ireland itinerary
Jul 2nd, 2008, 05:37 PM
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ireland itinerary
1st time visit to Ireland for 11 days August 9. We are renting a car from Shannon. Would love input on this itinerary.
Day1,2 Galway Is 2 days enough? Would like to visit Connemar, killary Fjord, aran islands
day 3,4 Doolin - Burren Cliffs of Moher, Aillwee caves
ferry to kerry?
Day 5 Dingle (2nights needed?)
Slea head dr. investigate the penisula
Day 6,7 Killarney or Kenare
ROK, Killarney national park, ring of beara
Day 8, 9 Kinsale
2 days to play with.
We are interested in hiking and horseback riding.
Any input on this would be great. Also any B&B's recommended realtively inexpensive? We have already looked into the Daley House thanks to this forum.
Thanks for any help.
Day1,2 Galway Is 2 days enough? Would like to visit Connemar, killary Fjord, aran islands
day 3,4 Doolin - Burren Cliffs of Moher, Aillwee caves
ferry to kerry?
Day 5 Dingle (2nights needed?)
Slea head dr. investigate the penisula
Day 6,7 Killarney or Kenare
ROK, Killarney national park, ring of beara
Day 8, 9 Kinsale
2 days to play with.
We are interested in hiking and horseback riding.
Any input on this would be great. Also any B&B's recommended realtively inexpensive? We have already looked into the Daley House thanks to this forum.
Thanks for any help.
Jul 3rd, 2008, 04:23 AM
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calliesgirl,
Congratulations on choosing Ireland as your August travel destination. You've made a wise choice.
Without dissecting your itinerary too much, one can't help but notice a problem concerning Dingle and its environs. A minimum of three days in this region should be mandatory. After all, while it will be quite crowded in August, this part of Ireland is arguably the most scenic - Ireland at its rugged best. If the weather is on your side, be sure to take a ferry ride to the Blasket Islands - very atmospheric and steeped in Ireland's great literary tradition.
Concerning horseback riding, you may want to seek out an episode of PBS's Equitrekking, which features a program on this very activity along the Ring of Kerry. The Ring is justifiably popular, but can be too chock-a-block with tour bus groups during the high season. According to Equitrekking, a horseback ride is a refereshing and highly scenic alternative.
Best of luck.
Congratulations on choosing Ireland as your August travel destination. You've made a wise choice.
Without dissecting your itinerary too much, one can't help but notice a problem concerning Dingle and its environs. A minimum of three days in this region should be mandatory. After all, while it will be quite crowded in August, this part of Ireland is arguably the most scenic - Ireland at its rugged best. If the weather is on your side, be sure to take a ferry ride to the Blasket Islands - very atmospheric and steeped in Ireland's great literary tradition.
Concerning horseback riding, you may want to seek out an episode of PBS's Equitrekking, which features a program on this very activity along the Ring of Kerry. The Ring is justifiably popular, but can be too chock-a-block with tour bus groups during the high season. According to Equitrekking, a horseback ride is a refereshing and highly scenic alternative.
Best of luck.
Jul 3rd, 2008, 07:06 AM
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Hi calliesgirl:
To do a bit of diesecting:
Days 1&2 in Galway. You will not be able to do a lot of touring (Connemara for instance) on day one because of jet lag. If you want to get in Connemara, Aran Islands and some time in Galway, 2 days may not be enough. My thought would be to cut a day from Doolin.
Doolin itself has little to offer during the day, and three good pubs in the evening. If you visit the Aran Islands, you'll get a pretty good feel for a Burren type environment. In August, I think I would spend a night because it will be very crowded durning the day. There are not a lot of B&Bs on Inishmor (you would want to book soon) so it is quite nice in the late afternoon and evening. I would think you could use Doolin as an intermediate stop on the way to Dingle. Add a night on Aran and two in the Galway area. You can fly to the Aran Islands to to maximize your time. It's a 10 minute flight.
I've not stayed in Galway, but in Oughterard which I liked very much. I stayed at the the Waterfront (http://www.galwaytourist.com/details...terfront.shtml) in Galway. The picture on the website is very old and trees have grown up nicely around the place. It sits right on Lough Corrib. The owner even did a load of laundry for us.
Dingle certainly should have more than 1 night. It's roughly 4 hours (depending on your timing to the ferry) to Dingle from Doolin so you would probably arrive midday. There is horseback riding in dingle http://www.dodingle.com/pages/horse_...ony_treks.html
I would be sure to do 2 days and 3 days wouldn't hurt.
I've always stayed at The Shores on the north side of the Peninsula. It's really a beautiful place, 5*. It's not the least expensive by any means, but it's less expensive than many places of lesser quality. It's sits across the road from Brandon Beach, the longest in Ireland. http://www.theshorescountryhouse.com/
In August, I would vote for Kenmare over Killarney (or really any time of year) Killarney will be very crowded. Kenmare will be crowded too, but nothing like Killarny and I find Kenmare to be a much more attractive village for so many reasons.
For a nice, inexpensive place to stay in Kenmare, I'd pick teh Waters Edge, which is just across the River, a reasopnable walk into town and a beautiful view of the bay. http://www.kenmare.eu/watersedge/
The Kenmare area is always good for 2-3 nights so you could easily add a night here.
I haven't stayed in Kinsale for many years. The last time I stayed there was 2003 at the Cephas House which had a great view of the river. I don't have their website.
You'll want a final night near the airport, I'd pick Ennis, a real town with some excellent irish music option. I've stayed out of twon at the Lakeside Country House. Again, a beautiful location (http://www.lakeside.ie/)
Hope this is helpful.
Bill
To do a bit of diesecting:
Days 1&2 in Galway. You will not be able to do a lot of touring (Connemara for instance) on day one because of jet lag. If you want to get in Connemara, Aran Islands and some time in Galway, 2 days may not be enough. My thought would be to cut a day from Doolin.
Doolin itself has little to offer during the day, and three good pubs in the evening. If you visit the Aran Islands, you'll get a pretty good feel for a Burren type environment. In August, I think I would spend a night because it will be very crowded durning the day. There are not a lot of B&Bs on Inishmor (you would want to book soon) so it is quite nice in the late afternoon and evening. I would think you could use Doolin as an intermediate stop on the way to Dingle. Add a night on Aran and two in the Galway area. You can fly to the Aran Islands to to maximize your time. It's a 10 minute flight.
I've not stayed in Galway, but in Oughterard which I liked very much. I stayed at the the Waterfront (http://www.galwaytourist.com/details...terfront.shtml) in Galway. The picture on the website is very old and trees have grown up nicely around the place. It sits right on Lough Corrib. The owner even did a load of laundry for us.
Dingle certainly should have more than 1 night. It's roughly 4 hours (depending on your timing to the ferry) to Dingle from Doolin so you would probably arrive midday. There is horseback riding in dingle http://www.dodingle.com/pages/horse_...ony_treks.html
I would be sure to do 2 days and 3 days wouldn't hurt.
I've always stayed at The Shores on the north side of the Peninsula. It's really a beautiful place, 5*. It's not the least expensive by any means, but it's less expensive than many places of lesser quality. It's sits across the road from Brandon Beach, the longest in Ireland. http://www.theshorescountryhouse.com/
In August, I would vote for Kenmare over Killarney (or really any time of year) Killarney will be very crowded. Kenmare will be crowded too, but nothing like Killarny and I find Kenmare to be a much more attractive village for so many reasons.
For a nice, inexpensive place to stay in Kenmare, I'd pick teh Waters Edge, which is just across the River, a reasopnable walk into town and a beautiful view of the bay. http://www.kenmare.eu/watersedge/
The Kenmare area is always good for 2-3 nights so you could easily add a night here.
I haven't stayed in Kinsale for many years. The last time I stayed there was 2003 at the Cephas House which had a great view of the river. I don't have their website.
You'll want a final night near the airport, I'd pick Ennis, a real town with some excellent irish music option. I've stayed out of twon at the Lakeside Country House. Again, a beautiful location (http://www.lakeside.ie/)
Hope this is helpful.
Bill
Jul 4th, 2008, 05:05 AM
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Thank you Bill and Explorer B. We will know tweek our stay to include 2 nights (at least) in DIngle possibly 3 in Galway. The horsebacki riding wabsite was most helpful and I put in a request for The WatersEdge in Kenmare
Jul 4th, 2008, 09:07 AM
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Just a brief comment on Galway, following up on what Bill said. The Aran Islands (or, let's say, Inis Mor) will take you a full day (or most of one) considering getting there and back. One possibility would be to spend one of your nights there. However, I don't know whether you'd be able to book a room this late.
Jul 6th, 2008, 03:40 PM
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Callies,
Kinsale would be a terrific way to conclude your Irish getaway. It's a beautifully situated town, with some fine, upscale eateries. When you settle in, take a walk along Scilly to Charles Fort. There's a nice pub/retaurant located just before you arrive at the fort. You can enjoy your pint with Kinsale Harbor spread out before you.
I've not stayed in Kinsale for six or seven years, but I have fond memories of The Moorings, a small, modern accommodation that features harbor views. It was quite nice.
With Kinsale as your base, make an effort to spend a day exploring West Cork. There are countless attractive villages and an even greater number of smashing seaside views. If the weather's on your side, a day on West Cork can make for a memorable day of sightseeeing.
Best of luck.
Kinsale would be a terrific way to conclude your Irish getaway. It's a beautifully situated town, with some fine, upscale eateries. When you settle in, take a walk along Scilly to Charles Fort. There's a nice pub/retaurant located just before you arrive at the fort. You can enjoy your pint with Kinsale Harbor spread out before you.
I've not stayed in Kinsale for six or seven years, but I have fond memories of The Moorings, a small, modern accommodation that features harbor views. It was quite nice.
With Kinsale as your base, make an effort to spend a day exploring West Cork. There are countless attractive villages and an even greater number of smashing seaside views. If the weather's on your side, a day on West Cork can make for a memorable day of sightseeeing.
Best of luck.
