lauramsgarden

Hi, we are planning a trip to Ireland (our first) in May. We will probably fly in and out of Dublin as that is easiest at last search to get nonstops from the Philadelphia area. I was thinking to anchor the trip in Dublin and Galway with one or two other stops in the countryside as bases for exploration. We are thinking 14 nights total. Possible destinations that have intrigued me so far:
1. Foxford (a must as that is where my husband's family hales from)
2. Kilkenny Park
3. Cashel
4. The Burren
5. Skellig Michael
6. boat trip on River Shannon
7. Mount Usher Gardens

but none of that is set in stone. I have my heart set on live Irish music, and we want to delve into history and countryside as much as possible

One limitation is my husband's health issues which manifest as having maybe half the usual tourist's energy/hours in which to explore so our side trips might be shorter than most peoples.

I am aiming to split the hotel stays between half glorious luxury and half on the 4 star comfortable but not over the top level.

I had thought:
4 nights Dublin
4 nights Ashford Castle
3 nights somewhere else in countryside
and 3 .nights in Galway.
But after reading Denisea's trip report I'm wondering if a single countryside base could work. It looked like they roamed far and wide from Adare.

Your advice is most gratefully accepted.

Any suggestions as to good places to anchor our countryside explorations. I am not wedded to any of the sites except Foxford, so any suggestions as to how to organize the explorations and wonderful out of the way places to visit would be most gratefully accepted.

coral22

You will have a wonderful time! We just went in the end May and were blessed with beautiful weather and no crowds. We were also privileged to meet relatives and see my grandparents homesteads. My grandmother grew up about 20 minutes from where you are heading!

I think a lot of what you do will depend on your transportation. Will you hire a driver, rent a car, trains?
You mentioned your husband's health limitations, does that include his mobility? Some of Ireland can be physically challenging.

I think since you mentioned you might have a shorter timespan during the day to tour, you should consider another location. I know Killarney gets a bad rap, but that area is a fantastic jumping off spot for Dingle, Kenmare, Killarney National Park,Torc waterfall, Muckross House, Gap of Dunloe, etc. We stayed at the Lake Hotel which is just minutes south of Killarney towards the park.I highly recommend it! It is so beautiful and serene, you do not experience any of the Killarney activity. Though, at that time of year, there were no crowds anywhere, and we only saw a tourbus or two a day in that area. We loved the restaurant at the hotel and the view. As we get older, we really enjoy eating onsite. It is so nice to have a leisurely dinner and then just walk to the elevator. But one evening we walked into town, shopped and had a delicious hamburger at Laurel's. Believe me, I am usually indifferent to a hamburger but it really tasted great that night. That evening was really pleasant, but that was May. We did stay in Dingle, too, which we also loved.

lauramsgarden

Thanks Coral, I actually meant Killarney Park when I typed Killkeny. I think I am beginning to get a sense of something that might work based on google maps. Start at Ashford, (close to Foxford), down to Galway, then to Killarney and finish in Dublin. It seems that a lot of what we are interested in could be seen that way.

does that make sense?