My husband and I just booked our flight for Shannon (May 30-June 6), but I'm wondering if we need to book our B&Bs in advance? I hate the thought of "having" to get to a certain town by a certain time to make our reservations. Ireland seems to be the type of place you want to savor - not rush through. Am I going to be sleeping in my car if I don't make reservations? I do figure I need to make first and last nights' reservations in or around Shannon.

Also, are check-in times similar to U.S.? We arrive at 6:30AM and I NEVER sleep on planes so I know I'll want a shower/nap. I'd like to check in early.

Amanda

Hi A,

Of course, you can spend part of each day searching for a B&B that you like at a reasonable price, but why waste vacation time when you can do it on the internat?

I don't think that you are going to find a B&B that will have your room ready by 08:00 unless you make arrangements in advance.

I have found that any tourist office will be able to find you a room in their area. The rub is they are usually only in the larger towns and tourist areas. In the out of the way villages try the local Pub for informations on where to get a room. For your first night try the B&B's around Bunratty. They will have folks leaving early to catch planes going home and with prior reservations you may be able to get in around 11 or 12. Have fun

Hi Annabellee,

Do you have your itinerary pretty well set? If you do, I would go ahead and check out the BandBs in the areas, and book them.

We are going to Ireland, May 15th to June 11th, and have our itinerary planned ( We have been 6 times, and know what we want to see). I have already booked most of our accommodations, for we are kinda picky where we stay. The early bird gets the worm, so I request certain rooms. We leave enough time during the day for exploring. We usually stay 2 to 4 nights in one area.

That said, it really depends upon your preference of that type of travel or "winging it". May, June is still a busy time in Ireland, but not as busy as July, August. We always do May or September, because of that.

Hope this is of some help.

Helen

Hi,
You might consider booking your B&B for the night you are actually flying. When you arrive you can head straight to your B&B where your room is waiting. You will also be able to have the breakfast you paid for in the room price. Seems extravagent until you think of the price for the entire trip and you are only adding a few dollars to get a great start!
Jean

We just returned from Ireland a few weeks ago. We had booked our B&B last Feb. when we planned the trip. We evplained to our hosts where we were comming from and about what time we would be arriving. We stayed a 4 B&BS and never had a problem. Have a great time.

Here's a reprint of a post I made on another thread:
"I guess this should go into a 'General-Ireland' category under 'why stay at B&B's.' Hotels usually have a 'Check-in' time that might leave you 'hanging' from an early morning airport arrival until 2-or-3 PM. B&B's are more likely to allow you to check in early. On the flip side, B&B's are more likely to get you breakfast for an early morning departure (7:00 AM or so) than Hotels that depend on a restaurant staff that comes on duty at 7:30 or 8:00 AM."

We had made a reservation (from the U.S.) at Rose Cottage B&B in Ennis: We called from Shannon and Carmel Daniels told us we could check-in aroune 9:00 AM so we took a nap and were ready to 'hit the ground running' around 1:00 PM.

Te Ennis Spring Music Festival (Fleadh Nua) should have wrapped up by 30 May but there should still be musicians around, waiting for the next

Sunday, We went to 11:00 AM Mass at SS. Peter & Paul Cathedral in Ennis and walked to the Queen's Hotel at the foot of Abbey Street. The Hotel has a Carvery lunch, even on Sundays.

Then we went next door to Cruise's and enjoyed an impromptu Trad Irish music session for a couple of hours (pints).

To reply to your quesion: I think you should make a list of the B&B's where you plan to stay (and their Tel. #'s), buy an Eircom phone card (the kind with the I/C Chip on the card), and call the day before you plan to arrive.

I see you have a car. There is a very nice Best WEstern ( I forget the rest of the name)where we stayed, fairly close to Bunratty and not far from Shannon. It is quiet, restful and has all the ammentities, large bed/or 2 beds, etc and a good place for the first night. B&B's , which are not as private, can follow later in the trip if you like.. You might negotiate with them for room occupancy in very early morning....OR as "cavan97" says above: book the room for the night before.
Many people think it is a good idea to stay up and awake the first day, (but I admit it is sometimes difficult)., go to bed early at night and be ready for the next morning. Walk in the sunshine, eat a meal etc. Still it would be nice to have a room, wouldn't it?

Thanks for all the responses. I think I'll email the first B&B and see what their options are.

Thanks again!

I admit to skimming the responses, so forgive me if I'm making a point that's already been made. But do you plan to be spending time in the pubs looking for music in the evenings? If so, I highly recommend that you reserve ahead. While it's true that there are lots of B&Bs in Ireland, not all of them are going to be walking distance from the city centre. And, trust me, you really don't want to be driving the roads in Ireland when it's dark and you've had a couple of pints!