the room and left all the wrappers in the rubbish bin and accidently got ketchup on the bedspread and panicked. my other half fixed the situation and it was fine no sign of ketchup!

The next day he was sniffy with us again (We came in quietly the night before so ?) and did not let us know we could have options for breakfast and just gave me bread as I am a vegetarian. We saw a samll menu on the way out that listed pancakes etc. He was dismissive of his wife in front of customers and I thought she was going to hit him with the frying pan in front of us (I was hoping!)

Upon leaving we brought our bags down and he held out his hand and sais keys...no please nothing. My boyfriend could not believe how rude he was.

Everytime we pass this place we give out about that creep and vow to never stay there again...I hope his wife clobbers him with the pan!