Our Wonderful Irish Celebration. Part 1 (long!)

I'm so glad you enjoyed your trip, and I can't wait to read more! My cousin and I are leaving in a few weeks for our first trip to Ireland. We're also flying into Shannon and renting from Dan Dooley, so thanks for the heads up on the construction. Did you rent with a mastercard? Any problems?

Prariegal, we did use a MC but I chickened out! I went ahead and paid for the CDW and the extra insurance. We hadn't had any trouble the first time we went. But we had a teeny tiny car. This time there were four of us so had to get a larger car. I was so worried we'd have scratches, side mirror damage, etc. And I didn't want to have to deal with claims through our credit card. I also didn't want the 1500Euro hold on our card. Our only platinum MC is our Capital One. As they are also the card with the best currency conversion fees, we wanted to be able to use it for the trip. As it turns out, we had plenty of leeway. Could have had the hold and still plenty of room for our purchases. But I just didn't want to have to worry about it.

We wound up returning the car without any damage! Which, of course, is good in that we didn't have to pay the Euro100 deductable. But also makes me second guess my decision about the insurance. You know though, it was a wonderful trip, what's done is done. I'm not going to waste time and effort worrying about what I could have done differently. So I'll just store away what I learned in case we're ever lucky enough to make the trip again!

Having said all of that, I wouldn't begin to try to advise someone else on insurance. I think you have to read everything you can and then decide what makes you comfortable.

Have a wonderful trip! There's so much there to enjoy!

Hey CAPH!!
I'm thrilled you all got to go! Looking forward to the future installments!

Caph! I found your report!

Glad the tire was caught. Smart move on the part of your husband, getting a replacement tire!

I can't wait to read more -- I'm loving every detail. You must have taken copious notes, lol. Must have been a little difficult with all of that Guinness.

Thanks for the info, CAPH! I've read a ghastly number of threads here on the car rental issue. We've booked an automatic with our gold mastercard, and we're planning on going ahead with that and declining the insurance. We've talked to mastercard and they assure us that all will be well, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

It's not as hard to remember details when it's only a 5 night trip, STW! And the Guinness was only at night, lol! Sure could go for one right about now, tho'!

Started a new post for this but have been advised to add it to this one.

Day Two

We all slept in a bit the next morning. By the time we’d finished breakfast, it was 10:00 or so. My brothers had decided ahead of time that, if the weather was reasonably good , they wanted to drive up into Connemara that day. My husband and I wanted to take that route on our way to Westport. My brother’s girlfriend wasn’t feeling well and decided to stay behind. But the other three headed off on their drive. We headed back in to town.

Our first stop was the church of St. Nicholas of Myra which dates from 1320. It was less ornate than I’d expected. But it was very interesting and well worth a stop. According to Fodor’s Ireland 2006, legend has it that Columbus stopped there to pray on his way to the New World. I didn’t see any mention of that in the church. But there is a crusader buried there. And Cromwell’s troops used the church to stable their horses.

After that, we decided it was time to start seriously checking out the stores! We found lots of good, interesting ones and took care of most of the gifts we needed to bring home. Thomas Dillon, where we bought a claddagh necklace for my MIL, had a little side room they’d made into a “museum”. There was a button to push to hear a recording about the history of the claddagh ring. My kids thought it was boring. I thought it was very interesting! But probably the best shop we found was the one in the Tourist Board office! They had lots of nice, reasonably priced things for all those “small” gifts everyone seems to have on their list.

Just as we’d decided that it was time to find a place for lunch, we bumped into my brother’s GF. The five of us wound up at Murty Rabbitt’s. This pub dates from 1872 and has a very nice, dark wood, comfortable, “pubby” atmosphere. We had a light lunch of soup and my husband and I split a sandwich. The soup was cream of potato and leek. It was all very good, if a bit pricey.

We spent another couple of hours in the shops and then went back to the B&B to rest a bit.

By the time we got back out, we were cutting it close for finding a place to eat. We went in two or three places that had already stopped serving and a fish and chips place with a horrendous line to order and no open tables. All the while wandering around in a fairly heavy rain again. We were starting to get worried, but finally noticed a pub that appeared to still be serving. We sat down in a quiet, pleasant room with a wonderfully fragrant peat fire going. Imagine our surprise when we realized that we were in a different section of the Front Door, the place we’d eaten the night before! But again the food and service were great. And, if anything, we enjoyed it even more than the previous night! ( I forgot to mention that we split two very yummy desserts the first night. One was apple pie, the other a chocolate and ice cream concoction.)

I think the pub we went to afterwards was Tigh Cioli. It was right across from Taafe’s. It was quite crowded when we got there. Although we did manage to find seats for all of us, they weren’t together. We started out in the very back where, unfortunately, we couldn’t hear the music. But, as the night wore on, we were able to make our way up toward the front. The music that night was fine. But nothing outstanding. And I wouldn’t be a bit surprised to hear that, besides the bartenders and musicians, there wasn’t a single Irish person in the place! There was a large table of European tourists near us in the back. And a large group of New York City policeman near us when we got to the front! A lot of people seemed to be wandering back and forth to Taafe’s. But it was just as crowded and the music didn’t seem to be any better.

Day Three

I had intended to address the B&B at this point. But I saw Cristi’s report on just the B&Bs and really liked it. So I’m going to steal her idea! I’ll do a separate post on the three B&Bs we stayed in during our trip.

That morning after breakfast, the two parts of our group set out in different directions. My brothers headed straight for Cong. We meandered our way along the coastal route through Connemara. Fortuanately, the weather had taken a definite turn for the better. We had a very nice day for our drive.

We left Galway by way of Salthill. The promenade looked really nice. And I can see that as being an area I’d enjoy staying in on another trip. But, as I’ll get into more in the B&B post, I think College Road was the right choice for this trip.

During the morning, we pulled off the road in various places for photo ops. But we didn’t stop in any of the towns along the way. As we pulled into Roundstone, we decided it was time to stop for lunch. What a pretty little town! We ate at a nice little seafood place called O’Dowd’s Bar and Restaurant. It had a very warm, comfortable feel, dark wood paneling and floors. We were seated in a small room at the very end. We were the only ones in that room and had a gorgeous view out the window. The food was wonderful! We shared two appetizers; a half dozen raw oysters and a half dozen poached with a lemon dill sauce. The raw ones were wonderfully fresh (although my son missed the cocktail sauce served with them at home!). But we were especially taken with the poached ones. Fantastic! We each had a bowl of very good seafood chowder. Between the atmosphere, the view and the food, that was a lunch we’ll remember for a long, long time!

After lunch we went in a little grocery store with a post office at the back. The kids picked up candy and potato chips (I should say crisps!). My husband bought stamps for post cards. The kids loved the candy bars they got in Ireland. Especially the Flake bars. We all enjoyed the unusual flavors of potato chips. One of my brothers fell in love with the Walkers Sensations Roasted Onion and Balsamic Vinegar. Yum!

Then we were back on our way toward Westport. We made two stops that afternoon, one at Kylemore Abbey and one at Croagh Patrick. It really was a nice day’s drive. We especially enjoyed the scenery around Killary Harbour. I was so glad that we had good weather and had a chance to really see Connemara. When my husband and I were in Ireland in 1982, the one bad weather day we had was the day we drove through Connemara!

One very minor regret. I kind of wish we’d taken the Sky Road near Clifden. I saw the sign as we were passing through. But it wasn’t until we’d gotten a ways past it that I looked at the map and saw just what it was. However, as it turns out, we probably really didn’t have the time anyway. Had we taken that road, we might have felt we needed to cut out either Kylemore Abbey or Croagh Patrick. And I enjoyed both. Even though we only stopped in the parking lot to take pictures from the bottom of Croagh Patrick!

I’d forgotten to get directions to our B&B in Westport. So we had to stop to ask and it took us a while to find it, even though it wound up being in a very convenient spot. It must have been 6:00 or so by the time we finally got there. My brothers had beaten us by an hour or so.

We chatted with the owner for a little bit, relaxed in the guest lounge (with a really nice view) for a while with my brother and our family friend. And then we got ready and headed out for dinner. Margaret, the B&B owner, had recommended the bar at the Wyatt Hotel. What a great suggestion! First of all, they served until 9:00! We sat in a small front room with the bar. It only had 3 or 4 tables and a cheery fire. Very nice! We enjoyed the food too. My shepherds pie wasn’t anything special. But it was served with a dish of excellent steamed veggies – carrots and something else that I think may have been parsnips. Really good! My husband had a salmon cake that he really enjoyed. Our daughter had soup and a wrap. Our son had a burger with emmenthaler cheese and I think either mushrooms and/or bacon. He said it was very good. The kids shared a piece of strawberry cheesecake for dessert. Instead of the plain cheesecake with strawberry topping that we most often see here, this cheesecake had strawberries all through it. They really liked it.

After dinner we headed over to Matt Molloy’s. We got there a good half an hour, forty-five minutes before the music started. Six of the eight of us were able to get seats in the back room where the musicians were going to be. There was a very interesting older gentleman, probably late sixties, sitting at the table next to us. Nearly anything anyone said would cause him to burst into song! I was totally amazed that anyone could know the lyrics to so many songs! Once the music began, he sang a couple of songs with the musicians. He was a real treat!

The musicians sort of drifted in one by one. When they started playing, there were three or four. By the time we left, there must have been six or eight of them! It was very good, very traditional instrumental music. Except, of course, for the couple of songs sung by the aforementioned gentleman.

Fairly early on, my brothers went next door to the Porterhouse to check out the situation there. They wound up coming back and urging us to join them there. The music there wasn’t necessarily any better. It was only three musicians, very good ones as were the ones at Matt Molloy’s.. But the ones at the Porterhouse were much more entertaining, talking to the audience and getting us involved. I’m very glad we went to Matt Molloy’s. It was very interesting and the music was good. But the craic was much better at the Porterhouse! Because of the tone of the musicians, the crowd was much livelier. What a fun evening!

Caph, how did you find the driving in Ireland? Did your kids have any favorite moments on the trip?

I'm looking forward to reading more when I return from my trip!

Take care!

CAPH52,

Just had to "chime in" about the Porterhouse in Westport. I was in Westport last June for just one night and had an absolute blast at the Porterhouse. In fact we stayed there so long, we never go over to Matt Molloy's!

Also tasted my first Baby Guinness there...YUMMO!

Can't wait to hear the rest of your report.

Slainte

Oh CAPH, it is so good to read this, remembering the worries that came before and to hear about your riding along in Ireland and having shepherds pie by a fire...I am so glad for you all !
And I like the Trip Report too

Hello Caph, like dear Scarlett I am so happy to read your trip report! Your problem with the ATM at the airport is why I always like to have some Euros with me when I fly to Italy, even though some think it is not necessary.

Your trip report is wonderful..and as you know I was thrilled when I read that you and your dear husband and your family were going to take this journey to Ireland. Well deserved indeed.

I so look forward to your next installment of your ventures in Ireland. Best wishes!

Caph, This is my first time back to Fodor's after relocation. Took weeks to get in my Condo and get my computer up and running. What a treat to read your trip report of my favorite place on earth. I'll have to go back to read about the problems before the trip. Glad you and your family enjoyed your trip and you are doing a great job of reporting back to us. Thanks, Joan

Thanks for the feedback, guys! I'm hoping to get the next installment posted this evening. I know it's really long so I appreciate your bearing with my verbosity!

Day Four

I enjoyed every moment of our trip. Well, at least once we left the airport grounds! But, without a doubt, day four was my favorite! The weather was fantastic. And the scenery that day was some of the most beautiful I’ve ever experienced.

After a great breakfast in the wonderful breakfast room at Adare House (more about that in the B&B post), we set out, following my brothers, for Achill Island.

Our first stop was Burrishoole Abbey. We hadn’t really meant to stop there. I’d mentioned to my brother that I wanted to stop at the Grace O’Malley castle three miles farther down the road. But when he saw the sign for the abbey, he thought that must be where I wanted to stop. It was a happy accident! We all really enjoyed walking around the abbey ruins, taking pictures. I was somewhat surprised to see that the abbey is still being used as a cemetery. There was, sadly, a fairly recent grave of a 26 year old man. It caught my eye because of the pint of Guinness and the soccer (football!) player on his tombstone!

We did stop again briefly at the castle. But the abbey had proved to be much more interesting! By the way, Grace O’Malley was a very influential 16th century woman often referred to as the “Pirate Queen”. I picked up a biography of her (called “The Pirate Queen”!) in Galway. Wow! What a woman! She was an almost exact contemporary of Elizabeth 1 and lived quite a life. But I digress...

We basically followed my brother the whole day. So I don’t know the details of exactly which routes we took. But I do know that we turned off the N59 and took a more scenic coastal road before we got to the island. And some of what we saw then was just as stunning as the island itself.

Shortly after we drove onto the island we ran across Patten’s Lounge Bar. Patten is my maiden name and, of course, my brothers’ last name. So, of course, we took several pictures of the three of us sitting on the bench in front! Too bad they weren’t open!

A ways down the road, we stopped at a cemetery in the yard of a church which had been established by Grace O’Malley. It was a short distance from her castle ( obviously, the second we’d seen that day). We found lots of Pattens in the cemetery. We, of course, knew we were of Irish decent. But that line came to the US so long ago that we’ve never known from what part of Ireland they’d come. And Patten doesn’t seem to be a common name in many parts of Ireland. So we were quite happy to run across the name. We’d previously known that our grandmother’s family was from Westport. (And had, the night before, taken pictures of a business in Westport with her name!)

The next few hours were just magical. The scenery is amazing and there were so few other people around. Of course, the down side of that is that, with most things closed for the season, it wasn’t easy finding a place for lunch. But we did find a perfectly adequate coffee shop in Dooagh. So it was well worth the small inconvenience in return for the solitude!

One of many highlights was walking on the beach at Keem Strand. Although there were people there when we pulled up and others who came as we were leaving, we were alone most of the time. Just incredible!

We would have liked to visit the abandoned village at Slievenmore. But my brother couldn’t figure out how to drive very close to it. And the beautiful weather was starting to deteriorate. We all decided that it was time to head back to Westport in hopes of getting there in time to hit some of the shops. My brother still needed to pick up some things for his kids. And we really hadn’t had much time to check out Westport itself.

It was late afternoon by the time we got back. But we did have time to walk around the stores for an hour or so before they began to close. And we took a walk by the river.

By the time we were ready to head out for dinner that night, it was raining. Because we were slightly closer to the harbour area than the city centre, and because we’d “done” the city centre the night before, we decided to head the other direction. We’d been told that there was at least one place in that area that might have music that night.

We wound up eating at The Towers. It was your basic pub. I thought the food was good, some of the others thought it was just adequate. I had seafood lasagna with chips and a nice little salad. (One of the things we noticed is that everywhere we went small salads were served on the plate with the entrees. I think pretty much every one I had was an exceptionally good salad, not just your basic lettuce, tomato, cucumber mix.) My husband and son had lamb hot pot, which they enjoyed. Our daughter had beef lasagna and chips. The kids split a really decadent slice of chocolate cake served with ice cream. Very good! My brother’s GF and the family friend had Bailey’s cheesecake which they said was very good.

On the way to the pub/restaurant, we’d stopped in the place we’d been told might have music. Turns out we were out of luck. So, when we asked for our check, I asked our waitress if she knew of anywhere else that might have music that night. She thought about it for a moment and then said, “Let me call my uncle. Sometimes he plays at The Quays, just down the street.” Well, he wasn’t playing that night. But he was there and said that, if we came down, he’d play a couple of songs for us!

We lucked into another very special evening! The uncle, Jimmy, was wonderful! He used to be a security cop at Dublin airport. He’d fairly recently retired to Westport to be near his sister’s family. And, apparently, he often plays his guitar at The Quays. We had our own private fantastic little show that evening. As his niece, Maria, had told us, he’s quite an entertainer. He sang several songs for us, giving us commentary with each. We each chipped in money to give him but wound up buying him a few pints instead!

Part way through all of this, another gentleman, who was sitting at the bar, broke out his guitar. So in between Jimmy’s songs, he sang several songs! And he continued to sing after Jimmy left. At some point another gentleman, whom we’d seen the night before at Matt Molloy’s, brought out his banjo and joined in! It was amazing!

My biggest complaint about trying to catch music was the crowds. Oh, I know it was to be expected. But I really don’t like crowds. Well, that night, crowds were definitely not a factor! There were a few people in the other room of the pub. But other than a couple of people sitting at the bar, we had that room to ourselves.

I’m going to digress again here to mention something I’d posted a thread about before we left. I’d been warned that Ireland has a strictly enforced law against anyone under 18 being in the pubs after 9:00. I was very concerned as our son is 16. Well, it turned out to be absolutely no problem! We were out until closing two or three of our five nights, and quite late the others. Never did anyone say a word to us about his being there. The night we were in the Porterhouse, there were other kids around his age also there with their families. And that night at The Quays there were two very young kids in the other room. I believe they were still there when we left.

I don’t think that I even need to say that we loved Westport! I would think that that’s quite clear!

Sounds like we were in Ireland at the same time! Glad you got to go in spite of difficulties. We so enjoyed our time together traveling as a family. Wasn't it such a pleasant surprise on those days when the sun showed its face! Enjoying reading about your experiences.
Cristi

Thanks, Cristi, I noticed the overlap too. And I also enjoyed reading your report!

CAPH52-
Great report! I popped on for a few minutes after another few months MIA (job overload!) and was really happy to see your report. I had wondered what you had decided on the CDW, I felt the same way, better safe than sorry!

I can't wait to hear where you stayed and will now take a bit longer here (who needs sleep!) just so I can read up on some of what I've been missing lately!

You (and Cristi too!) have written such interesting reports it has made me vow to finish up mine! Thank you for bringing back the sweet memories of my trip as I read through yours!
Dawn

I'm glad you enjoyed it, Dawn! I'm just about finished with day 5 and will then do the B&Bs.

Hope you were able to catch at least a few ZZZ's before you had to greet the day! But, long as my report is, if that didn't put you to sleep you must not have been very tired!

I enjoyed your report very much too, Dawn. And am looking forward to the rest of it!

Congrats on a successful trip. Glad to hear that it all worked out and that it sounds as if y'all felt it worth the pre-trip aggravation.

Bob

welcome back here and to your home. You've been through a difficult time so this trips great outcome was especially a welcome tale for you or for us to hear.
Have a lovely Easter.

Thanks, Bob. We couldn't have done it without your help! All your advice was much appreciated. I hope your upcoming trip is wonderful!

Thanks to you too, Cigalechanta! And a Happy Easter to you as well!

Make that, "I hope your trip was wonderful too, Bob!"

Day 5

After another wonderful breakfast, my husband, the kids and I started out towards Knock. The others headed for the Burren.

Because we were planning to be in County Mayo, back when my husband’s health problems were still unresolved, I’d promised myself that, if all went well, we’d visit the Shrine at Knock to give thanks. I’m certainly not anyone’s idea of a devout Catholic. But my 12 years of Catholic school do still influence me somewhat! I thought for sure I’d wind up being talked out of it as Knock was in the other direction from Achill Island and therefore not convenient to do the same day. But stopping there the next morning worked out very well.

We made a couple of wrong turns getting into Knock and decided we’d better get directions. Unwittingly, my husband parked beside the parish church next to the shrine. There was construction at the front of the church so we didn’t realize that it was a church! I offered to run in the religious artifacts shop across the street to ask directions.

The sweetest little old nun came out from behind the counter and walked me to the door. She stood very close, put her hand on my arm and asked me whether I knew the story. When I said I knew bits and pieces of it, she proceeded to tell me the story in great detail. What a joy she was! I was very touched by her. Fortunately, she was nothing like Sister Charlette, my fourth grade teacher whose macabre stories still haunt me!

She told us that though we weren’t supposed to, if we weren’t going to be long, we could leave our car right where it was. So we did! We had a nice tour of the church where the apparition occurred as well as of the shrine. And, of course, I prayed for all Fodorites! We also earned some brownie points by picking up some religious souvenirs for relatives!

When we went back into the shop where I’d met the nun, I was very happy to find that they had a Celtic Cross I’d really liked at Kylemore Abbey. The Abbey gift shop had been sold out. Besides being glad to find it, I was happy to be able to give them some business.

Unfortunately, upon leaving Knock, we seemed to drive right into our own personal rain shower. We noticed that every time we’d stop, the rain would clear. But as soon as we set out again, within moments we’d drive right back into it! That happened all the way to and through the Burren.

Somewhere along the way, we stopped at a castle ruin into which the kids were actually able to climb. They said it was pretty gross from the mold, etc. But they got quite a kick out of it. And we got some nice pictures!

As we looked ahead on the map, we decided that Kinvara looked like a good stopping point for lunch. I knew that one of the medieval banquets was held in a castle there. So I figured we could at least get a look at the castle. Purely by chance, we found a parking space just down from Keough’s, one of the restaurants (a pub, really) listed in the Footprints Ireland guide. As it was raining at the time, we didn’t want to wander around too much looking for a place. And, for the most part, Keough’s turned out to be a very good choice. The food was excellent. One thing I’d remembered fondly from our earlier trip and not had this time was a prawn cocktail. I hadn’t seen them on the menu anywhere we’d eaten. Well, not only did Keough’s have a prawn and apple cocktail, they also had an open face prawn sandwich served with Marie Rose sauce. The sauce was what I’d most enjoyed. So I went for the sandwich and it was really good! It was served on Irish brown bread and came with a very good salad. My husband had an open face smoked salmon sandwich that he really enjoyed. Our son really liked the roast pork. And our daughter was very happy with the pannini she ordered. All the way around, the food and service were wonderful. But the glow was dimmed somewhat by the fact that we were charged in dollars. When I asked to be charged in Euro instead, the woman tried to convince me that the slip just showed the amount in both currencies. That clearly was not the case. But, as it was literally only a couple of dollars difference, I didn’t think it was worth getting nasty over. It’d been such a nice meal up to that point!

By the time we came out of Keough’s, the sun was out again. So we took the opportunity to walk up to the bay and take some pictures of Dunquaire Castle.

One somewhat interesting digression. I’ve noticed that the map, a Michelin Great Britain and Ireland Atlas, shows Kinvarra, two rs. All the guide books spell it with one.

We got back onto the N67 and took it to the R480. We turned on to the road for Aillwee Cave still debating whether it was something we wanted to do. On the one hand, it was raining again and a cave seemed like a good thing to do in the rain. And the kids had never really been in a cave. But, on the other hand, we knew we were starting to push things time-wise. So we decided against it. As we approached the cave, we saw a woman come rushing out, pamphlet in hand! It must have been a slow day there!

We drove on, looking for the two dolmens shown on our map. We missed the first one. But, thanks to the cars parked along the road, it would have been nearly impossible to miss the one at Poulnabrone! And, thank goodness that was the case as we really enjoyed that stop. Rain and all!
Unfortunately, that was the only time we got out into the Burren. But at least we did see that much. And, of course, saw a lot of it from the car.

At the intersection of the R480 and the R476, we stopped again to take a few pictures of Leamaneh Castle. After that, our next stop was the Cliffs of Moher.

For some reason, when my husband and I were in Ireland in ‘82, we didn’t stop at the Cliffs. I guess it was a time thing as we’d stayed in Westport one night and had reservations for the Bunratty banquet the next. That was a wonderful trip too. But, in hindsight, we tried to cover way too much ground in far too short of a time.

Anyway, I’m so very glad we didn’t skip the Cliffs this time! Stopping there may be the touristy thing to do. But, wow, they’re magnificent! By the time we got there, the rain had stopped. But it was extremely windy. In fact, I think it was one of the strongest winds I’ve ever experienced. However, we still managed to get some great pictures. There was a little bit of a mist that made the whole thing very atmospheric!

From there, we headed towards Ennis where we had reservations for our last night and were to meet up with the rest of our party. I think they were starting to get a little worried about us. We’d checked in with them after our lunch in Kinvara. But hadn’t talked to them since. And they’d arrived in Ennis a good hour or two before us.

After settling in to the B&B, we headed off for dinner. Mary, the proprietress of the B&B, had suggested the bar in the Old Ground Hotel. Not only because of the food, but because she knew they would have music later.

It was a little crowded, we weren’t able to get a table near the rest of our party. But we actually wound up in a pleasant, comfortable spot tucked away at the back of the room. The food was quite good. Two of us ordered a seafood dish. I was a bit disappointed when it turned out to be fried. But it was good, particularly the salmon and the salad. Another of us got a really good roasted chicken dish. And I can’t remember the other entree. But I could never forget the wonderful desserts we shared! One was a sticky toffee pudding served with vanilla ice cream, the other a white chocolate moose served with strawberry ice cream. They were delicious!

But, for the second time that day, I was quite disappointed to be given a charge slip in dollars. I again asked to get it in Euro. The waitress looked very confused, but took it up to the bar. The bartender told her there was nothing they could do about it. Frankly, I felt sorry for the waitress. She was caught in the middle. And I really don’t think she understood. Again, it was a small amount of money and not worth making a scene over.

When we finished eating, it was still a while before the music would start. So we decided to go walk around a bit and then check out Cruise’s Pub. I’d been told about it on Fodor’s and Frommer’s. And my brother had been there the night before the rest of us arrived.

We were lucky enough to get there in time to find seats in one of the small rooms off the bar room. So we made ourselves comfortable and spent the next couple of hours there. I can’t say that it was the best pub experience of the week. The music was nice, but not outstanding. The bar area got so crowded that it was very difficult to be served. And the room we were in was extremely warm due to the peat fire. (Which, I’m sure, would have been very welcome on a cooler evening.) But, fortunately, I think the others enjoyed it more than I did. And I suspect that being so tired by that point had a lot to do with my impressions.

On the way back to the B&B, my brother, my son and I stopped in to the Dunne’s store. It was strange to find a 24 hour department store. And I was somewhat disappointed to learn that, although the store was open, the rest rooms weren’t! My brother was hoping to be able to pick up a beer or two in the grocery section but we were too late for alcohol sales. So my son and I stocked up on candy and chips to bring back!

Day Six

After a very nice breakfast at the B&B, we headed for the airport. Turning in the cars at Dan Dooley was, thankfully, completely uneventful. Both parties were told we had no damage, so of course wouldn’t need to worry about the deductable, and would have the gasoline charge refunded to our cards. We got right on to the shuttle and were taken over to the airport.

At this point, I’d hoped to write just random notes about the trip. But I need to get my thoughts together a little more before I do that.

I hope to get to those random notes eventually. But I realized that I’d better get my B&B report posted before I forget all the details!

I’m going to post this information twice. I’m attaching it to my trip report so that everything is in one place. But I’m also going to post it separately. There always seem to be people looking for just B&B info. This way they can find it easily without having to scroll through my whole report.

We spent our first two nights at A Aaron B&B at 25 College Road in Galway. Before we went, I had some doubts as to whether we were making the right choice in going with College Road over Salthill. And I still think that I’d like to stay in Salthill sometime. But, for this trip, I definitely think College Road was the way to go. It rained the entire time we were in Galway. And a lot of that time, it rained hard! Our B&B was an easy walk into the town centre. And we were very grateful for that!

However, I would not recommend the particular B&B we chose. Fortunately, there are a lot of other ones on College Road!

I made these reservations in early January by e-mail. I, of course, asked about rates and specifically asked whether they took credit cards. Unfortunately, I was having printer problems at the time and later had problems with my e-mail in-box. So some of my correspondence with them was lost.

When I confirmed our reservations, I explained that we would be coming in on an early flight the morning of the 26th and asked what time we could check in. They didn’t ever respond to that question. We arrived around 1:00. Frankly, I got the impression that they weren’t expecting us at all. Although when I asked, the woman said they’d known we were coming. We had reserved a total of three rooms for our party of eight; a family room, one room with one double bed and one room with two single beds. Two of the rooms were ready, the family room wasn’t. So we decided we’d go look for some lunch while they finished. As we were leaving, the owner asked me how we were going to pay. I told her we’d planned to use a credit card. She said they preferred cash!

When we came back from lunch, I explained to her that I’d specifically asked whether they took credit cards in my first e-mail She very pleasantly told me that a credit card was fine.

As for the B&B itself, the rooms were fine. Small but with very comfortable beds. The bathroom was also small but adequate. I’ll give them points for the fact that they had a dispenser for both shampoo and shower gel in the shower stall!

Breakfasts were okay, a typical full Irish breakfast adequately prepared. But they served only margarine which I thought was a little tacky in a country known for it’s dairy products! And the service was not good! The young woman who was apparently in charge would disappear for long periods of time. At one point she was gone for a good twenty minutes! My brother finally went looking for her as they’d not yet ordered their breakfast.

And speaking of inadequate service, our room wasn’t made up the second day. When we’d finally gotten into the room the first day, we realized there was no toilet paper. I went down for some and, as she was giving it to me, the owner told me that extra towels would be brought up in a while. Well, we didn’t see those towels until they were dumped on the floor outside the door the following day!

When we checked out, they did indeed take our credit card. But they charged us in dollars! I can’t say that I was all that surprised. But I told her (the inadequate breakfast person!) that we’d prefer the charge in Euro. She tried to tell me that the slip just showed the amount in both currencies. Even though there was a disclaimer saying that we’d agreed to waive the MC conversion rate and pay a 3% surcharge!

In our e-mail correspondence, I’d been told that we’d be given a break on the family room. We weren’t. Unfortunately, due to the aforementioned problems, I didn’t have a copy of that particular e-mail. Since I couldn’t prove it, I didn’t pursue it.

Fortunately, none of the problems we had were enough to put a damper on our time in Galway. But I certainly would never stay in that particular B&B again!

As for the credit card thing...I realize that merchants pay a fee for credit card transactions. And I certainly respect their right to choose not to take them. But, obviously, they have to be up front about it! And, of course, we could have avoided the whole DCC thing if we’d gone ahead and paid cash. But we still shouldn’t have been put in that position.

As I think I said in my trip report, what bothers me most about a merchant or innkeeper being difficult about the DCC is that it puts the customer in the position of either getting nasty or being taken advantage of. And I really resent that. I’m on vacation, I just want to relax and enjoy myself. It’s not worth getting worked up over a few bucks. But it leaves a bad taste in my mouth!

Fortunately, our B&B experience in Westport was quite different. I have nothing but good to say about it. And I'll get to that soon.

I am delighted you liked Westport. we go there for weekends often and we always have luinch outside on a sunny day at the towers with a pint.

As for food stopping at 8pm. Nearly all pubs do not serve food in the evenings after a certain time. We would go to a restaurant for anywhere between 8-9:30 pm depending on the place and how many of us there are. Pub food is ok but much the same after a while. You will always find small restaurants open to at least 11 on the weekends. I am glad you liked the porterhouse as well its a great spot.

Sounds like a lovely trip.

It was a lovely trip, Siobhan! And I want to thank you for the posts of yours that I read before we went. They were part of what made me feel that Westport was going to be a good choice. And it certainly was!

Sorry to hear of your experience with the B&B on College Road in Galway. I was in Galway last May and stayed at the Petra House B&B on College Road and it was lovely. I know it doesn't help you now, but I would highly recommend Petra House B&B to anyone planning a trip to Galway.

I'm glad you posted your recommendation, LowCountryIslander. As I said, we were happy with the location, just not the B&B. So I'm glad to know of a good choice. Not to mention the fact that knowing of a good place makes it even easier for others to avoid A Aaron!

Our two nights in Westport were spent at Adare House on Quay Rd. And we couldn’t possibly have been happier with our choice! The location is great, about equal distance between the town center and the harbor area. Margaret, the owner, is wonderful! She’s one of those people who immediately sets one at ease. And she was extremely generous with recommendations and driving directions.

We had four rooms, two on either side of the upstairs corridor. My daughter and I had one that faced the front of the house. We had a pleasant but unspectacular view of the street and, just beyond it, a stone wall with a park like area behind it. If I absolutely had to come up with something bad to say it would be that the traffic was slightly noisy in the morning. But, truth to be told, I didn’t notice it until the alarm had already gone off.

The rooms that faced the back of the house had much nicer views. But all of the rooms were nice; homey and light and of a good size. Our bathroom wasn’t large but neither was it cramped. There was a pleasant guest lounge at the end of the hall with a really nice view toward the harbor area. But, without a doubt, the nicest part of the house was the breakfast room. It was glassed in on three sides and had excellent views.

Unlike our experience in Galway, Margaret asked us specifically when we wanted breakfast served. It was served right on time, they were very attentive and the food was very good both mornings. And, speaking of service, our room was made up while we were out exploring!

As if all of this weren’t enough, Adare House was the least expensive of our three B&Bs! There was no problem paying with a credit card and we were charged in Euro without even having to ask! All in all, a wonderful experience!

Topping in case Dawn is interested. Had a hard time finding it as I was searching for the wrong title!

Dawn, I just took the time to read back through this and realized that you'd posted a response right after I posted it. I apologize for forgetting that we'd communicated at the time. But I have to confess that I'm kind of glad that my faulty memory led me to pull this up again. Reading it again brought back so many wonderful memories!

I hope that both of us have as good a time this trip as we did the last!