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My husband and I are taking our grown children and spouses to Ireland in August. He'd like to go to Newmarket on Fergus to see his father's family and Ballina in County Mayo to visit his mother's birthplace as well. We'd also like to see the usual sights: Ring of Kerry, Cliffs of Moher, castles etc. Here are a couple of questions:
Do we rent a large 9 passenger van to hold us and our luggage, or do we rent 2 cars for the 6 of us? My husband doesn't want a chauffeur or a bus tour. We drove in Ireland in the late 70's and know the roads are narrow.
Any suggestions for a self guided tour group that will book us rooms along the way? We'll need 3 bedrooms at each site. We are going the first week of August and plan to stay about 8 nights. I'd like the accommodations all set up before we leave the USA.
Should we fly into Shannon or Dublin?
Any suggestions would be welcome! Thank you!
Traveling with a small group in Ireland
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I would do 2 cars because:
1) that way the whole group won;t be joined at the hip the entire time
2)you won;t be trying to drive and park a large vehicle in limited spaces
Also - in a 9 passenger van you might that 6 people and their luggage are awfully squashed unless you are VERY light packers
For the things you list that you want to see, I would fly into and out of Shannon. Newmarket on Fergus is just up the pike; we have stayed there on first nights and last nights. It might make a good first night's stay while recovering from jetlag and there are plenty of things to do in the area.
I'd definitely book 2 compact cars. Cheaper than a large van, easier to park/drive, and gives you flexibility if any of you want to do something different on one or more days. Say 2 want to play golf and 3 or 4 want to shop/sightsee. Or some want to do along-ish hike and others want a lazy day . . . 2 cars can solve/prevent lots of issues.